Asia Triathlon Youth Championships: Hong Kong boys sweep podium, while girls’ gold decided in photo finish
- Zoe Metais edges out friend and training partner Pauline Courret by fraction of a second to take gold in the Youth Women division
- Matthew Chan beats teammates Philip Chu and Gary Wong to first place in Youth Men’s race at Plover Cove
Hong Kong dominated the Asia Triathlon Youth Championships on Sunday, winning five of the six medals up for grabs in the main races at the first international event held in the city since 2018.
There was a clean sweep of the podium in the elite boys’ race, with Matthew Chan Yui-fung leading from start to finish to win in a time of 31 minutes and 17 seconds, ahead of Philip Chu Yan-ho (31:25) and Gary Wong Ka-ho (31:44).
But the real drama of the day was in the girls’ event, where it took the judges more than an hour to decide that Zoe Metais had done just enough to edge out Pauline Courret in the race for gold.
Of the 150 triathletes from Hong Kong, India, Kazakhstan, Singapore, Thailand and Taiwan who gathered in the wet and windy conditions, India’s Prerana Sravan Kumar was the only non-Hongkonger to podium in the elite races, taking bronze behind Metais and Courret in a time of 40:51.
The Hongkongers were almost inseparable from the moment they entered the water at Tai Mei Tuk in Plover Cove, with never more than two-tenths of a second between them across the swim and transitions between the three disciplines.
Racing down the finish chute, the training partners crossed the line in 33:31 having both completed the 2.5km run in 08:22.
“We often race together and we do all our training together, so it wasn’t a surprise,” Metais said. “I actually spend more time with Pauline than I do with my parents, we train all the time and study.”
For Courret, who has competed in triathlons for more than three years, the chance to test her skills against international competitors was welcomed after years of Covid restrictions.
“This was our first home race, so it was extra special,” she said. “It’s always great to compete internationally, but especially when people come here to Hong Kong.
“This was a very different race because of the conditions. We try not to train in the rain because it can be quite dangerous on Hong Kong roads, so being able to see what we can do in conditions like this was a great opportunity.”
Despite “never seeing them do a sprint finish like that”, coach Kate Rutherford said she was not surprised by the dramatic ending to the race.
“They are very competitive,” she said. “But I’m so proud of them both. It’s been really tough getting through Covid, even just trying to find places to train hasn’t been easy.
“We weren’t able to use swimming pools and running tracks were closed, so to get a result like this is amazing.”
Chan, meanwhile, said he was “pretty happy” to finish on the podium in what he said was just his second race.
“Our team performed really well today, we had a smart and strong race,” Chan said. “We’re going up against the big boys now, so it’s a lot harder.”
Silver medallist Chu said while the conditions were tough, he said the home advantage was added incentive.
“It was a tough race, but quite a good one. My swimming improved today and I was smooth on the bike. I also had a nice run.”
Lau Tsun Ling, the assistant coach for Hong Kong Triathlon, said preparations for the race had been good, but even so it was “an amazing result”.
Courret, Metais and Chan now turn their attentions to the 2022 Asia Triathlon Cup in Manama, Bahrain, next month where they will represent Hong Kong in their final race of the season.
