Switzerland’s triathlete supreme
When Nicola Spirig claimed a nailbiting victory in the women’s triathlon at London 2012 it was rich reward for a lifetime dedicated to sport.
Photo-finish
The London 2012 women’s triathlon attracted a large crowd to Hyde Park, where the event began with the 1,500m swim in the Serpentine lake. With no firm favourite among the 55-strong field, the race promised to be an exciting one, and so it proved. The medals were only decided during the last of the four laps of the road running leg, when Switzerland’s Nicola Spirig, Norway’s Lisa Norden and Erin Densham of Australia broke clear of the field. The destination of the gold medal came down to a sprint finish between Spirig and Norden, with both athletes taking the tape in a time of 1:59.48. Following a lengthy deliberation, the officials awarded Spirig the gold, ruling that her torso was just ahead of Norden’s on the line.
A proud moment
“It still hasn’t sunk in that I’m the Olympic champion, but it feels just amazing,” said an elated Spirig afterwards. “There are other things in my life, but as far as my sport’s concerned this is the greatest result I could have ever imagined. I feel so proud and I think I deserve it.”
The triathlon trial
The daughter of two PE teachers, Spirig competed in her first triathlon at the age of 10, though it was actually in track and field that she excelled during her teenage years, becoming a national junior 5,000m champion and taking part in the European Cross Country Championships in her age group.
In 1999 she won the European junior duathlon (running and cycling) title, and claimed the world title a year later. She then landed the world junior triathlon crown in Edmonton (CAN) in 2001. Her Olympic debut came at Athens 2004, where she finished 19th, improving on that result in Beijing four years later when she finished sixth.
More to come
A year before Beijing she had taken a bronze at the European Championships to underline that her star was rising. And indeed, in 2009, the Swiss triathlete landed the European title, retaining it the following year, in which she also won a number of ITU World Cup events. She claimed a third continental gold in Eilat (ISR) in the run-up to London 2012, where she became the second Swiss triathlete after Brigitte McMahon at Sydney 2000 to top the Olympic podium. Spirig ended a glorious 2012 by being named Swiss Sports Personality of the Year.
Improving with age
Spirig made it European title number four in Kitzbühel (AUT) in 2014 and went on to run the marathon at the European Athletics Championships in Zurich that August, posting a personal best of 2:37.12 to finish 24th. Though she turned 32 in February 2014, she is showing no signs of letting up and is intent on making it to Rio 2016 to defend the title she won in such dramatic circumstances in London.
