Europe’s success story at the Multisport World Championships in Townsville: Maryna Kyryk (UKR) won the Ukrainian’s first elite gold medal at this event. On a beautiful, clear morning, Kyryk was simply too strong for her rivals in the women’s aquathlon.

“The sun was great,” she said at the finish. “I’m very happy. I didn’t expect that before the race because it was the first time I did this format – run-swim-run. So I was really nervous before the race and didn’t know what to expect, but I enjoyed it. I did my best and I’m really happy that I won.”

The aquathlon followed the run-swim-run format with a 1km ocean swim interspersed with 2.5km runs. Kyryk led the opening heat, clocking 8:21 to reach T1 first with Kelsey Mitchell (AUS) hot on her heels. After an excellent changeover, Claire Spicknall (AUS) took the lead as a lead group of five runners set off for the run to the beach.

Kyryk dominated in the water. She swam away from her competitors and gained a lead of 20 seconds with her intermediate time of 12:58. Spicknall, still a junior athlete, was the next fastest with 13:18. With this lead, it was easy for Kyryk to put in a clean final run, which she managed.

Further back, Mitchell had to recover from a slightly slower swim and had her sights set on Spicknall. While the two Australians battled, Mitchell posted a top time of 8:42, around 3 seconds faster than Kyryk’s performance. Ultimately, however, it was not enough. Spicknall held on and took a fantastic silver medal. After the race, Mitchell was then disqualified. She had received a penalty for putting her swim cap on before arriving at T1 and not taking it off before the end of the race. As a result, Klara Mooney (AUS) was moved up to 3rd place and awarded the bronze medal.

In addition to her silver medal in the seniors, Spicknall also became Junior World Champion. Later, Isla Watson (AUS) won the U23 World Champion title.