Honours to Reid in thrilling finish to elite tri race

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

GISBORNE'S Tayler Reid held off one of New Zealand’s best triathlete runners to win the second race of the national elite triathlon series at Takapuna Beach at the weekend.

Reid and fellow Triathlon NZ high performance squad teammate Dan Hoy had spectators on their feet as they went head-to-head over the final 400 metres.

“Dan is one of our best open runners in New Zealand and when you come up against him, you’ve got to bring your ‘A’ run game,” Reid said.

Reid emerged from the water just behind Trent Thorpe and followed closely by Eddie Rawles, Janus Staufenberg and Hoy.

After an exciting bike leg, Reid and Hoy were neck and neck over the final kilometre — a tremendous effort by Hoy, who had chased down a substantial deficit on the bike leg.

Rebecca Spence surprised a strong women’s field with her stunning 26-minute ride. Lizzie Stannard was on her tail out of the bike transition but Spence made an early break on the first lap of the 4.9km run and maintained a 15-to-30-second advantage.

The final race of the series is in Kinloch in two weeks.

Based on their outstanding performances, Reid and Spence would be hot contenders for another victory. With the Commonwealth Games fast approaching, all athletes are eyeing up a spot in the New Zealand team, with selection races taking place across the year.