- The men's
triathlon at the Olympics got off to an embarrassing start on Sunday. - Nearly half of the competitors were unable to jump in the water because a boat was in the way.
- After the false start, the athletes reset to begin the race a second time.
The men's triathlon started with a thud on Sunday at the Olympics.
After the athletes got to their marks at the starting line, the starting horn sounded, sending them into the water. There was just one problem - a boat was blocking about half of the field from diving in.
The drivers of the boat, which was carrying media equipment, attempted to get out of the way, but the crisis had already started, as some swimmers were in the water behind the boat as well.
-Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) July 25, 2021
Another horn sounded to send the athletes back to the starting line for another start.
According to Reuters, officials on jet skis stopped the leaders who were already barrelling through their 1,500-meter swim.
About 10 minutes later, the race would start, with Norway's Kristian Blummenfelt eventually taking gold.
-#TokyoOlympics (@NBCOlympics) July 25, 2021
Alex Yee of Great Britain took silver, while Hayden Wilde of New Zealand snagged bronze.