Thursday 17 August, 6:30am. We’re pedalling e-bikes over Pont de l’Alma, the next bridge along the Seine from des Invalides and Alexandre III. The sun is slowly rising behind the latter, so that the golden cherubs, nymphs and winged horses towering above either end of Paris’s most opulent bridge appear to be ablaze. We spin round and there’s the Eiffel Tower.
Paris at this time of day radiates a quiet solemnity. It knows it’s gorgeous, it’s simply waiting for the sun’s rays to show off its best side. How bloody brilliant triathlon gets the chance to do the same, we think, as we quicken our cadence and bike further into the best setting for a tri we’ve ever seen.
Pont des Invalides marks the entrance to the venue, and it’s also the crossing the athletes will run and bike over as they check out the Olympic and Paralympic courses for the first time over the next four days.
The beautifully ornate Alexandre III provides the money shot, though; the iconic blue carpet runs its length and it is the staging for not only both transitions but also the finish line. Sorry London 2012, you’ve just been upstaged.
But less of the fawning and more of the facts. Overleaf we’ve put together 10 key takeaways from the four Test Events – the men’s and women’s individual races, the paratriathlon and the mixed team relay – and what to expect at next year’s Games.
And, if you haven’t already, get booking those flights/trains/ferries to Paris for next summer...
