Alex Yee won his second triathlon in as many weeks, though his most recent win has left fans divided and his rival , Hayden Wilde, infuriated.
Yee won the opening supertri of the year in Boston, just edging out Wilde at the death. This marks the second time Yee in three weeks that the British star has defeated Wilde, beating out the New Zealander to win gold in the men's triathlon in Paris at the 2024 Olympic Games .
The race was tightly contested until it reached the final meters with Yee and Wilde neck and neck. On the final turn, Yee appeared to go into extra gear, speeding past Wilde and building a sizeable lead with almost no chance of relinquishing the lead.
With Wilde behind him and the lead growing, Yee elected to show off his win in still. Looking back to make sure there was no one in contention behind him, Yee crossed his arms and ran through the tape, looking at the camera as he did so.
Seeing Yee's celebration, cameras spotted Wilde shrugging his shoulders with disdain after his opponent crossed the line with his arms crossed . After putting his arms down, Wilde glared at Yee for his lack of decorum, especially after a hard-fought matchup between the two.
Speaking to reporters after the race, Wilde expressed his dissatisfaction with how his rival raced and celebrated. "Close isn’t good enough," Wilde said after the race, per Supertri.com . "It was nice having Vincent [Luis] up there on the bike, but it’s a shame the other boys didn’t do some work and were waiting for the run.
“I don’t call that racing and it’s a bit of a shame. I’ve been seeing too many silvers during the last couple of weeks, so it’d be nice to get a gold in Chicago.”
Meanwhile, for Yee, he was hopeful the race was entertaining for those watching. “I got it wrong big style in [the final] transition and I’m a bit rusty after the Olympics only 10 days ago. But we want supertri to be exciting and I hope we put on a show for you,” he said .
Fans on social media were torn by Yee's celebration, with some believing the British star could celebrate however he liked while others expected more from him. "Can celebrate a win however he wants?" one fan pondered. "Seen the celebration loads of times in football. What's the difference?"
Another provided a more blunt assessment for Yee's actions, stating: "Bro just cooked him for the 2nd time in 2 weeks. He can do what the ---- he wants."
On the other hand, some fans were turned off by attitude. "That sort of behavior is not on, it ruins the sportsmanship and why we all watch," a user posted. "We need more respect in sport."
Another fan believed Wilde's displeasure with Yee stems from the fact that the Brit slowed down in front of the New Zealander to protect his lead as he celebrated. "I think it's because he blocked him from being able to get his best possible time by doing that celebration," the fan pondered. "If he had done it after the line it wouldn’t have been as much of an issue."
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