If the end of Tayler Reid’s topsy-turvy year is anything to go by, watch for the Kiwi to make a fast start on the 2025 World Triathlon circuit.
The Gisborne 28-year-old finished second to Aussie upstart Brayden Mercer in his first crack at Australia’s iconic Garmin Noosa Triathlon on Sunday, backing up his eye-catching 7th at the WTCS finals in Torremolinos, Spain on October 20.
Mercer, just 20 and on debut himself, won the non-drafting standard distance race in 1:43:20 – 38 seconds clear of Reid with Aussie Olympian Luke Willian claiming the third step on the podium.
Ashleigh Gentle, the Queen of Noosa, won her 10th consecutive title and 11th overall by a minute from countrywoman Richelle Hill. Paris Olympian Nicole van der Kaay (pictured below), Reid’s partner, ran home in 6th just shy of six minutes behind Gentle while fellow Kiwis Rebecca Clarke (2:07:49) and Matt Kerr (1:55:26) were 11th and 18th in the women’s and men’s elite races respectively.
Reid’s battle for a second Olympic Games start in 2024, including his last gasp bid to earn New Zealand a third male spot in Paris, may have come up short but his full-throttle fight for the silver fern earned him a new legion of fans.
He’s since brushed off the natural disappointment with 5th at World Cup Rome and 7th in Torremolinos, the WTCS season finale won by Hayden Wilde. The race in Noosa, and the November 17 Laguna Phuket Triathlon in Thailand, are are fun way to round out a stressful year before he launches into a new Olympic cycle aiming for LA ’28.
“Yeah, really happy with that one,” Reid said of Noosa which ended with a trademark chunder just before the finish line.
“Again, just like Torremolinos, the race couldn’t have gone any better from a getting the most out of myself perspective and was just beaten by the better man of the day.”
Mercer surprised all and sundry with a performance that ignited his own LA ’28 ambitions. The kid led out of the water from South African Jamie Riddle and Reid, held his own on the bike before kicking clear within the first 2.5km of the 10kmn run.
Even Reid was shocked by that.
“I’ve trained with Mercer so I know him well. Super hard-working guy with a heap of potential but honestly didn’t expect that from him yesterday,” Reid said.
“He had a blinder. I was really focused on Luke [Willian] who had already stacked up a really good year finishing 6th in the world. My aero-ness needs a lot of work but really enjoyed racing on the TT rig.”
Noosa has been on Reid’s ‘to-race” list for years and it didn’t disappoint.
“I couldn’t even remember how long I’ve wanted to do Noosa it’s such an iconic race and it really lived up to how I thought it would be. Great, course, atmosphere and a tough race.
“On to Phuket… so a bunch of panic heat training and then finally home [to Gisborne for a well deserved break].”
Mercer, from a famed Australian Surf Lifesaving family, screamed in delight as he broke the tape.
“Honestly it’s a surreal feeling, I just came out here and I knew if I gave it my best shot I’d get a result I was pleased of, but to win is something else,” he said.
“This is the mega event of Aus triathlon so to win this as an Aussie is the best feeling, so I’m so grateful to be out here in an amazing race and to get a victory I’m over the moon.”
Gentle, 33, was as thrilled for Mercer as she was for herself.
“It’s honestly really, really, surreal. I was just in an interview with Brayden Mercer and he’s just taken out his first Noosa Triathlon title at a super young age and I remember when I was that young and I won my first Noosa Tri and it’s literally a lifetime ago,” Gentle said.
“I’m actually super happy for him and it brings me back and makes me think about how far I’ve come and how much I’ve grown up with this race and it’s definitely extremely special.”
The reigning champion finished the 1.5km ocean swim in 10th position and got to work early on the bike, chipping away at the leading back before hitting the front midway through the ride. Once in the lead Gentle did not look back.
“I’m feeling pretty good, I definitely had a really strong [ride] and I’m super happy with that, it was definitely getting pretty hard towards the end of that run,” said Gentle.
“This year there was a particularly strong swim field, I know I don’t have the speed to come out with some of those women, the short course specialists and super swimmers but I still had a reasonable swim actually, the group of girls that I came out with and then I just tried to hammer the bike really hard at the start, just to try and get to the front of the race as quickly as possible.
“I surprised myself a little bit with how strong I was riding and how quickly I did catch the field but then from then on I led the whole way on the bike and once I got off I just tried to stay composed as best as I could.”
41st GARMIN NOOSA TRIATHLON
MEN’S RESULTS
- Brayden Mercer – 1:43:20
- Tayler Reid – 1:43:58
- Luke Willian – 1:44:15
- Jamie Riddle – 1:44:27
- Jake Birtwhistle – 1:45:30
- Kurt McDonald – 1:46:08
- Caleb Noble – 1:47:53
- Jack Sosinski – 1:48:43
- Jack Crome – 1:49:02
- Joe Begbie – 1:49:22
WOMEN’S RESULTS
- Ashleigh Gentle – 1:55:56
- Richelle Hill – 1:56:58
- Natalie Van Coevorden – 1:58:49
- Sophie Malowiecki – 1:59:01
- Tara Sosinski – 1:59:20
- Nicole Van Der Kaay – 2:01:39
- Chloe Hartnett – 2:02:26
- Lotte Wilms – 2:04:05
- Charlotte McShane – 2:04:15
- Mikayla Messer – 2:04:33
