By DAVID LEGGAT
ATHENS - Ultra-competitive Bevan Docherty rated himself a golden chance in the Olympic men's triathlon last night - but he had a satisfied smile as he fingered the silver round his neck shortly after the finish.
His thrilling head-to-head with fellow New Zealander Hamish Carter must rate among the
great Kiwi battles in Olympic history.
At the end just 7.87s separated the pair.
World champion Docherty was delighted for Carter.
"On the day Hamish did a fantastic race and he really deserved the gold medal," the 27-year-old Taupo athlete said.
Docherty, who won the world title in Portugal this year, has been the big climber among the top New Zealand triathletes.
He was confident of a strong showing before the race, and justified his optimism. Even so, he was "a little bit shagged" at the end.
"It's still sinking in," he said.
"Everyone in the race was afraid of me and it was my kind of course.
"Honestly the buildup went perfectly and I knew I had good chance and that showed today."
He praised coaches Mark Elliott and Chris Pilone for their work and said their pre-Games camp in the south of France was an integral part of last night's result.
"It was really great, really relaxed, a great atmosphere."
Docherty said apart from working on their swimming legs together, he and Carter didn't spent much time preparing together.
"We pretty much did our own thing."
Docherty admitted he "kind of worked" with Carter through the latter part of the race, especially when the pair and Swiss Sven Riederer got clear and it became obvious they would battle for the medals.
"I'd far sooner have a fellow countryman winning than anybody else, so deep down we were looking after each other," he said.
Indeed, when he spied fast-finishing Australian Greg Bennett his resolve stiffened.
"No way was I going to let an Aussie on the podium.
"They've been beating us in rugby too much."
And the message out of last night's race for the sport in New Zealand, combined with having five Kiwis sitting in the world's top 15, is that the future of the sport is in robust shape.
Docherty wants a World Cup leg in New Zealand as confirmation of the country's standing in the sport.
Bevan Docherty
Age: 27
Home town: Taupo
Achievements: Won world championship in Spain this year.
World ranking: 2
