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Morrison's coach admitted she was not at her best.
preparations

London 2012: Morrison disappoints in Olympic warm-up

The athlete produced a below-par display in Hamburg earlier today.

AILEEN MORRISON HAD a disappointing performance in her final race before the Olympics in Hamburg today, finishing in 36th position.

Wearing No1, the race began well for Morrison as she got off to a strong start, leading the swim half way through the 750 meters.

At the swim exit, Morrison was 5 seconds down on Brazil’s Oliveira and well positioned going into the bike and run elements.

T1 proved to be problematic though, as a troublesome wetsuit ultimately cost Morrison dearly.

A lead pack had formed and was forging ahead as Morrison failed to latch on the back. A train of riders came up behind and Morrison got to work with the chasers looking to reel in the 30 strong group up front.

Their persistence paid off as they got within seconds of the leaders coming into the second transition. In her eagerness to close the gap, Morrison failed to dismount her bike before the dismount line resulting in a 10-second penalty, which she had to serve on the run.

At the head of the race the Aussie duo of Densham and Moffatt were pulling away over the 5km run. They went on the claim first and second respectively, while the USA’s Groff came third.

Of Morrison’s performance, Ireland’s cycling Coach Tommy Evans said:

“Aileen started well and had an excellent swim. On the run she had to serve a penalty and suffered from a stitch so it went from bad to worse. It was just one of those things – we all have a bad day from time to time, but she’ll be right in two weeks time.”

The Triathlon Ireland squad will now move to a pre-Olympic training camp in Lensbury, where they will prepare for the Olympic triathlon on 4 and 7 August.

Meanwhile, in Ironman racing, Eimear Mullan made history, becoming the first Irish athlete to be crowned Ironman Champion, after she secured victory in Sunday’s Ironman UK .

Mullan completed the 3.8km swim, 180km bike and full marathon in 10hr 8min 44secs, giving her an eight-minute winning margin over USA’s Amanda Stevens.

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