Flora Duffy, 33, pulled off a stunning victory in 10km run on Wednesday to give Bermuda its first-ever Olympic gold. Thanks to Duffy’s win, Bermuda became the smallest country to bag a gold at any edition of the summer Olympics.
The small island nation, located in the Atlantic, has a population of just 62000. Famous for its picturesque beaches, Bermuda will now also be called the ‘Land of Flora Duffy’.
The journey wasn’t easy as Flora had to bear the nation’s expectations of an Olympic gold from Flora for five years. But as promised, the triathlete won gold in Tokyo.
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Buffs and GOLD go perfectly together. 🥇
Last night, #ForeverBuff @floraduffy (Soc’13) placed first in the @Tokyo2020 women’s triathlon finishing with a time of 1:55:36. The @CUBoulder alum won Bermuda’s first ever Olympic Gold medal.
Congrats on this historic moment, Flora! 💛 pic.twitter.com/ASkQwCx8tp
— Forever Buffs 🦬 (@CUBoulderAlumni) July 27, 2021
“I think the whole of Bermuda is going crazy, that’s what makes it so special.”
On the night before the race, the tropical storm ‘Nepartak’ tore through Tokyo, adding an extra element of difficulty to triathlon. The start had to be pushed back by around 15 minutes owing to the high winds and heavy showers.
There were also multiple bike crashes during the run. But, Flora, on her D-Day, put in a commanding performance and completed the race with 1hr 55min 36sec on the clock.
Flora is the only one to win three Triathlon World Titles in 2016, claiming the WTS, ITU Cross Triathlon and Xterra titles in close succession. In April 2018, she won gold at the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast and became Bermuda’s first woman Commonwealth gold medallist. Now, she is an Olympic champion.
Born to parents who resided in England, Flora could have easily opted to enrol herself in Team Great Britain due to her dual nationality. Despite the abundance of resources had she chosen to go with Great Britain, Flora chose Bermuda.
“I was born and raised in Bermuda, that’s where my heart is. I have family in England and that’s special, but for me it was always Bermuda that felt the most special,” she said.
A couple of years back, Flora was given the honour of OBE (Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire). Asked about being referred to as ‘Dame Duffy’ might have a nice ring to it, she replied with a smile, “I like Olympic champion the best, though.”
Text courtesy:- SportSavour
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