Simon Viain of France, who surrendered a few hundred meters earlier than his countryman, crossed the line 16 seconds behind the winner to take the final spot on the podium.

The race began with a tightly packed swim led by Seth Rider of the U.S. with an 18:26 split followed by 30 men within 30 seconds including ultimate contenders Sissons and Montoya (18:35) and Viain (18:42).

Near the end of the 40 kilometer bike leg which took the field six times over the demanding Cuesta de la Vega hill, five men took an 18 seconds lead on the chasers. Stefan Zacheus of Luxembourg, Wian Sullwald of South Africa, and Leo Bergere of France were destined to quickly fall out of contention on the run, but Dorian Coninx of France and Ryan Sissons of New Zealand would factor in the top 10. Viain and Raphael had a few seconds gap to make up, which they did with alacrity. Coninx soon fell off, leaving Sissons, Montoya and Viain to battle it out for the medals.

At the 5k mark, Montoya led Sissons and Viain by one second, and the trio gapped the chasers by 18 seconds. On the final lap, Viain dropped back in the last kilometer, leaving Montoya and Sissons to fight for the gold.

At the end, Sissons 2nd-best 33:31 run held off Montoya’s 33:21 surge, while Viain’s 33:54 run left him in 3rd.