Stuart Hayes (born 16 April 1979 in Isleworth, London) is an English

triathlete A triathlon is an endurance multisport race consisting of Swimming (sport), swimming, Cycle sport, cycling, and running over various distances. Triathletes compete for fastest overall completion time, racing each segment sequentially with the t ...

. Hayes began his sports career as a swimmer at Hounslow Swimming Club but converted to triathlon at the age of 15; Hayes said he became "fed up of swimming up and down all day counting tiles". He is coached by his wife, Michelle Dillon. Hayes missed out on selection for the 2004 Summer Olympics in

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

, Greece, but finished the year ranked 3rd in the world. He failed to qualify for the 2008 Summer Olympics in

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

, China, after suffering two punctures during the qualification event. In 2010 he won his first ITU Triathlon World Cup event in Kitzbühel, Austria; Hayes was part of a group of five riders who broke away on the cycling leg of the event and won in a time of one hour 52 minutes 32 seconds. At the 2011 ITU Triathlon World Cup event in

Hyde Park, London Hyde Park is a Listed building#Heritage protection, Grade I-listed major park in Westminster, Greater London, the largest of the four Royal Parks of London, Royal Parks that form a chain from the entrance to Kensington Palace through Kensingt ...

, Hayes finished in 46th position in an event won by compatriot Alistair Brownlee over the course that will be used for the 2012 Summer Olympics. Hayes was selected to represent

Great Britain at the 2012 Summer Olympics Great Britain and Northern Ireland, represented by the British Olympic Association (BOA), competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, United Kingdom, from 27 July to 12 August 2012 as the host nation and the team of selected athletes was o ...

in the men's triathlon alongside brothers

Alistair Alistair is a masculine given name. It is an Anglicised form of the Scottish Gaelic '' Alasdair''. The latter is most likely a Scottish Gaelic variant of the Norman French Alexandre or Latin Alexander, which was incorporated into English in the s ...

and

Jonathan Brownlee Jonathan Callum Brownlee (born 30 April 1990) is a British professional duathlete and triathlete. He is a six-time World champion (once World Triathlon Series, twice World Sprint Triathlon, three-time World Triathlon Mixed Relay), and one-ti ...

. Hayes, who was ranked 46th in the world at the time of his selection, was chosen ahead of world number 12, Will Clarke, and world number 13,

Tim Don Timothy Philip Don (born 14 January 1978 in Isleworth, London) is a triathlete from the United Kingdom. Career Don is the son of former Premier League referee Philip Don. He competed in the London Youth Games where he represented Hounslow in ...

, because of his ability to perform a

domestique In road bicycle racing, a domestique is a rider who works for the benefit of their team and leader, rather than trying to win the race. In French, ''domestique'' translates as "servant".However, in French, the term used is ''équipier''. In I ...

role for the Brownlees. The event took place in Hyde Park with the swim being held in the Serpentine. The cycle involved athletes leaving the park via Queen Mother's Gate, travelling through

Wellington Arch Wellington Arch, also known as Constitution Arch or (originally) as the Green Park Arch, is a Grade I-listed triumphal arch by Decimus Burton that forms a centrepiece of Hyde Park Corner in central London, between corners of Hyde Park and ...

, down Constitution Hill and on to

Birdcage Walk Birdcage Walk is a street in the City of Westminster in London. It runs east–west as a continuation of Great George Street, from the crossroads with Horse Guards Road and Storey's Gate, with the Treasury building and the Institution of Mec ...

in front of Buckingham Palace before returning to the park to complete the event with a four lap run around the Serpentine. Hayes finished in 37th place, however his job in this race was to help the two Brownlee brothers, a job he succeeded in as Alistair finished in gold medal position and Jonny in bronze. After retiring in 2015, Hayes made a comeback to international triathlon competition in 2023, placing 4th at the 40-44AG World Sprint Triathlon Championships in

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hayes, Stuart 1979 births Living people English male triathletes Athletes from London Triathletes at the 2012 Summer Olympics Olympic triathletes for Great Britain 20th-century English people 21st-century English people People from Isleworth Sportspeople from the London Borough of Hounslow Triathletes at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games competitors for England