Timothy Philip Don (born 14 January 1978 in

Isleworth Isleworth ( ) is a town located within the London Borough of Hounslow in West London, England. It lies immediately east of the town of Hounslow and west of the River Thames and its tributary the River Crane, London, River Crane. Isleworth's or ...

, London) is a

triathlete A triathlon is an endurance multisport race consisting of swimming, cycling, and running over various distances. Triathletes compete for fastest overall completion time, racing each segment sequentially with the time transitioning between the d ...

from the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

Career

Don is the son of former Premier League referee

Philip Don Philip Don (born 10 March 1952) is a former football referee and school headteacher from England. Don was originally from Sheffield but his teaching career took him south to Middlesex. He is counted amongst the top 100 referees of all time in ...

. He competed in the

London Youth Games The London Youth Games is an annual multi-sport event held in London, England. The London Youth Games offer competitive opportunities for young people aged 7 to 18 (who live or go to school in London) across approximately 30 sports every year. T ...

where he represented

Hounslow Hounslow () is a large suburban district of West London, west-southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hounslow, and is identified in the London Plan as one of the 12 metropolitan centres in Gr ...

in the triathlon. He competed at the first Olympic triathlon at the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...

. He took tenth place with a total time of 1hr 49min 28.85sec. In the second Olympic triathlon at the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

he was placed eighteenth with a total time of 1hr 54min 42.13sec. Don was controversially selected for the 2008 Beijing Olympics despite serving a ban for missed out of competition drug tests. At the Beijing Olympics Don failed to finish after exiting the swim in 48th place (out of 55) and was pulled out of the race by officials for being too far behind on the bike leg. The British team later admitted that he was ill prior to the Beijing race. On 3 September 2006 in

Lausanne , neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR-74), ...

Don became World Champion after finishing 17 seconds in front of

Hamish Carter Hamish Clive Carter (born 28 April 1971 in Auckland) is a New Zealand triathlete. He won the gold medal in triathlon at the 2004 Summer Olympics, his second Olympic games. Carter also competed on the International Triathlon Union World Cup c ...

. Following the swim, he was in the lead group on the bike but missed the initial break. He bridged the gap alone and caught the lead group on lap 5 out of 6, then took the lead along with Carter on the run, breaking clear about halfway through. However his performance was overshadowed by a three-month ban a few weeks later for missing three out of competition drug tests within an 18-month period prior to the race. The ban expired on 25 December 2006, but a byelaw meant that Don remained ineligible for Olympic selection. On Friday, 25 May 2007, Don was cleared by the British Olympic Association for selection for future Olympic Games after appealing against a ban for missing doping tests. The BOA appeals panel whilst clearing Don to compete in future Olympic Games criticised him for being "indisputably careless and irresponsible". Don won the 2007 London Triathlon in a time of 1 hour 42 minutes 1 second on 5 August 2007. He set a new Ironman World Record with 7:40:23 at Ironman South American Championship in Florianopolis, Brazil on 28 May 2017 Two days before the 2017

Ironman World Championships The Ironman World Championship has been held annually in Hawaii since 1978, with an additional race in 1982. It is owned and organized by the World Triathlon Corporation. It is the annual culmination of a series of Ironman triathlon qualification ...

, Tim Don was hit by a car whilst riding along the Queen K highway near

Kona International Airport Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport at Keāhole is the busiest airport on the Island of Hawaii. It is located in Kalaoa CDP, Hawaii County, Hawaii, United States, near the town of Kailua-Kona. The airport serves leeward (western) Hawai ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

. He suffered a

Hangman's fracture Hangman's fracture is the colloquial name given to a fracture of both pedicles, or '' partes interarticulares'', of the ''axis vertebra'' ( C2). Causes The injury mainly occurs from falls, usually in elderly adults, and motor accidents mainly d ...

to his neck. He spent 3 months recovering in a

Halo Brace Halo, halos or haloes usually refer to: * Halo (optical phenomenon) * Halo (religious iconography), a ring of light around the image of a head HALO, halo, halos or haloes may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Video games * Halo (franchise), ...

. Six months after he was injured, he returned to compete in the 2018

Boston Marathon The Boston Marathon is an annual marathon race hosted by several cities and towns in greater Boston in eastern Massachusetts, United States. It is traditionally held on Patriots' Day, the third Monday of April. Begun in 1897, the event was i ...

where he finished in a time of 2:49:42.

References

External links

British Triathlon Federation athlete profile

British Olympic Association athlete profile

Domestic Racing Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Don, Tim 1978 births Living people English male triathletes Doping cases in triathlon English sportspeople in doping cases Olympic triathletes of Great Britain Triathletes at the 2000 Summer Olympics Triathletes at the 2004 Summer Olympics Triathletes at the 2008 Summer Olympics People from Hounslow Duathletes Triathletes at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games competitors for England Athletes from London