With the weather threatening to throw everything at us, the Junior Men went through the process of setting up their bikes and running shoes inside the MEO Arena. Outside the wind was gusting, the clouds came and went, the sunshine burned down and then was replaced by rain. It would be a tough race for the Junior Men who, by tradition, give the max.

75 of Europe’s best Junior athletes lined up for the introduction. They chose their positions on the pontoon, the heart-beat echoed around the quay and then there was silence. The start was explosive and the battle continued for the entire 750m.

We have seen Polish athlete, Michał Oliwa race before. An impressive swimmer who narrowly missed the podium in Quarteira. We know he can swim fast but what he did in Lisbon was amazing. His 8:38 swim took him way in the lead as the athletes raced into T1.

The athletes were tightly bunched as they left the water for the run to T1 but Oliwa was gone.

The bike course was soon the scene of a leading peloton of over 20 athletes. The smallest error could bring down the whole pack. The roads were not entirely dry and the clouds were getting darker. Oliwa tucked into the pack. A strong cyclist, he would benefit from a breakaway. Lars Holenweger SUI had won his age group in Geneva and was now racing as a Junior. Would drafting give him the legs for a strong run? Moritz Horn GER, was the winner in Kalkar and as ETU European Duathlon Champion he was certainly in a strong position with the swim behind him. GBR’s Sam Dickinson was the silver medallist in Quarteira. Could he improve here in Lisbon? Matevž Planko SLO was well-placed and after his bronze in Kalkar would be hoping the bike and run would go well.

Javi Lluch Perez ESP has been knocking on the door to gold over the past three seasons. Bronze in Penza for the 2014 Relays, Silver in Banyoles for the 2014 Relays and then Silver this year in Melilla. He was in good form but was he good enough to get to the podium here in Lisbon? For some of the bike he stayed at the back of the pack. A gamble most certainly, as although you save your legs, the risk of getting dropped by a break away or of getting tangled in a crash is great.

Behind them a chase group was some way back but inside that group was Alex Yee GBR who has tremendous run pace, as we saw in his previous races. Talent-spotted for the Commonwealth Youth Games, there is nobody on the circuit who can catch him on a good day.

For Lithuania’s Titas Pumputis, the race was soon over as he punctured in the early stages of the race. His luck was certainly not with him on the Sunday when he raced the Standard Distance as once again he punctured. Work in progress, hopefully the rest of the season will be puncture-free.

The pace on the bike was relentless. The pack worked hard. Several more athletes joined Pumputis in the puncture nightmare.

Oliwa tried to get more pace out of the pack.

Yee did his best to bridge the gap.

Then the rain started. It was horrible out there and to avoid crashes, the pace dropped but not by much.

With the wide roads, the athletes were able to space out and do their best to avoid crashes and falls.

T2 was inside so the running shoes at least were dry. When they emerged onto the run, the rains had gone and the sun was shining once more.

Dickinson was joined by teammate Jack Willis. Lluch tucked in behind them with Denmark’s Emil Deleuran Hansen. Alberto Gonzalez Garcia ESP held place in the back of this pack. Gold in Melilla this year in his mind and now it looked as if the battle could be a strategic one between the Brits and the Spaniards. Ran Sagiv ISR was just a few paces behind. After his bronze in Alanya last year he had still to show the good form we know he can deliver.

Some long way back Yee had left the chase pack and was pushing the pace to see how close he could get to a top ten place.

To the delight of the local crowds, Vasco Vilaça POR joined the leaders and suddenly the noise along the roads exploded. Inside the stadium the athletes reached the bell and it was now only 2.5k to go.

The Dickinson, Lluch, Deleuran, Vilaça quartet was now leading the race. Willis had been dropped. Gonzalez had been dropped. It was looking like a sprint finish. As they came into the MEO Arena nobody could predict the order of finish. The crowds were fantastic as they screamed and cheered the athletes to the line. In a breath-taking sprint for the finish tape it was Lluch who just had the edge. Dickinson had to settle for silver and Denmark took the bronze with Deleuran just easing up in the final metres. The host nation had its chance to cheer too as Vilaça came in 4th.

With a 15:16 run, 38 seconds faster than anyone else, the crowds saw that Yee had cut through the field. A man to watch indeed. Celebrations for Lluch, reflections for Dickinson and delight for Deleuran.

As some of you were aware, our SD card died at the race and we lost all the Junior Men photos. A very kind gesture from Filipe Pereira has provided us with the album of images. The LOC, Médis 2016 Lisbon ETU Triathlon European Championship have also produced some great images.