As incredible Brownlee brothers win gold and silver in Rio we take a look at their lifelong rivalry

THE brilliant Brownlee brothers blew away the opposition in one of the Games most gruelling events yesterday.

The British pair fought their own epic battle in 28C heat — winning gold and silver in the triathlon.

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The were neck and neck until Alistair pulled away halfway through the run to the finish on Rio’s Copacabana Beach.

Alistair, 28, finished far enough ahead to walk across the line clutching a Union Jack and blue Yorkshire flag.

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He then sat exhausted on the ground after the 1hr 45min slog.

Jonny, 26, crossed the line six seconds later later and hugged his brother, telling him “We did it!” amid wild cheers from travelling Team GB supporters.

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Alistair said the brothers “committed” to a hard first few laps on the bike to open up a gap in the field.

And he revealed Jonny had beated him consistently in training before they took on the 1.5km ocean swim and 40km bike marathon followed by a 10km run.

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He added: “I just had the edge on Jonny but he has killed me in training.”

Jonny said: “My swim was good and on the bike I felt really controlled but when we got to the run Al was a bit stronger than me and I thought: ‘Here we go again’.”

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They were cheered to glory by their proud parents Keith and Catherine, who are both GPs.

But younger brother Edward, 20 — an amateur rugby prop forward — stayed at home.

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Yesterday’s battle was nothing new for Alistair and Jonny who have competed keenly with each other all their lives.

Before the big race, Jonny, said: “We’ve always been very close, but competitive.

“We used to fight over football, table tennis and badminton.

“Monopoly was a big one for fighting.”

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The inseparable brothers excelled in all sports at school and were known for their fierce sibling rivalry.

They took up the triathlon after their parents encouraged their passion for the great outdoors with hikes and bike rides in Yorkshire’s picture postcard countryside.

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Alistair began training for triathlons aged just 11 and was quickly followed into the punishing sport by his brother, who had previously dreamed of playing football for Leeds United.

The pair say their medal- winning Yorkshire grit is inherited from their grandfather, Norman. He was a merchant Navy hero who swam miles to survive after his ship was sunk during World War Two.

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The brothers share an Emmerdale-style stone-built cottage in the village of Bramhope, near Leeds, and train side by side virtually every day.

They do marathon swims at their local baths, often followed by a 50- mile bike ride through the Dales.

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Reflecting on his sons’ rivalry, dad Keith said: “In cross country they would knock ten bells out of each other.

“It has always been like that: table tennis, unpacking the dishwasher, you name it.

“But at the same time, they are incredibly supportive of each other.”

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Brainy Alistair took time out from training to achieve four A grades at A-level and earn a place to study medicine at Girton College, Cambridge.

He has also been on a sports science and physiology course at Leeds Metropolitan University, which boasts one of the country’s best training programmes for elite athletes.

His brother has a history degree in the city.

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The brothers burn vast amounts of calories in training and wolf down huge amounts of food to stay fuelled for action, scoffing pizzas, pies, fish and chips and their favourite lemon drizzle cakes.

Keith added: We did have one conversation about their ambitions in the triathlon.

I told them: ‘You are doing this as a professional sport, you have to beat the rest of the world and the last thing you should worry about is beating each other. Just get on and compete’.”

Referring to his other brother Edward, Jonny laughed: “He’s a trainee vet so he’s probably back home milking cows or something. It’s more interesting than watching us.”

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Alistair battled back to superlative fitness after recovering from an operation on his ankle last year.

He and Jonny have boosted their staying power with strenuous bouts of “aqua jogging” — on an underwater treadmill in their garden.

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They enlisted the help of pals to dig out a swimming pool at their home to help Alistair recover from an achilles tendon injury before London 2012.

Alistair said: “Aqua jogging is the most boring thing in the world. I was doing this in a public pool in public sessions, with kids jumping on my head and old grannies telling me I shouldn’t be there.

The brothers proudly sang the national anthem as they were presented with their medals in the stunning beach setting in front of Rio’s Sugarloaf Mountain.