Watch: Moment triathlete 'loses control of body', almost collapses on track after 8-hour run

In what perhaps were the most frightening visuals to have come out of a track, Great Britain triathlete Kieran Lindars was seen collapsing and getting up to complete an eight-hour race in Amsterdam.

On a hot September day, Lindars, defending his title at the Challenge Almere-Amsterdam, was on course to complete the marathon when he stumbled and collapsed on the track multiple times before eventually finishing the race.

Speaking with an international media outlet, Lindars said, "The scariest thing for me was being totally out of control of my body."

Describing the final moments on the track, the 26-year-old added that he was going in and out of consciousness. Lindars started to overheat after nearly an eight-hour run and struggled to stay on his feet while approaching the finish line. The world number 7 finished second behind Nederlands' Menno Koolhaas.

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In the short clip that Landers shared on Instagram, the triathlete can be seen holding onto barriers as the crowd threw its weight behind him to complete the finish line. Linders even unzipped his tracksuit in the final moments to let his body cool down. The video has been viewed more than 14 million times.

"From about 300 metres, I don't really remember what happened; my body went into a bit of a protective mode where it was just essentially shutting off," he told BBC.

"I think it was the first time I'd found my limits and that was really scary."

Linders also thanked the medical staff for constantly keeping an eye on him as he attempted to finish the race. He also suggested anyone undertaking a physically demanding exercise "listen to their bodies" and not push themselves too hard.

"We are very happy he was okay only 30 minutes after the finish and he showed that he is one of the strongest athletes out there," the media outlet quoted a race spokesperson as saying.

On October 1, Linders shared an update about how he was doing post the Challenge Almere-Amsterdam. The triathlete said that he had enjoyed some time off to make sure the body and mind were "totally recovered".

"I pushed myself to a new limit and to be honest, it scared me a little. I’ve given myself a lot of freedom over the last 3 weeks to reignite the fire and get back to full-on training, with maybe even another race to finish off the season," he said, hinting he will return to the track soon.

According to the information on the World Triathlon website, Kieran Lindars has started 13 races in his career so far and finished twice on the podium. He won the 2022 Europe Triathlon Challenge Long Distance Championships Almere, finishing the race in 7 hours and 55 minutes.

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