Yorkshire medal heroes: Brownlee brothers return home... with a craving for fish and chips

THE brilliant Brownlee brothers returned to Yorkshire with their Olympic medals proudly hung around their necks - before revealing they couldn't wait to tuck into some good old Yorkshire fish and chips.
Great Britain's Alistair and Jonny Brownlee pose with their medals after arriving at Leeds Bradford International Airport.

 Picture : Jonathan GawthorpeGreat Britain's Alistair and Jonny Brownlee pose with their medals after arriving at Leeds Bradford International Airport.

 Picture : Jonathan Gawthorpe
Great Britain's Alistair and Jonny Brownlee pose with their medals after arriving at Leeds Bradford International Airport. Picture : Jonathan Gawthorpe

Having taken gold and silver in the triathlon, Leeds-based Alistair and Jonny, flew back into the UK on Tuesday along with their history-making Team GB colleagues.

Rio was the UKs most successful Games on foreign soil with an astonishing 67 medals in the bag, exceeding the tally from the London Games of 2012 and setting many records along the way.

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Yorkshire itself brought home 14 medals with five gold, five silver and four bronze, Alistair Brownlee just pipping his brother to the triathlon gold and leaving Jonny to pick up the silver.

And from the moment they set foot in Leeds Bradford airport there was one thing on their mind.

“Bramhope Fisheries is calling!!!” said Jonny as he prepared to go home for the first time since his epic Olympic feat.

And both brothers could certainly be forgiven for treating themselves after a tough few weeks preparing for their event, although this weekend will see them both back in action with Jonny racing and Alistair training.

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“Its fantastic to be home, it has been a long few months away training with the Olympics in mind... and it was long journey home from Rio itself, so to be home is fantastic,” added Alistair.

Great Britain's Alistair and Jonny Brownlee pose with their medals after arriving at Leeds Bradford International Airport.

 Picture : Jonathan GawthorpeGreat Britain's Alistair and Jonny Brownlee pose with their medals after arriving at Leeds Bradford International Airport.

 Picture : Jonathan Gawthorpe
Great Britain's Alistair and Jonny Brownlee pose with their medals after arriving at Leeds Bradford International Airport. Picture : Jonathan Gawthorpe

Alistair now expects to bid for a hat-trick of triathlon golds at the Tokyo Olympics in 2020.

“I still think 32 should be an age to be competitive at,” he said. “I definitely want to do other things at some point - like the Ironman or long-distance racing - but it is too hard to say I wouldn’t go to another Olympics. I will probably be there.”

Just as he did in London, Brownlee - who underwent ankle surgery in August last year - blew away the field to become the first triathlete to win two gold medals.

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He collapsed on the line, hugging his brother Jonny in one of the famous images of the Games.

A young fan greets Great Britain's Alistair Brownlee after arriving at Leeds Bradford International Airport.

 Picture: Jonathan GawthorpeA young fan greets Great Britain's Alistair Brownlee after arriving at Leeds Bradford International Airport.

 Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe
A young fan greets Great Britain's Alistair Brownlee after arriving at Leeds Bradford International Airport. Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe

And the eldest of the Yorkshire duo added that their unique family partnership proved crucial in fending off their rivals to seal a historic one-two finish.

“We both know how important we have been, pushing each other on over the years,” Brownlee added.

“From everything, to just motivation to get out of the door in the morning - if you know your little brother is going to go training you are going to go training, too - to being able to travel the world together. That has been really important over the years.

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“Over the last three months we have done almost every session together, even the very hard sessions where we are pushing each other as hard as we can.

Great Britain's Alistair and Jonny Brownlee pose with their medals after arriving at Leeds Bradford International Airport.

 Picture : Jonathan GawthorpeGreat Britain's Alistair and Jonny Brownlee pose with their medals after arriving at Leeds Bradford International Airport.

 Picture : Jonathan Gawthorpe
Great Britain's Alistair and Jonny Brownlee pose with their medals after arriving at Leeds Bradford International Airport. Picture : Jonathan Gawthorpe

“There is no-one else in the world that can do that with each other, but we have done that time and time again, four or five times a week in the last three months, and that has been absolutely crucial.”