Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) athlete Tristan Thomas has won two gold medals, in the men’s 400-metre hurdles and the 4 x 400-metre relay, at the World University Games in Serbia.

Thomas claimed victory in the final of the 400-metre hurdles with a time of 48.75 seconds, close to his best result for the season. He beat a strong international field, including Japan’s Yoshida Kazuaki, who claimed second place in 49.78 seconds, and Belgium’s Michael Bultheel, who came third with a time of 49.79 seconds.

AIS team-mate Brendan Cole also performed well at the World University Games, finishing fifth in the men’s 400-metre hurdles, with a time of 50.18 seconds.

The gold rush continued for Australia in final of the men’s 4 x 400-metre relay. Thomas and Cole teamed up with fellow AIS athlete Christopher Troode and Sean Wroe to win first place.

Commonwealth gold medallist Troode led the race in the first leg, followed by Thomas and then Cole. Australian 400 metres champion Sean Wroe anchored the team to a convincing win in 3 minutes, 3.67 seconds. Poland came in second, with a time of 3 minutes 5.59 seconds, and Japan, third place in 3 minutes, 6.46 seconds.

Team manager Tudor Bidder congratulated the athletes on the race, saying that it demonstrated the depth of Australia’s talent in the 4 x 400-metre relay event.

Tristan Thomas will now focus on preparing for the athletics world championships, which take place in Berlin from 15 to 23 August.