Olympic runner-up Yee was shoulder-to-shoulder with New Zealand's Tokyo 2020 bronze medallist Hayden Wilde with the finish line in sight but managed to pull off a late surge and snatch gold by three seconds, finishing in 21min 55sec.

France's Léo Bergere followed Wilde a second later to complete the podium in the elite men's race.

"That one meant a lot," said Yee.

"After a crash you can lose a bit of belief and the last two weeks have been hard but I came in here more fired up than ever.

"That may have played against me the first few races but after the last race I only just made it through and I just wanted to strip it back and enjoy it.

"Another great race with some great guys, it means a lot.

"I found my flow at the end. I’d been struggling through the rounds and my run has almost been a weakness but that last 100 metres I felt amazing and the crowd roaring me on was amazing."

The sprint course in Canada consisted of a 300m swim, bike ride of 7.2 kilometres and then a 2km run.

Two elimination races were held before the final on a busy day for the athletes. 

In the elite women's race, Yee's compatriot Taylor-Brown broke away from a tight pack in the bike leg and managed to fend off her opponents on the final run, clocking in after 24:04.

France's Cassandre Beaugrand and Briton Beth Potter followed suit after 24:07 and 24:15, respectively.

"It’s not easy when you’re at the front and it’s not fun if you’re silent, so just talking to each other and trying to motivate Cass and Beth today, and it paid off," said Taylor-Brown.

"It was about staying safe for the first two and emptying the tank on the final leg."

The World Triathlon Championship Series event is set to conclude tomorrow with a mixed team relay where the world title and Paris 2024 qualification spots will be on offer.