Montgomery, 34, will compete in the triathlon - an event in which she runs, swims and cycles - and, nine days later, the 10,000m on the track.
The athlete underwent surgery on Christmas Day last year. She is now 13th on the world ranking list of triathletes and will become the first Canadian woman to compete in two sports at a summer Olympic Games when she races the 10,000m.
When she suffered leg pains at a running event last year, Vancouver General Hospital found a blockage in her left iliac artery, running on the inside of the leg. Yet just three months later, after surgery, she ran 15 seconds inside her best time over 10,000m.
In April, she won the silver medal at the world triathlon championships and is among the favourites to win in Sydney.
Lessing aiming for London celebration
Simon Lessing, upon whom Great Britain are counting for a golden start to the Olympic Games in Sydney in just over two weeks' time, is to compete in the London Triathlon on October 1 as part of a $100,000 deal that ties him to the event for the next five years. It will be Lessing's first post-Olympic race, 14 days after he lines up as favourite to win in Sydney.
Should Lessing perform to expectations in Australia and become the first men's Olympic champion of his sport, the London Triathlon and its Royal Albert Dock venue will provide him with an immediate home stage on which to celebrate and demonstrate his talent. London coincides with the last day of the Olympics and Lessing will be going for a fourth consecutive title in the capital.
"We are thrilled that Simon has agreed to come back to the London Triathlon and excited at the prospect of him lining up as the Olympic champion," Michael Smithwick, the event promoter, said. "I have done a deal with Simon which will probably net him $100,000 over the next five years."
John Raadschelders, a leading international race organiser from The Netherlands, has been brought in to help to improve the quality of the event after it was criticised for its shabby presentation and short course last year. Raadschelders will be in Sydney with a brief to sign the Olympic champions, whoever they may be, and, if they are British, to bring back the best overseas opposition.
"We want Simon to take on all challengers," Smithwick said. Already committed to the women's race is Leanda Cave, who, unlike Andrew Johns, the European champion and likely to be one of Lessing's closest challengers in Sydney, left it too late for the Olympics before switching from Australia to Great Britain.
"Leanda has become British in the last year, but not soon enough to qualify for the Olympics," Smithwick said.
David Powell
The Times
