Britain’s Jenson Button has revealed that he still finds jumping into a lake or the sea with a bunch of other triathletes “pretty daunting”, despite being an experienced racer.
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Speaking ahead of this year’s Jenson Button Trust Triathlon in Derby this July (see video below), the McClaren Honda driver said: “Before an F1 race I don’t get nervous, it is excitement and adrenaline. I pretty much know what to expect, I have done over 250 races now so I have raced in a lot of F1 races now so I am very at home.
“But when you go and jump in to a lake, or the sea with loads of other people that is pretty daunting, even if you are an experienced triathlete. So I am probably just as nervous, probably more nervous in a triathlon than an F1 race. I think that is always the way it is going to be, there is a lot of adrenaline before any type of race.”
Jenson also speaks about why he loves triathlon, a sport that he has been doing in his spare time for a number of years. “A running race or something like that is easier than a triathlon in terms of the mental aspect as you know you don’t have to jump in the water with a load of people and you don’t have the transitions too which a lot of people fear, going from a swim when you are breathing really hard and then getting on to a bike. It is different but I love that it has three different disciplines and I think that is why it has grown so much over the years.”
After organising his own race at Luton Hoo in Bedfordshire since 2009, Jenson has taken the decision to move it to Markeaton Park in Derby this year. Taking place on July 12th, the race will be his biggest yet with novice and seasoned triathletes from all over the globe, including Afghanistan and Mexico already signed up. A £7,000 prize purse has been confirmed for this year, with a grand each on the table for the male and female winner.
Competitors will get the chance to race twice, with the preliminary heat consisting of a 200m lake swim, 11km cycle and a 2.5km run. The top performers will go on to the final, 400m swim, 20km cycle and 5km run, with the runners up entering the wooden spoon race. For more information and to register head to www.jensonbuttontri.com.
Your favourite tri mag has also partnered with this year’s event, with a number of 220 Triathlon initiatives set to take place over the coming months, including editorial features, competitions and much more.
In terms of changes to the course from previous years, Jenson said that he’s had a lot of input into the new bike route, adding more challenges and flat areas, as well as placing it out on the open road, with most of the roads being closed.
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Will you be racing the JB Trust Triathlon this year? Let us know in the comments below!
Auckland, New Zealand is where the ITU World Triathlon Series 2015 continues this Sunday, with Jonny Brownlee and Lucy Hall among the athletes carrying British hopes in the first standard distance race of the year (1.5km swim/40km bike/10km run).
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The elite women’s race will get underway at 12.50pm local time (11:50pm Saturday evening UK time), with series leader Gwen Jorgensen (USA) confirmed to start, along with compatriots Katie Zaferes – second at WTS Abu Dhabi a few weeks ago – and last seasons WTS Stockholm winner Sarah True.
Apart than Lucy Hall, the only other British female racing is Jessica Learmonth, 26, recently named into British Triathlon’s 2015 World Class Programme.
Racing competing alongside them will be New Zealand’s own Andrea Hewitt, a strong cyclist who placed 6th at London 2012, and Germany’s Anne Haug, who also has collected two golds and a silver medal at previous WTS Auckland races.
Not to forget Olympic silver medallist Lisa Norden (SWE) and WTS Abu Dhabi’s bronze medallist Flora Duffy (BER). For the full start list head here.
Men’s race
Getting underway at 4.40pm local time (4.40am Sunday morning UK time, taking daylight saving into account), the men’s race features Spain’s two top athletes – the current WTS 2015 leader, Mario Mola, and last year’s champion Javier Gomez.
Jonny Brownlee comes into this race seeded third after his fifth-place finish in Abu Dhabi earlier this month, while elder brother Alistair won’t be racing.
Other British men include Tom Bishop, Grant Sheldon and Philip Graves. Internationally, the other big names include João Silva (POR), who placed fourth in Abu Dhabi, Slovakia’s super-swimmer Richard Varga and South Africa’s Henri Schoeman. Full start list here.
You can watch all the action live on the BBC Red Button and BBC Sport website or on triathlonlive.tv (£), and highlights will be shown on BBC 2 at 4pm on Sunday (29th March). We’ll be carrying race reports online as soon as possible after they finish.
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Who do you think will win WTS Auckland? Let us know in the comments below!
Ironman will be running four new events for children aged 3-14 this year, to be staged alongside their UK races.
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There are 6,500 places available, double last year’s number, though organisers are still expecting them to sell out fast. Each Ironkids event involves a run, with the distance being determined by the child’s age.
Children at the lowest end of the scale must be accompanied by an adult and will race over a distance of 500m. Youngsters at the higher end of the scale will be running a distance of 2,000m.
There will be no finish times provided as the emphasis of the events is to have fun, but each entrant will receive a special commemorative Ironkids t-shirt and a medal on completion of their run.
The dates are:
– Ironkids Staffordshire on 13th June – Ironkids Exmoor on 27th June – Ironkids UK on 18th July – Ironkids Wales on 12th September.
To enter your child for an Ironkids event or for more information head to www.ironkids.co.uk.
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Do you have a budding Brownlee or Stimpson taking part? Let us know in the comments!
It’s that time again for our weekly 220 forum round-up! Can you help any of our readers out with advice on tight-fitting wetsuits and calf muscle pain? Just click the links below…
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“Hi all, I did my first triathlons last year and had a wetsuit that i rented for the season, but i found that it was really quite restrictive across my chest (i am asthmatic, but i was fine out of the wet suit). I was wondering whether anyone could recommend a wetsuit (or have any advice) that would help remove this issue?” Christopher Watson
“Just wondered if anyone had looked at possible links between calf muscle pain, specifically the soleus muscle, and the position of shoe cleats? I seem to be plaqued by soleus injuries and though I have religiously followed physios excercise plan to eliminate this it keeps happening. Any advice would be appreciated as I have signed up for the Outlaw in July and can’t afford to keep having this issue.” Mambooty
“Hi, I have a BT HRM for sale. Worn 3 times. I used it with my IPhone for Strava cycling and running app however I have just purchased a new Garmin with HRM and I have no need for this anymore. £15 + p&p. Description and specs in link below. Thanks for looking. http://www.decathlon.co.uk/cardio-bluetooth-smart-40-id_8288269.html.” Lev1710
“Hi All, I am currently a masters student studying in London, due to finish in September. Ever since my first triathlon last year I have been hooked and now aim to train all three disciplines over about 10+ sessions in the week along side studies. But I am getting tired of the UK weather. I am thinking about moving abroad to live and train. First triathlon was a 2hour 30mins time, which is not bad considering my fitness levels then which were non existent. I am now predicting a time far closer to 2 hours for Olympic distance on a training schedule which is frankly a bit of a mess, but I am thinking how good could I be if I just trained solidly and did not have to think about everything else….
As a result I am thinking of finishing my studies and then moving abroad to train through the winter and smashing next season. What do people think? I would love to hear of some location suggestions, some ways to finance this period of my life that won’t take up all my time, and anything else anyone has to say? Many thanks in advance.” Futurebound
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If you need some gear or training advice then just head over to the 220 forum and ask!
The British Elite Duathlon Championships are beginning with what is expected to be a hotly contested race at Rockingham Motor Racing Circuit this Sunday 29th March.
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Three-time British Champion, Mark Buckingham heads into the event as one of the favourites having finished second at the ETU Triathlon European Cup in Quarteira last weekend.
Competitors will complete a 5km run, 20km bike and 2.5km run in a multi-lap format around the circuit which combines sweeping bends and high-speed straights.
Speaking of the track, Buckingham said, “To use the same track as they use for motor sport is great; we don’t get to race at these types of venues very often in the UK.
“The Elite Duathlon Championships is one of the most exciting races of the year. It’s so intense and fast with the last run leg being only 7-8mins long, you can go really hard straight out of transition.”
>>> Read our report on last weekend’s British Duathlon Championships at Oulton Park
Youth Olympic Champion, and 220’s Young Triathlete of the Year, Ben Dijkstra will be making the step up to senior level this year and may indeed be one to watch having won impressively at the Quarteira ETU Junior Triathlon European Cup last time out.
Other contenders include Adam Bowden, friend and fellow member of the British Triathlon’s World-Class Programme to Buckingham and Phil Wylie who won the event last year.
Fresh from an ITU World Triathlon Series race in Abu Dhabi, Emma Pallant will be widely considered as the favourite for the women’s event having finished fastest last year.
Her closest challenger on paper will be Katie Hewison who followed Pallant home in second in 2014. British Elite Junior Triathlete of the Year Sophie Coldwell will have something to say about that as she moves up to the senior ranks following a second-placed finish in last year’s junior race.
The venue will also pay host to World Paratriathlon Champion, Lauren Steadman (PT4) as she bids to get her season off to a flying start in the paraduathlon race. She will be joined by fellow paratriathletes, Joe Townsend (PT1), George Peasgood (PT4) and Andrew Lewis (PT2).
Easter weekend will see the first LikeBike Monte Carlo exhibition, featuring premium bike brands and accessories from around the world.
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The event will feature the most luxurious (and most expensive) gear that the biking world has to offer and we’ve taken a look at what will be on show.
There will be many top-of-the-range cycles on display from manufacturers such as Dassi, Time and Cipollini. Attention will be drawn in particular to the Cipollini RB1000 Luxury Edition which features a front logo made up of gold, diamonds and platinum.
>>> Read our guide to the most expensive cycles at LikeBike
Visitors will also be able to take a look at the latest in eBike technology and spectators of the night race will be able to test ride selected models.
Luxury accessories will also be on show such as the Hövding Airbag Cycling Helmet (above) which the creators say is ergonomically designed to protect more of the head compared to traditional bike helmets. Many years of development has gone into the creation of the helmet including crash tests and close work with experts on airbag technology and mathematics. Perhaps that’s why it costs £249, from www.hovding.com.
The X-BIONIC for Automobili Lamborghini Bike Jacket is another such example on the list and features distinctive openings in the outer layer that the creators claim will increase your speed and help you cool down..
It also houses an X-BIONIC converter port that is built to allow air flow along your back to manipulate wind resistance. As you might expect from the name, all of this technology doesn’t come cheap and will set you back £565 from www.x-bionic.co.uk.
Described as “a cut above the rest” by its makers, TIME’s handmade ErgoDrive 14 handlebar has a unique design and is made from carbon fibre woven around a reinforcing insert to resist the clamping force of the stem. Price: £255 from www.time-sport.com.
A close-circuit night race has also been organised to take place on 29th March and will incorporate parts of the Monaco Grand Prix racetrack. Amateurs, celebrities and pros are being invited to register while spectators will be welcome to embark on test rides.
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The event is due to take place between the 3rd and 5th April. For more information on the event, to enter the night race or to buy tickets head to www.likebikemc.com.
The Auckland instalment of the 2015 World Triathlon Series saw Britain’s Jessica Learmonth lead the athletes out of the swim for the first time – but it was the USA’s Gwen Jorgensen who romped home for her 10th career victory, followed by fellow American Katie Zaferes.
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Jorgensen emerged from the 1,500m swim with a 40-second deficit behind Learmonth and Spain’s Carolina Routier, but her effort on the early laps of the bike catapulted her into the lead group and she was able to remain there for the entire 40km — giving her the time to push ahead early on the 10km run.
Crossing the finish line in 2:09:04 with a lead of over 90secs, she earned her second gold of the year and in the process became the first female athlete ever to hold ten WTS golds.
>>> Gwen Jorgensen wins WTS Abu Dhabi 2015
“I really wanted to be with the leaders in T2 so I am really happy that I was able to do that,” said Jorgensen afterwards. “I was able to execute with my run today but my main goal is to keep with front pack during the bike.”
After the first transition, a strong lead group was pulled along by Lucy Hall (GBR) and Sarah True (USA) for the first couple laps of the bike. But entering into the third lap a huge push from the chase group caused the frontrunners to turn into a 21-women merger. The last part of the bike ride the leaders dwindled down to an 11-athlete pack that included Jorgensen, True, Lisa Norden (SWE), Andrea Hewitt (NZL) and Vendula Frintova (CZE).
Norden executed a strong performance on the bike as she brought herself back from a 40sec deficit from the water to be the leader on the bike for five out of the eight laps. However she was forced to pull herself out of the race once she hit the run portion with confirmed Achilles trouble.
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On the pavement the three podium positions were determined early with Jorgensen, Zafares and Hewitt breaking away from the pack. While Jorgensen took off on her trademark run, fellow teammate Zafares was able to hold onto a consistent run to land her the second-place finish. Britain’s highest-placing athlete was Lucy Hall in 17th position, while Learmonth failed to finish.
It took me four years to conquer #WTSAuckland Thank you for all of the support. I’m very happy.
Jonny Brownlee put in a superb race at WTS Auckland earlier today to take his first gold of the 2015 season, visibly delighted with victory as he crossed the line ahead of defending champion Javier Gomez (ESP).
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Brownlee was always in a good position throughout the first Olympic distance race of 2015 (1,500 swim/40km bike/10km run), having been helped through the swim by Leeds-based Slovakian, Richard Varga, and Tom Bishop on the bike.
Very happy to win #AucklandWTS today. It is a honest triathlon course. Just like the Yorkshire hill’s! pic.twitter.com/0XwkMWy9B4
— Jonathan Brownlee (@jonny_brownlee) March 29, 2015
He burst out of the second transition and established an immediate lead over Gomez and Pierre Le Corre of France. Current world number one, Mario Mola (ESP) was a minute down by this stage.
Running through heavy rain in the final stages of the 10km run, Brownlee was visibly delighted with victory. He celebrated around the final corner and with the crowd in the final metres before crossing the finishing line as a clear winner.
He said: “In [the previous round in] Abu Dhabi I made many mistakes, and I’ve been beating myself up about it for the last few weeks. I’ve been training hard because I didn’t want to do that again, and I wanted to be able to show how fit I was.”
>>> Read our report on the men’s race at WTS Abu Dhabi
Brownlee now takes up the world number one ranking, which he’ll carry through to the next round on the Gold Coast in two weeks. Tom Bishop finished 13th, a good result and reward for his efforts on the bike.
Olympic Champion, Alistair Brownlee, missed this round through injury, but is hopeful of a return in time for the fourth round of the Series in Cape Town (25-26 April).
1. Jonathan Brownlee (GBR) – 01:55:26 2. Javier Gomez Noya (ESP) – 01:55:41 3. Pierre Le Corre (FRA) – 01:55:52 4. Fernando Alarza (ESP) – 01:56:48 5. Ryan Bailie (AUS) – 01:56:53 6. Henri Schoeman (RSA) – 01:57:03 7. Richard Varga (SVK) – 01:57:07 8. Crisanto Grajales (MEX) – 01:57:17 9. Ben Kanute (USA) – 01:57:20 10. Tony Dodds (NZL) – 01:57:39
For the full results head here. Highlights of today’s racing at WTS Auckland will be shown on BBC 2 at 4pm this afternoon.
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What did you think of the race? Let us know in the comments below!
Mark Buckingham and Emma Pallant won the first senior domestic titles of 2015 yesterday at the British Elite Duathlon Championships at Rockingham Motor Racing Circuit in Northamptonshire.
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It wasn’t all plain sailing though – fierce winds forced the organisers to change the format in the junior women’s and both senior races, cancelling the bike leg and make it a straight 10km run.
Buckingham completed the run in a provisional winning time of 31:10mins, finishing ahead of Adam Bowden and David Bishop (times still to be confirmed). “It feels great to win – I’m really happy with how it all went,” said Buckingham afterwards.
“Obviously, we all came here to do a duathlon but the weather just wasn’t on our side. Coming from a running background, I guess it helps me, but knowing Adam Bowden was in the race, it’s still a level playing field. We’re big rivals and great friends – we have been for a number of years – so we had a good tussle.”
Buckingham looks to be on a good run of form with a second place at the ETU Triathlon European Cup in Quarteira, Portugal a week ago, and says he now plans to use April to build up his training ahead of racing WTS Yokohama in May.
>>> 2015’s triathlon highlights – a guide
Women’s race
Emma Pallant took the chequered flat in the women’s race for the second year in a row, crossing the line in a time of 37:07. The 2014 British Triathlon Super Series Champion was followed across the line by last year’s Super Series runner-up India Lee who finished just four seconds behind in 37:11mins. Third place went to Chloe Cook who completed the 10km in 37:27mins.
Emma Pallant wins 2015 British Elite Duathlon Champs
“I was a little bit disappointed about it just being a run today,” said Pallant afterwards. “I’ve been working hard out in Spain at a training camp and my bike’s the thing we’ve been focussing on a lot, so it’s a bit of a shame about that, but with the conditions there was no way you could bike out there. I just sat in on the run as I wanted to qualify for the World Duathlon and left it down to a sprint finish – job done.”
>>> Emma Pallant: “Triathlon has taught me I always have to fight”
Paraduathlon
In the paraduathlon races, Joe Townsend (PT1) defended his title after crossing the line first in a winning time 1:05:25. Joe said after crossing the line: “I am really happy with today. It’s been a slow start to the season after recovering from surgery on my shoulder. Today, I just wanted to deliver a good performance and have a good indicator as to where I’m at performance wise.”
In the women’s races, Lizzie Tench won the PT1 category in a time of 01:32.09 with World Paratriathlon Champion, Lauren Steadman (PT4) adding another title to her name winning gold in the PT4 category in 01:17:37.
>>> Dates confirmed for 2015 ITU World Paratri Events
Juniors
In the British Elite Junior Duathlon Championships, the first race of the British Triathlon Youth and Junior Super Series, Ben Dijkstra – 220’s Youth Triathlete of the Year – won the junior men’s event in 59:34mins. Samuel Dickinson was second with a time of 59:59mins and Jimmy Kershaw finished third in 1:01:00.
Ben commented after his second win in successive weekends: “It’s great – I won this event last year so I knew I was coming into it knowing I was one of the stronger lads. The conditions weren’t really ideal today – a lot of wind and spray, so I had to be really careful. I knew what I had to do and I’m just over the moon with the result.”
In the junior women’s event, Kate Waugh celebrated winning the opening title of the season crossing the line in a time of 38.02mins. Mary Hodgson was second with a time of 38:16mins and Sian Rainsley finished third in 39:41mins.
Issy Morris won the girl’s youth race, which was also the opening round of the British Youth Super Series, with a time of 31:01mins. Emma Clapton was second in 32:09mins and Caitlin Roper finished third with a time of 32:20mins.
Tomos Nesham won the youth boy’s race with a winning time of 29:43mins. Travis Bramley was second in 29:48mins and Gregor Malcolm finished third with a time of 29:56mins.
For full results and more reaction from the athletes, head to www.britishtriathlon.org.
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Were you racing at Rockingham yesterday? Let us know in the comments below!
British women ruled Ironman South Africa yesterday, with Jodie Swallow taking top honours and an emotional victory ahead of Lucy Gossage and Susie Cheetham.
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Setting the tone for the rest of the race, Swallow quickly caught up to the back end of the men’s field. She completed the swim with a time of 50:16mins, with Camilla Pedersen (DEN) and Lucie Reed (CZE) following a further two seconds back.
>>> Camilla Pedersen’s comeback continues with victory at Challenge Fuerteventura
Pedersen stayed within distance of Swallow in the early stages of the bike, while Eva Wutti (AUT) sat comfortably in third position for the majority of the first lap, but was overtaken by Germany’s Diana Riesler as they neared the 90km mark. Swallow pulled away slightly and was able to take a two-minute lead into T2. Pedersen and Riesler followed in second and third respectively.
Swallow continued to look strong and started stretching her lead. While Pedersen held her own in the first lap, she was later overtaken by both Lucy Gossage and Susie Cheetham, who moved into second and third place.
Absolute race @jodieswallow. Winners are grinners! Good to see @JamesCunnama was there 2 great u #BahrainEndurance13 pic.twitter.com/WdNUm86syI
— Chris McCormack (@MaccaNow) March 29, 2015
Gossage though, could not repeat her feat of a year ago as Swallow comfortably held out to cross the finish line in 09:26:56 to claim probably the most significant Ironman win of her career to date.
Swallow dedicated her win to friend and Italian triathlete Linda Scattolin, who was killed in a training ride accident in South Africa a few weeks ago. Gossage finished six minutes later in second with Cheetham a further two minutes back.
>>> Susie Cheetham (née Hignett) on going from amateur to Ironman pro
When asked on her thoughts on the race, an exhausted Swallow said: “[I am] very satisfied with my victory, but my body is completely numb now. It [definitely] feels as if I have just completed an Ironman.”
French athlete Sylvain Sudrie made the early yards on the swim with Johann Ackermann of Germany leading the group. South Africa’s Kyle Buckingham kept pace with the leaders with Frederik Van Lierde on the shoulders of Buckingham.
Van Lierde moved into third position before Sudrie emerged first in 49:04mins. A group of 10 men all exited the water within a minute of each other with Ackermann in second, Van Lierde in third, Mike Aigroz (CHE) and Italy’s Alberto Casadei in fourth and fifth.
Bertrand Billard (FRA) and Buckingham made headway to move into the top four with Van Lierde and Sudrie. The quartet remained close throughout the bike but Van Lierde upped his output after the first lap and opened a four minute lead by the 132km mark. The Belgian powered on into the T2 and proceeded onto the run with a massive 13min lead over Buckingham and Aernout.
With Van Lierde in complete control, it was up to Buckingham and Aernouts to stake a claim for the title or be content with second place. While Van Lierde continued to push ahead, a fierce tussle was emerging between Buckingham and Aernouts going shoulder to shoulder. Spaniard, Ivan Rana meanwhile was making headway after being fourth into T2.
Buckingham tried, but could not get away from Aernouts, and Rana managed to pass them both to move into second place as they started the second lap. Van Lierde was relentless though, despite sapping heat, to put in a masterclass performance. The 2013 World Champion finished in a time of 08:16:34, followed by Rana 14mins and 9secs later with Aernout claiming the final podium position at 08:35:58.
Scotland’s David McNamee was the top-placing British male, coming in seventh position with a time of 8:43:35 and fully justifying his decision to relinquish Rio 2016 in favour of moving up from ITU to long-course racing.
>>> David McNamee: ‘Kona is the dream I have to chase’
Ironman- its a bloody long way.Very happy to make it across the line in 7th. Quads now refuse to climb stairs so bum shuffling instead
— David McNamee (@DavidMcNameetri) March 29, 2015
1. Frederik Van Lierde (BEL) – 08:16:34 2. Ivan Rana (ESP) – 08:30:45 3. Bart Aernouts (BEL) – 08:35:59 4. Matt Trautman (RSA) – 08:37:21 5. Eneko Llanos (ESP) – 08:37:50 6. Bas Diederen (NED) – 08:38:14 7. David McNamee (GBR) – 08:43:35 8. Cyril Viennot (FRA) – 08:45:55 9. Victor Manuel Del Corral Morales (ESP) – 08:47:10 10. James Cunnama (RSA) – 08:47:45
For full results from the Standard Bank Ironman African Championship head here.
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Were you racing Ironman South Africa? Let us know in the comments below!