Emma Pallant and Ben Dijkstra both took home gold medals for GB at the ITU World Duathlon Championships in Adelaide over the weekend, with Mark Buckingham also taking a bronze.
Advertisement
Pallant won gold in the elite women’s event, finishing ahead of Ai Ueda of Japan and Sandra Levenez, the defending champion from France. She stayed with the leaders throughout, before running away on the final 5km run to break the tape more than thirty seconds ahead of Ueda.
Pallant commented after her win: “During the bike the three of us were working as a team to stay away but when Gillian came up to us it suddenly became a lot more tactical and we kept trying to break each other. I knew the quality of girls around me and I knew it was going to be a fight to finish, but I felt good going onto the final run. “I’ve always been a runner, so this win feels even more special because it has been a different challenge. The race culminates three years of hard work with Team Dillon who have been really patient and had amazing belief in me.”
Sixteen-year-old Dijkstra won the junior men’s event, beating older competitors to secure his first world title, with Jimmy Kershaw also coming sixth.
Dijkstra tweeted: “Can’t believe I can now say I’m World Duathlon Champion!” following his win.
The senior men’s event was won by Spain’s Emilio Martin, and Mark Buckingham ran through into a brilliant bronze. Phil Wylie was seventh.
Results, ITU World Duathlon Championships, Adelaide, Australia
The British age-group duathlon team was represented across the board in Adelaide at the weekend, with medals for GB athletes from the 25-29 category right up to the 80-84 age-group.
Advertisement
80-year-old Maurice Young beat his only rival in the category by 8mins to become World Champion in the sprint distance. The sprint team also topped the podium on both occasions in the 25-29 age-group, with Carl Avery retaining the men’s title in 56:07, the fastest Age-Group time overall. The women’s 25-29 podium featured a British trio, with a win for Claire Steels in 1:06:21. Harriet Enoch was second in 1:07:54, and Rebecca York picked up bronze with her 1:08:24 clocking. Andrea Sanders Reece won the women’s 60-64 category in 1:16:46.
The standard distance team celebrated two age-group wins in the form of Gill Fullen (W50-54) in 2:08:49 and Elspeth Knott (W65-69) in 2:33:13. Chris Nicoll (M45-49) was the quickest of the British men; his 1:56:08 good enough to pick up the silver medal.
The age-group medals added to the two gold and one bronze picked up by the elite team the day previous. Emma Pallant and Ben Dijkstra respectively won the elite women’s and junior men’s titles, with Mark Buckingham coming thirdin the elite men’s race.
ITU Duathlon World Championships – British age-group medallists Sprint Distance
GOLD Claire Steels (W25-29) – 1:06:21 Carl Avery (M25-29) – 56:07 Paul Abeledo (M45-49) – 59:34 Andrea Sanders Reece (W60-64) – 1:16:46 Maurice Young (M80-84) – 1:53:49
Garmin has announced it’s latest line-up of running watches, the Forerunner 230, 235 and 630.
Advertisement
The 230 is the simplest watch of these updated models, whereas the 235 and 630 both have heart rate monitors built in amongst other new innovations.
The 630, proclaimed as Garmin’s most advanced running watch to date, has a mind-boggling list of features, with the ability to track stride length, make V02 max estimates and calculate lactate threshold to name just three. It’s Wi-Fi enabled so your runs will be automatically downloaded to Garmin Connect, and has a whopping sixteen hours battery life in training mode and four weeks when just being used as a normal watch. What’s more, the built-in everyday activity and sleep trackers will still work in watch mode without eating into the battery life.
‘Mind boggling’ – the 630 has more features than you could shake a stick at
The 235 model also has wrist-based heart rate, whilst the 230 is the simplest offering and needs an ANT+ strap to measure heart rate. Both watches offer daily activity tracking as per the 630, and are also compatible with the Connect IQTM smartwatch platform, whereby users are able to customise their watch with additional apps, widgets, watch faces and data fields.
The RRP’s of the watches are £329.99 for the Forerunner 630, £269.99 for the 235 and £209.99 for the 230, and they are set to hit the shelves in November. Triathletes will also be pleased to hear that that all three watches are water-resistant to 50 metres.
The Challenge Family have just announced that the 2015 edition of Challenge Bahrain will no longer go ahead on 20 November due to issues regarding the road traffic safety permit for the race.
Advertisement
Challenge Bahrain’s General Manager, Mikel Calahorra, said: “We’d like to thank everyone for their continued support. We’ve worked hard for many months to deliver an exceptional race that followed on from the legacy created by the inaugural Challenge Bahrain in 2014.
“Challenge Family is committed to delivering the highest quality triathlons on the best and safest courses. In light of the permit issues, we were unable to do this for Challenge Bahrain 2015 and we felt it was in the interest of the athletes that we cancel the race.”
All registered athletes have been contacted directly with regards to the registration fee refunds, but there will certainly be stern criticism from those who have already paid for flights and hotels for the race.
Where the cancellation of the race leaves the Nasser bin Hamad Triple Crown Grand Final has yet to be announced, with Challenge Bahrain – which was cited as a ‘game-changer’ after its debut outing in 2014 – due to host the Grand Final of the $1million series.
The Triple Crown has already witnessed a cancellation in its Oman leg (replaced, under-the-radar, in the series by August’s Ironman 70.3 Worlds in Austria), with the new Ironman 70.3 Middle East Championship in Bahrain on 5 December the obvious choice.
With 13,000 participants descending on the capital city, the London Triathlon has fast established itself as the UK’s biggest triathlon and next year celebrates its 20th anniversary.
Advertisement
The 2016 dates have been confirmed as 6-7th August and taking place during the Rio Olympic Games, organisers hope the event will help to celebrate the sport of triathlon and cater for participants of all ages and abilities.
Andy Knee, MD of IMG Mass Participation Sports said: “Triathlon is an iconic event in the city’s sporting calendar, with participants swimming the Royal Victoria Docks and cycling and running the surrounding area every year. We’re looking forward to welcoming returning triathletes and our thousands of first-timers to celebrate the event’s 20th anniversary in 2016.”
Four distances are available: Super-Sprint, Sprint, Olympic and Olympic Plus, as well as a variety of wave types including relay, age-group, youth, mixes and male and female-only.
Advertisement
Entries go on sale next week and you can sign up now to the priority list to guarantee a place at the start line. Visit the London Triathlon website here.
After launching new races in Sweden, Estonia, Dubai and America, Ironman have announced that they’ll be partnering with Just Racing UK to host two new Ironman events in Weymouth.
Advertisement
On 11 September 2016, Weymouth will host both a full Ironman race and an Ironman 70.3 event. Both races will offer 30 qualifying spots for the 2017 Ironman and Ironman 70.3 World Championships, with a $15,000 pro prize pot on offer at the 70.3 event (there won’t be a pro race at the full event).
After hosting two editions of Challenge Weymouth (pictured), Just Racing will continue to organise the race logistics for the next three years.
Both events will commence with a (1.9km/3.8km) swim on Weymouth’s famed seafront before heading off into the Dorset countryside and Jurassic Coast on the 90km/180km bike legs, and concluding with a 21.km/42.2km run on Weymouth’s promenade.
Unusually for Ironman, both Ironman and 70.3 races will take place on the same day, with the date throwing up the possibility of athletes – with superior recovery skills – being able to race both an event in Weymouth and Ironman Wales a week later in Tenby.The Weymouth race details are:
Race: Ironman Weymouth Race Date: 11 September 2016 2017 World Championship Slots (Kona): 30 Pro Race: No
Race: Ironman 70.3 Weymouth Race Date: 11 September 2016 2017 70.3 World Championship Slots: 30 Pro Race: Yes – $15,000
Priority entry for tri club pre-registration is from 26 – 30th October, with a deadline for tri club registration of 6 November. General entries go on sale on Monday 9 November at 12pm midday.
More entry info and race details are at: www.ironman.com/weymouth.
The sun was shining in Mallorca for the middle distance Challenge Paguera on 17th October, as Filip Ospaly of Czech Republic and Spaniard Sara Loehr Muñoz were victorious.
Hundreds of age-group athletes also took to the calm blue waters off Torà Beach and the technical, winding bike course, before finishing with a flat tarmac run along the beachfront. A large crowd gathered throughout the day in Paguera hoping to enjoy a race with some of the best triathletes in Europe, including ITU star Mario Mola. In the men’s race, rookie Mola was first out of the water in 24mins, but unfortunately had to abandon the race after puncturing on the bike leg. Ospaly stormed to victory with a 1:17 run split in an overall time of 4:03:26.
In the women’s race, Brit Catherine Jameson led on the swim and bike after comfortably exiting the water first, however she was eventually run down by Loehr at the 7km mark who won in a time of 4hrs 37mins.
Advertisement
Images: www.joseluishourcade.com
Mario Mola at the swim start, who eventually DNF’d due to a puncture
The Challenge Paguera swim start
There were some technical turns on the bike course
A descent on the 90km bike leg
Age-group athletes taking on the challenge
An athlete comes into transition
Brit Catherine Jameson heads out for the half marathon run
An athlete collects a lap-counting band on the run course
Picturesque scenes on a coastal path along the beach
One hundred and 26 athletes lined up for the final stop on the 2015 ITU World Cup circuit on Saturday for one last chance of a podium finish and final opportunity to add Olympic qualification points to their 2015 tally.
Advertisement
It was a fitting end to a stunning season of ITU World Cup racing in Tongyeong, a beautiful port city located on the southern edge of the Korean Peninsula.
Great Britain’s Matt Sharp secured his first ITU title after a calculated race, but Spain’s David Castro Fajardo and Australian veteran Courtney Atkinson made him earn it, taking silver and bronze respectively.
Men’s race
A capacity men’s field of 76 broke the glassy conditions of the Tongyeong Harbour in a two-lap, non-wetsuit swim. After a frenetic start to the 1.5km swim the first to emerge was Ben Kanute (USA), followed by the Polyanskiy brothers Igor and Dimity (RUS) and Australia’s Courtney Atkinson. The swim did little to break up the field and subsequently a long line of athletes emerged in quick succession.
Kanute was the first to lead out onto the bike but there would be no quick breaks as the front group formed with 60 men. The first lap saw everyone jockeying for position, but on the second it was Atkinson who put them to the test.
“I’ve been training for the Xterra World Championships in Maui next weekend,” said Atkinson post-race. “It’s a very hilly bike course over there and I’ve been training a lot on hills, so I was really confident on the bike and thought there would be a breakaway. I went a few times and maybe taxed my legs a little more on the bike than I should in an ITU race.”
By lap three the group had been reduced to 55 but no opportunity presented itself for a break away, the group remaining intact and prepared for a flat-out 10km run.
Portugal’s Miguel Arraiolos took advantage of the maelstrom into T2, scooting out first from Basson Engelbrecht (RSA) and Gabor Faldum (HUN). Sharp was the next out onto the run but knew he had to run his own race and pace.
Atkinson didn’t take long to move to the front alongside Dmitry Polyanskiy and Sergio Sarmiento (MEX) on lap two. But on lap three Joe Maloy (USA) and Sharp had joined Atkinson and Polyanskiy.
Sharp’s earlier patience paid dividends in the end with the fresher legs delivering him his first World Cup win.
Atkinson’s earlier efforts on the bike saw him fall into the clutches of the young Spaniard, who took second place in the final stages. Atkinson is vying for his third Olympic team and will be the first Australian to do so if he succeeds.
“It’s good because I hadn’t raced [and ITU event] since London [Olympics] before the beginning of this year. It’d been a long time and I’d set myself a goal. Ideally I would have liked to have won a race, you always want to be at the top, but realistically if I can get a podium, I’m back in the ballpark and can work on it again going to Rio next year.”
“The bike was pretty easy but the hill on the run, I just gauged my effort and finished the last lap real strong,” commented Sharp at the line. “I think on the first lap, not through choice, I just couldn’t go with the pace up and down the hill. On the flat I was feeling good so I just worked the cadence and slowly caught up.
“It’s been a long time since I had an ITU race, I’ve been struggling for a few years so this means a real lot to me,” said Sharp. “I’m very happy with my position.”
Women’s race
Yuka Sato (JAP) turned recent good form into gold, winning the 2015 Tongyeong Triathlon World Cup. Tongyeong has been a great race for the young Japanese athlete, claiming bronze in 2012 and now delivering the first World Cup victory of her career.
Sato was in the hunt during the swim and bike but made her move on the third lap of the run to secure victory.
“I’m very happy for this win,” said Sato. “I got a lot of confidence from this victory and did my best today. I knew [Yuko] Takahashi is a good runner but I just felt good today and felt confident on the last two laps. It’s a very special feeling, my first World Cup win.”
The podium places came down to a race of two between Jolanda Annen (SUI) and Takahashi (JAP), the pair running shoulder to shoulder on the last lap before Annen found another gear to claim an emotional silver from Takahasi.
The long-established multisport event organiser, Human Race, has revealed its line-up for 2016, with UK classic Windsor Triathlon, the perennially popular Eton SuperSprints and an ITU World Sprint Distance Qualifier all included.
Advertisement
Kicking-off the season will be the Eton SuperSprints at the beginner/PB-friendly Dorney Lake. First held in 1991, the stone-cold UK classic the Windsor Triathlon follows in June, with another highlight being the Shock Absorber Women Only Triathlon in July.
The confirmed 2016 Human Race Triathlon Series is:
The brand have also unveiled new ‘multi-event packages’, which allow athletes to choose several events at once and save up to £52 on the combined entry fees.
Advertisement
Places are available at www.humanrace.co.uk/triathlon
Athletes from 35 nations lined up on Sunday 25th October at the second edition of Challenge Forte Village in Sardinia, in a thrilling race that eventually saw Alessandro Degasperi of Italy and Brit Susie Cheetham take the wins in 3:53:56 and 4:26:20 respectively.
Advertisement
At 8:00am the pro field lined up including European Champion Filip Ospaly (CZE), Joe Gambles (AUS) and Ritchie Nicholls (GBR), together with two strong Italians Alessandro Degasperi and Massimo Cigana determined to battle until the end for a place in the podium.
After 1.9km swim the lead group all came out of the water within one minute of each other, with Cigana four minutes down. Gambles pushed very hard on the bike course arriving first in T2, followed by Cigana who put in a super fast bike split to join the chase pack which also included Ospaly, Nicholls and Degasperi.
On the run, the first surprise arrived at the end of the second loop when Gambles, who’d started the run with a 3:30 lead, had to pull out due to injury. The lead group was at this point made of Ospaly, Degasperi and the young Albert Moreno Molins (ESP). Degasperi made his final move at the 19km mark and claimed victory just eight seconds ahead of Ospaly with Molins.
In the womens’ race, Cheetham, who had just finished sixth at Kona, had to push to the end to take the win and to leave behind Maja Stage Nielsen (DEN), who arrived at the finish line in less than 2 minutes after her. Marta Bernardi (ITA) completed the podium.
Advertisement
Images: www.joseluishourcade.com
The men’s swim start of Challenge Paguera-Sardinia
The women’s swim start
Swim exit onto the beach
Some of the amazing scenery around the resort
More stunning Sardinian landscapes
A cyclist rides along the coastal roads
A curious canine checks out the action
The undulating run course
Runners take the turn point near to an ancient ruin
Men’s race winner Alessandro Degasperi of Italy
The women’s podium, with Brit Susie Cheetham taking the top spot