The Starman Night Triathlon took place for the second time at the weekend with double the amount of competitors than its 2017 debut.
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Set against the backdrop of the Cairngorms in the Scottish Highlands, the middle-distance Starman (sharing a name with one of Jeff Bridge’s greatest films/Bowie’s best songs) saw competitors kick off the unique 113km challenge (see also the iron-distance Midnight Man in Kent) by slipping into the black waters of Loch Morlich for a 1.9km swim in the dark of midnight. This was followed by a 90km cycle along the silent Speyside roads before taking on the summits of Cairn Gorm and Meall a Bhuachaille as the dawn rose.
People from as far afield as Caerphilly in Wales and Peterhead in Aberdeenshire took part, with the overall winner Chris Watson, 32, from Crieff, finishing in 6:20:55. The first female competitor to cross the line was Claire Campbell, 42 from Fife in 7:50:57. Relay team winners – Andrew Jones, Mark Madigan and Ryan McLennan from the Moray Firth Triathlon Club – crossed the line first in just 6:02:28.
The event is managed by True Grit Events, who set up the Starman Night Triathlon in 2017 to offer something different for triathletes and outdoor adventure addicts.
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For more information on True Grit Events or Starman visit www.truegritevents.com and www.starmannighttri.com
Just two races stand between Vicky Holland and what could be her first-ever World Tri Series title. In what has been her most successful season to date, the 32-year-old Rio bronze medallist is currently second in the standings on 3579 point, 591 behind Series leader Katie Zaferes (USA). And with 1,000 up for grabs for the winner, and 1250 at the Grand Final, it’s all to play for in this coming Saturday’s Montreal race and the final event in Gold Coast on Saturday 15 September.
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“I’m just taking it one race at a time,” said Holland on the phone the day before she flew out to Montreal. “Montreal’s a race I’ve not done before but I have noted the key areas, and will take a closer look at those when I get over there. I’ll hopefully then put together a race that I can be proud of.”
Despite a consistent season, which has included two wins (Leeds and Edmonton), the absence of the reigning and two-time world champion Flora Duffy (BER) in the second half of the season due to injury hasn’t gone unnoticed.
“That’s opened up a window for someone else to come in and become world champion,” said Holland. “And I’m definitely working towards that being me. All I can do is go to these last two races in as good a shape as I possibly can, and I think I’ve put myself in a good position for that.”
Joining Holland on the start line is the full GB senior women’s squad (minus Non Stanford): Jess Learmonth (currently fifth in the rankings), Georgia Taylor-Brown (sixth), Jodie Stimpson (10th) and Sophie Coldwell (37th)
For Learmonth, 2018 has also proved a consistent year, with two top-five finishes on the World Series and silvers at the Gold Coast Commies and Glasgow European Champs.
“Things have come together well at the end of the season so I’m hoping to get a couple of good results in and finish as high up the Series rankings as I can,” said Learmonth pre-Montreal. “Obviously there’s a lot of travel involved, so managing that will be a big factor. I need a decent result in Montreal to give me a chance of being competitive overall in the Series, so that’s what I’m focusing on now.”
While Coldwell, 23, won’t be challenging for the Series win, several stand-out performances (most notably in Leeds where she led until halfway through the run) means she’ll be lining up on the Gold Coast in her first senior final.
“I’m feeling confident for Montréal, I’ve had a good block of training. I’ve not raced the WTS for a couple of months now, as I’ve been off on leave, so I’m excited to be racing back at that level. As far as goals, I’d like to swim better than I have been this year. It’s just getting that confidence back, so if I can have a good swim that’ll be really good.”
But while team tactics usually come into play at one-day competitions, such as the Olympics, the presence of such a strong GB women’s squad in the last two races does not mean there will be any role-playing.
“We’re not approaching these races in a team capacity,” said Holland. “No one’s playing a role for anyone else, and we haven’t done that all season. At the same time we do work together quite well and it’s always good to have a lot of Brits on the start line. We’re in such a strong position at the moment, especially with the girls, whichever race we go to we’re going to have a full start line and that’s great really.
“The girls are ruling the roost this year, but that’s a real testament to the team we’ve got and the way in which we encourage each other,” continued Holland. “We’ve done a great job of nurturing the talent coming through. And that’s a real testament to what British Triathlon have done and what the girls at the top over the years have managed to continue to nurture and cultivate. And hopefully that just keeps going.”
If all goes as planned in the next two events, Holland will join her 2012 London teammate Helen Jenkins and 2016 Rio teammate Non Stanford in an exclusive group of British female world champions.
“At the end of it [Montreal and Gold Coast] we’ll count the positions, see where I am and count the points! On the Gold Coast it could absolutely be all to play for, and that’s more exciting than anything else.”
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220 will be on the ground in Montreal, bringing you all the action as it happens. Don’t miss out by following us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
After last year’s accident and the ensuing emotional rollercoaster, Tim Don, qualifies for 2018 Kona Ironman World Championship in the final roll-down.
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His last chance to qualify was this past weekend at Ironman Copenhagen. Tim started off strongly in the first half, but began to struggle in the second half due to digestive issues, having to stop around the 26km mark and pull out of the marathon leg.
There was initial disappointment, believing he’d missed out on automatic KPR (Kona Pro Rankings) qualification. But this soon turned to elation with the realisation that one of the final 10 places had not been accepted. Tim, ranked as the first athlete to be offered the ‘roll-down’ spot, was quick to accept his place and can now begin his final preparations for Kona.
It was last October that Tim Don got hit by a truck while doing a final ride in Kona. Tim suffered a C2 vertebrae fracture at the top of his spine, being fitted in a metal halo brace which he had to endure for six weeks. “It was like facing the dentist’s drill, but 100 times worse,” Tim says. Thankfully, this accident did not call for surgery, but it still meant putting a halt to his training plans for the upcoming triathlon season due to the halo being screwed into his skull.
Only three weeks into his determined recovery, Tim made it his mission to be on the starting line of Kona to race. He patiently regained mobility through minor exercises at the gym and intensive rehab. “It was good to get back to training but it was also mentally hard as well as I wanted to do more but just couldn’t,” said the world triathlon champion.
Tim’s first comeback race was the Boston Marathon with a targeting finish time of 2:50. He finished in a fantastic 2:49, which is even more impressive given the bad weather conditions.
Following his success in the Boston Marathon, Tim competed in the 70.3 Costa Rica Triathlon finishing in a time of 3:49:59, taking first place and Ironman Hamburg.
Ironman Hamburg was initially planned as his only shot for Kona qualification. With a fourth place or higher, he would have secured an automatic qualification. A fierce battle saw Tim in contention for fourth place until the middle of the run leg, when he began to fade. Post-Hamburg, he decided to sign up to Copenhagen as one final opportunity to qualify for Kona.
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Tim said, “The road to recovery is rarely linear, the last 10 months have been all about perseverance. To get the first roll down spot was not in my vision, but life is funny like that. See you all in Kona!”
Canada has proven happy hunting ground for GB’s Vicky Holland as she today added Montreal to her Edmonton win from just one month ago. Today’s victory sees the Rio bronze medallist with three wins under her tri-suit heading into the Grand Final on Gold Coast in just three weeks’ time, yet because of the ITU points system she will start that final race behind the USA’s Katie Zaferes, who today finished second ahead of Holland’s teammate Georgia Taylor-Brown.
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If the start was anything to go by, though, the win for Holland looked unlikely, as confusion over the starting horn caught several short, and which left the Brit entering the water in last place. Coming from a strong swim background, however, helped Holland stay relatively in contention, exiting the water in sixth after the first lap of 750m.
As in all her races this season, GB’s Jess Learmonth led the field out of the non-wetsuit 1.5km swim into T2, pulling through with series leader Zaferes, teammate Sophie Coldwell and Summer Cook (USA). Entering T2 alone in fifth, almost a minute down, Holland raced for almost the entire first lap with Italy’s Alice Betto, before the chase pack, led by reigning European champ Nicola Spirig, swallowed the pair up.
The Swiss Olympic champ set the pace from the off, and it was fast, bridging the gap to the lead now trio (Cook quickly dropped off the pace into the second chase group) after five laps of nine over the 40km city-street course. Now a group of 13, including all five GB girls (Jodie Stimpson made five), they worked tirelessly to pull out a lead over 3mins as they hit the blue carpet for the second transition.
And so the podium chase was on, with a quartet of Brits taking to the front in a dominant display of red, white and blue. Unfazed by the less-than-perfect start, Holland led from the off, making her title intentions known. Trading places behind her were her three teammates, Zaferes and Spirig, the latter the first to drop.
Unfortunately the Fab Four were forced to split at the start of the second lap, as Learmonth dropped down the chain, leaving Stimpson and Taylor-Brown to hold off the chasing American. With no chance of catching Holland, Zaferes set about chewing into the Brit pair’s podium places, finally making the move that stuck on lap three of four over the 10km run.
As the thermometer hit a high of 29°C, Holland ran down the finish chute to claim her third victory of 2018 and the fifth WTS win of her career, taking the title chase to the wire at the Grand Final.
Zaferes brought it home for second, while Taylor-Brown ran through for her third podium finish of the year.
Crowd favourite Joanna Brown of Canada took fourth, Spirig fifth, Stimpson sixth and Learmonth eighth.
Sadly the heat proved too much for Coldwell, who despite finishing was quickly wheeled off to the medical tent.
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For all post-race interviews with the GB girls, check out our Instagram TV feed.
In a complete contrast to yesterday’s women’s race under cloudless skies, what looked like an entire year’s worth of rain arrived on the Sunday morning for the start of the men’s race in Montreal. Not that the weather would have much bearing on the outcome of the seventh race in the 2018 World Triathlon Series, such was the two-time reigning champ Mario Mola’s lead at the start of the penultimate race in Canada’s second largest city. Wherever he finished he would still be in the lead for the Grand Final on Gold Coast in three weeks’ time, thanks in part to the absence of Vincent Luis (FRA), second in the rankings pre-race.
Maintaining a consistent level of success across three sports at each and every race is the athlete’s holy grail, regardless of your level or ability. Yet there are a few things we can all do to at least ensure we have the best shot at racing strong for as long as possible.
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For GB’s Vicky Holland, an unusual calf injury at the start of 2017 put a temporary stopper on what had been up until then a run of consistent top-10 results since 2014, which had culminated in a bronze medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
“But once I’d rehabbed the injury and was back into training, things started to turn fairly quickly for me,” Holland told 220 a few days before this year’s Montreal WTS race, which she would go on to win. This to add to 2018 victories in Edmonton and Leeds, and that could see her crowned world champion in three weeks’ time at the Grand Final on the Gold Coast.
So how has she stayed at the top of the sport? And what can us age-groupers glean from her elite training? Here are her top-five train smart/race strong tips…
Consistency in training can’t be beaten
I don’t try and do hero weeks. I just layer one week on top of the next and I keep doing it again and again and again. And a key element with that is being patient that this will achieve the results you want. If you can put together three months of consistent training then you’re doing a lot better than most of your competitors are. So that’s a big one for me. And I still firmly believe in the approach that I take, which is a high-volume approach, which doesn’t necessarily work for everyone, but for me, it’s brought me my best results. There’s no denying that I’ve become a better runner off the bike since I’ve changed that element of my training. So the takeaway there is don’t shy away from riding your bike a lot!
Remain injury-free!
On the whole I’ve not had many injuries, but when I have been injured they’ve taken me out for quite a long time. A big factor in minimising those risks is gym work – I do more gym work than I probably ever have done. And I believe in it more than I ever have done as well. It doesn’t take that long to put together a good general conditioning programme that helps with injury prevention and that helps with strength. Those two factors are really important for performance. I also know what my warning signs are now, and across my body. So it’s just about keeping on top of everything.
Enjoy what you do
The moment you lose that enjoyment it translates into your results. It’s a hard sport, it’s a tough sport that we do, it takes up a lot of time. It can be gruelling and horrible in the winter but it gives me, and a lot of people, a lot back. And you have to bear that in mind, even on the days when maybe it’s not quite as much fun. But loving what I do has enabled me to keep on improving as I’ve got older.
Diet is not the most important thing!
For me, diet is part of the extra little 1%ers that you can add on the end. Obsessing too much about anything is bad. I believe that everything in moderation is fine. And as a whole my diet is pretty consistent all year round. I eat balanced meals, I like healthy meals but I also like hearty meals and I don’t believe you should ever cut out a main food group unless you’ve got a medical reason. The best and happiest you can be as an athlete is to enjoy what you eat and have a healthy attitude towards it.
Listen to your body
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I do sleep a lot, most elite athletes do! I tend to get around eight, maybe up to nine hours’ sleep a night. That’s pretty normal for me. If I did get less than that I would try to top that up throughout the day. That said, I nap quite a lot during the day. Some days it’s not possible, just because of the training schedule but I go on feel more than anything. It depends on the training load you’re in. Just listen to your body and you can’t go too far wrong.
It’s not often a triathlon film hits the cinemas, but that’s all set to change next month when the We Are Triathletes documentary arrives in the UK. But the screenings will only be confirmed if enough tickets are bought before the deadline of 5pm on Sunday 2nd September.
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The film provides an insight into the lives of six pro athletes from four different countries, and shares how each trained and prepared for the 2014 edition of Challenge Roth, the world’s biggest long-distance triathlon with 200,000+ spectators and our greatest triathlon in the world.
We Are Triathletes will delve into the spirit of endurance sport, with candid interviews from 2014 Challenge Roth champion Mirinda Carfrae; eight-time Ironman champion Luke McKenzie; and double above-knee amputee athlete and four-time Paralympian and gold medalist Rudy Garcia-Tolson.
The film also features interviews with Ironman legends John and Judy Collins, Julie Moss, Kathleen McCartney, Scott Tinley, Dave Scott, and Mark Allen.
The documentary is produced and directed by Yanfeng Zhang and co-produced by Gwendolen Twist (producer of Spirit of the Marathon). It has already been handed the Award of Excellence by the Accolade Global Film Competition.
The film will be screened at the following locations, but triathletes will need to book tickets before 5pm on Sunday afternoon to be assured that the screenings will go ahead. The full screening list is below and tickets can be booked here: uk.demand.film/we-are-triathletes/
From Beijing in 2008 to London 2012, Jan Frodeno, Alistair Brownlee and Javier Gomez have been involved in some epic short-course battles throughout their careers. Where Frodeno took the Olympic title in 2008 and Brownlee in 2012, today in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, it was once again Frodeno’s turn to take the honours at the 2018 Ironman 70.3 World Championships a day after Swiss star Daniela Ryf produced a record fourth Ironman 70.3 world title.
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.@janfrodeno is your new Isuzu IRONMAN 70.3 World Champion – clocking in a winning time of 3:36:30!
“I’m going to throw a grenade. I believe the performance of Jan Frodeno at the Ironman 70.3 World Championship is the greatest triathlon performance in triathlon history.”
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Not my words, but those tweeted by Australian triathlon legend Greg Bennett, and while the three-time Olympian might be erring a little on the hyperbolic, judging by the number of ‘likes’ there were plenty in agreement.
Given the podium in South Africa on Sunday also included Alistair Brownlee and Javier Gomez, it was undeniably the highest-calibre Ironman 70.3 race to date, a distance that has been gathering momentum since the world championship moved from Clearwater, Florida in 2011. But while it might have been standout in nature, it also had echoes of a former classic meeting between Brownlee, Frodeno and Gomez, almost exactly a decade earlier – the 2008 Olympic final in Beijing.
It’s uncanny how history has a knack of repeating itself. Back then, Gomez was the established force, having won 11 of his previous 13 ITU races, including the world title in Vancouver two months earlier. Frodeno arrived in China after a consistent season, but was far from a gold medal favourite. Brownlee had qualified late and was the wet-behind-the-ears 20-year-old out to ruffle feathers.
In Port Elizabeth at the weekend, Gomez had the 70.3 pedigree, having twice stood atop the world championship podium. Frodeno was an established performer, true, but with questionable footspeed to challenge his younger rivals. And Brownlee, despite impressive outings in Utah and Dubai, was still a comparative novice at the distance.
The comparisons don’t end there. Once the gun went and the swim had whittled the lead pack down to eight, the Yorkshireman – just as in 2008 – was a main aggressor, forcing a hard bike leg and taking off early on the run. And just as in China, while Brownlee couldn’t sustain the early pace, neither, ultimately, could Gomez, who clawed his way up to Frodeno before dropping back complaining of a stitch.
Frodeno emerged once again the triumphant, claiming a second 70.3 title to go with two full Ironman world crowns and that Beijing gold, with an emotional outpouring to match. This time, Brownlee stayed strong for second and was magnanimous in his reaction. It may not have been the result he desired, but returning to the gold-medal winning run form of London 2012 is asking a lot of a battle-worn body.
Just as in 2008 – although for differing reasons – he looked happy to be able to compete and relish what the future at this format holds. For Gomez, the disappointment, as with the fourth place in Beijing, was palpable. The final step on the podium in Nelson Mandela Bay being scant consolation for his efforts.
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What’s perhaps most striking is the ability for the triumvirate to be racing one another – and still breaking new ground at the top level of the sport – 10 years apart. The opportunity for this longevity sets triathlon apart, but the story doesn’t end here. Injury and illness not withstanding, Frodeno and Gomez will renew their rivalry in Kona next month in one of the most eagerly awaited men’s Ironman World Championships to date. And while we might have to wait until after Tokyo 2020 for Brownlee to join them – and Frodeno will be pushing past 40 – at least it shouldn’t take another 10 years.
Conditions were ideal for a quick pace on the 75km long race course in the Stockholm archipelago but no one had expected the course records in each category men, mixed and women to be crushed with such incredible times.
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The 13th edition of ÖTILLÖ saw 159 teams of two from 25 nations tackling the 75 km long course, with 65 km trail running and 10 km open water swimming over and between 24 islands in the Stockholm archipelago. The stunning Stockholm archipelago consists of over 24,000 islands.
Competitors of the ÖTILLÖ Swimrun World Championship run and swim in the Baltic Sea, crossing some of the most beautiful parts of the archipelago, from the sailing mecca of Sandhamn to the “island of love”, Utö. They encounter summer homes and uninhabited islands, they run on slippery rocks, beautiful forest trails and swim with currents. Racing with the elements of nature is unique. ÖTILLÖ is long and it is painful. As a competitor you need to be well prepared, race it wisely with your team mate to excel and find a pace that will take you all the way to the finish line, making the cut offs before dark.
With many aspiring top teams, it was impossible to anticipate who would come out as winner of the 2018 edition of the ÖTILLÖ Swimrun World Championship. It proved to be a true nail biter in both the men’s and the women’s category with teams racing neck and neck through most of the extremely long course. Only seconds kept the three top men’s teams apart for hours, until Fredrik Axegård and Alex Flores (SWE) finally managed to pull away and set a new incredible record as the fastest team ever around the course with 7 hours, 39 minutes and 25 seconds, meaning 19 minutes faster than last year’s course record!
“We couldn’t even in our wildest fantasies imagine to finish this fast! You don’t really know what the other teams are doing so just have to keep going, even if it’s painful and even if you have the worst cramps. We had decided not to let anyone go. We aimed for sub eight hours and a podium finish but this is just amazing!” said the elated team Axegård and Flores at the finish line.
The undefeated duo Annika Ericsson and Kristin Larsson (SWE) had a fierce battle against second placed women’s team Fanny Danckwardt andDesirée Andersson (SWE), who led a big part of the course but finally finished 3,49 minutes after the leaders who beat their own record from 2016 by no less than 36 minutes.
”Today’s conditions were just perfect, warm water and no wind. We have been able to race properly without being stiff and cold as previous years. We also met really tough competition this year so we had to keep on pushing”, said Kristin Larsson at the finish at Utö after the team’s third world championship gold in swimrun and record fast time in the women’s category.
In the mixed category Martin Flinta (SWE) and Helena Erbenova Karaskova (CZE) held a comfortable lead over the second mixed team but raced with the top ten men’s teams and finished 8th in total with the impressive time 8:16:15, which is 33 minutes faster than any previous mixed team at ÖTILLÖ. Flinta and Erbenova Karaskova have been unbeatable in the mixed category all year at the ÖTILLÖ Swimrun World Series. They are still wearing the golden bib and if they win at ÖTILLÖ 1000 Lakes in end of September they will win 33 000 € (after six wins in a row at the ÖTILLÖ World Series).
The winners 2018:
Men: Fredrik Axegård and Alex Flores (SWE), Team Sport Office, 7:39:25 Mixed: Martin Flinta (SWE) and Helena Erbenova Karaskova (CZE), Thule Crew/Wolffwear Swimrun, 8:16:15 Women: Kristin Larsson and Annika Ericsson (SWE), Team Outdoor Experten, 8:56:26
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Photographers: Jakob Edholm / ÖTILLÖ and Pierre Mangez / ÖTILLÖ