It was certainly one way to whet Alistair Brownlee’s appetite for Ironman, but not entirely in the manner expected.
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The double-Olympic champion took victory in the rain in Ironman Ireland, Cork in his much-anticipated full distance debut, after the swim was cancelled and the contest switched to a duathlon.
The Yorkshireman then confirmed he would accept the one qualifying slot on offer for the Ironman World Championship in Hawaii in October.
“That was one of the reasons I came here today,” he said. “I’ve hopefully got a few years left in me, but I’ll be going to Kona very much for a learning experience and can’t wait to see how it goes.”
Brownlee took the tape in 7:44:16, but victory was only assured within the final 10km of the marathon after he ran down Ireland’s Bryan McCrystal, who’d set a blistering pace on the bike to lead the 31-year-old into transition by almost 17mins.
There could be few venues further removed from the heat and humidity of Hawaii than the southern Irish town of Youghal, but the wet and windy conditions didn’t deter the locals from turning out in force for their first taste of Ironman action.
After the swim was cancelled for safety reasons – a combination of low water and ambient temperatures and choppy conditions – a time-trial bike leg format was introduced, with the professional men setting off first at 30sec intervals.
Fourth to go, seven places ahead of Brownlee, would be former professional footballer McCrystal, a renowned cyclist who finished fourth in Ironman UK last year.
And it was McCrystal who set the pace throughout the testing two-lap 112-mile bike ride, comfortably coping with the 1,900m of ascent to open a gap of 12mins on German Markus Thomschke with Brownlee in third.
It proved an attritional race with big name DNFs including multiple Ironman winner Marino Vanhoenacker succumbing early on the bike, USA’s Lindsey Corbin in transition and long-time women’s leader Anja Ippach on the run.
On to the marathon there was no let up in the dismal conditions as the athletes took on the four loops from Youghal to Munster Blackwater, with Brownlee splitting 2:51:31 – the fastest run of the day – to eventually overhaul first Thomscke and then McCrystal.
“It was a tough, long day,” he said. “I’d have preferred a swim to make my day easier. The course just drags on, especially in the second half of the bike.
“I thought I was riding well but I was never catching this guy [McCrystal] and he put some big time into me at the back end of the bike.
“I set off on the run and thought I’m not sure I’m going to do it. I just set into a rhythm and tried to eat up some ground. Until the last 10km I was quite enjoying it, but the last 10km were not fun at all.
“The crowd really gave me a lift, though, not only in town but right out on the course in the middle of nowhere.”
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Switzerland’s Emma Bilham won the women’s race in 8:50:18 to also book her Kona place. It was a first full Ironman success for Bilham, who took the Alpe d’Huez long course title last year, with the margin of victory almost 30mins over Holland’s Pleuni Hooijman.
It was certainly one way to whet Alistair Brownlee’s appetite for Ironman, but not entirely in the manner expected.
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The double-Olympic champion took victory in the rain in Ironman Ireland, Cork in his much-anticipated full distance debut, after the swim was cancelled and the contest switched to a duathlon.
The Yorkshireman then confirmed he would accept the one qualifying slot on offer for the Ironman World Championship in Hawaii in October.
“That was one of the reasons I came here today,” he said. “I’ve hopefully got a few years left in me, but I’ll be going to Kona very much for a learning experience and can’t wait to see how it goes.”
Brownlee took the tape in 7:44:16, but victory was only assured within the final 10km of the marathon after he ran down Ireland’s Bryan McCrystal, who’d set a blistering pace on the bike to lead the 31-year-old into transition by almost 17mins.
There could be few venues further removed from the heat and humidity of Hawaii than the southern Irish town of Youghal, but the wet and windy conditions didn’t deter the locals from turning out in force for their first taste of Ironman action.
After the swim was cancelled for safety reasons – a combination of low water and ambient temperatures and choppy conditions – a time-trial bike leg format was introduced, with the professional men setting off first at 30sec intervals.
Fourth to go, seven places ahead of Brownlee, would be former professional footballer McCrystal, a renowned cyclist who finished fourth in Ironman UK last year.
And it was McCrystal who set the pace throughout the testing two-lap 112-mile bike ride, comfortably coping with the 1,900m of ascent to open a gap of 12mins on German Markus Thomschke with Brownlee in third.
It proved an attritional race with big name DNFs including multiple Ironman winner Marino Vanhoenacker succumbing early on the bike, USA’s Lindsey Corbin in transition and long-time women’s leader Anja Ippach on the run.
On to the marathon there was no let up in the dismal conditions as the athletes took on the four loops from Youghal to Munster Blackwater, with Brownlee splitting 2:51:31 – the fastest run of the day – to eventually overhaul first Thomscke and then McCrystal.
“It was a tough, long day,” he said. “I’d have preferred a swim to make my day easier. The course just drags on, especially in the second half of the bike.
“I thought I was riding well but I was never catching this guy [McCrystal] and he put some big time into me at the back end of the bike.
“I set off on the run and thought I’m not sure I’m going to do it. I just set into a rhythm and tried to eat up some ground. Until the last 10km I was quite enjoying it, but the last 10km were not fun at all.
“The crowd really gave me a lift, though, not only in town but right out on the course in the middle of nowhere.”
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Switzerland’s Emma Bilham won the women’s race in 8:50:18 to also book her Kona place. It was a first full Ironman success for Bilham, who took the Alpe d’Huez long course title last year, with the margin of victory almost 30mins over Holland’s Pleuni Hooijman.
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Delighted to be on top of the podium and bringing home the
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Delighted to be on top of the podium and bringing home the
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Victory in Montreal gave Katies Zafares her fourth victory in five races of the 2019 World Triathlon Series and wreaked swift revenge on runner-up Georgia Taylor-Brown who had defeated her in Leeds last time out.
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The consistent Jess Learmonth also fought off a strong challenge from Italian Alice Betto to cling on for her fourth consecutive podium, while third Brit, Jodie Stimpson – in her second WTS race back after injury – was 13th.
“I think I’m at my best having to run with Georgia, and as soon as we got on the bike, I was telling myself to be ready,” Zafares said, having only carved out her 11sec winning margin in the closing metres of the 750m swim, 20km bike and 5km run.
Taylor-Brown moved up to third in the overall series and retained her chance of being in contention come the Grand Final in Lausanne should Zafares slip up.
“I just didn’t have the legs today and Katie was incredible,” the 25-year-old said. “I think I’m getting into this triathlon thing now and each race is getting better.”
A further 23sec behind was Learmonth who admitted to “a bit of a struggle” as she searches for her maiden WTS triumph.
Learmonth, Taylor-Brown and Stimpson were the only British representatives, with the most notable absentee being Vicky Holland. The Olympic bronze medallist from Rio 2016 won in Montreal last year as she hit a run of form that would land her the world title.
But after failing to make a podium this season, her decision to stay away looked a concession that she won’t catch Zafares at the top of WTS leaderboard and that the Tokyo 2020 test event in August will now become her sole focus – with a top three place guaranteeing her a third Olympic shot.
The race started with a non-wetsuit swim and Brazil’s Victoria Lopes, who had finished eighth in Leeds, led Learmonth out of the water, with Zafares in close attendance and Taylor-Brown emerging in 10th.
A quick transition led to a quartet of Lopes, Learmonth, Zafares and Holland’s May Kingma opening an immediate gap with Taylor-Brown, Italy’s Alice Betto and USA’s Taylor Knibb forming a second group.
The chasing trio managed to close the gap midway through a flat and twisting bike leg as they built a 30sec advantage over the field, where Stimpson was often the lone driving force.
By the time the leaders reached T2, Lopes had been jettisoned and the podium chances rested with the front six as the gap to the rest widened to 63sec.
In a repeat of the Leeds clash three weeks earlier, Zafares and Taylor-Brown took charge, shoulder-to-shoulder on the run, with Learmonth establishing herself in third.
There was never more than a metre or so between the front two as they entered the final mile before Zafares struck decisively for home with just over 400m to go.
“I went early and ran as fast as I could,” Zafares said. “The only time I looked back to see where she was, was when I got to the finish.”
Zafares increases her lead at the top of the standings over Learmonth and Taylor-Brown, with USA’s Taylor Spivey in fourth and Non Stanford in fifth.
There is little time for the athletes to recover as they head to Hamburg next weekend for another sprint distance contest on Saturday.
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The World Mixed Relay championship takes place the following day, where France will be looking to defend its crown and Britain make the podium for the first time in four years.
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Victory in Montreal gave Katies Zafares her fourth victory in five races of the 2019 World Triathlon Series and wreaked swift revenge on runner-up Georgia Taylor-Brown who had defeated her in Leeds last time out.
Advertisement
The consistent Jess Learmonth also fought off a strong challenge from Italian Alice Betto to cling on for her fourth consecutive podium, while third Brit, Jodie Stimpson – in her second WTS race back after injury – was 13th.
“I think I’m at my best having to run with Georgia, and as soon as we got on the bike, I was telling myself to be ready,” Zafares said, having only carved out her 11sec winning margin in the closing metres of the 750m swim, 20km bike and 5km run.
Taylor-Brown moved up to third in the overall series and retained her chance of being in contention come the Grand Final in Lausanne should Zafares slip up.
“I just didn’t have the legs today and Katie was incredible,” the 25-year-old said. “I think I’m getting into this triathlon thing now and each race is getting better.”
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A further 23sec behind was Learmonth who admitted to “a bit of a struggle” as she searches for her maiden WTS triumph.
Learmonth, Taylor-Brown and Stimpson were the only British representatives, with the most notable absentee being Vicky Holland. The Olympic bronze medallist from Rio 2016 won in Montreal last year as she hit a run of form that would land her the world title.
But after failing to make a podium this season, her decision to stay away looked a concession that she won’t catch Zafares at the top of WTS leaderboard and that the Tokyo 2020 test event in August will now become her sole focus – with a top three place guaranteeing her a third Olympic shot.
The race started with a non-wetsuit swim and Brazil’s Victoria Lopes, who had finished eighth in Leeds, led Learmonth out of the water, with Zafares in close attendance and Taylor-Brown emerging in 10th.
A quick transition led to a quartet of Lopes, Learmonth, Zafares and Holland’s May Kingma opening an immediate gap with Taylor-Brown, Italy’s Alice Betto and USA’s Taylor Knibb forming a second group.
The chasing trio managed to close the gap midway through a flat and twisting bike leg as they built a 30sec advantage over the field, where Stimpson was often the lone driving force.
By the time the leaders reached T2, Lopes had been jettisoned and the podium chances rested with the front six as the gap to the rest widened to 63sec.
In a repeat of the Leeds clash three weeks earlier, Zafares and Taylor-Brown took charge, shoulder-to-shoulder on the run, with Learmonth establishing herself in third.
There was never more than a metre or so between the front two as they entered the final mile before Zafares struck decisively for home with just over 400m to go.
“I went early and ran as fast as I could,” Zafares said. “The only time I looked back to see where she was, was when I got to the finish.”
Zafares increases her lead at the top of the standings over Learmonth and Taylor-Brown, with USA’s Taylor Spivey in fourth and Non Stanford in fifth.
There is little time for the athletes to recover as they head to Hamburg next weekend for another sprint distance contest on Saturday.
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The World Mixed Relay championship takes place the following day, where France will be looking to defend its crown and Britain make the podium for the first time in four years.
The most unpredictable men’s World Triathlon Series yet continued in Montreal as the little-fancied Belgian Jelle Geens out-sprinted world champion and training partner Mario Mola to take his first WTS victory.
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The 26-year-old became the fifth different winner in five WTS races in 2019 and increased the chances of the world title coming down to a straight shootout in the Grand Final in Lausanne.
Spaniard Mola was thankful to return to the podium after three disappointing races, and home favourite Tyler Mislawchuk was delighted with third for his first WTS medal.
The only British competitor was Tom Bishop, who finished 29th, as WTS leader Vincent Luis opted to sit out ahead of another sprint race in Hamburg next weekend, with the World Mixed Relay title on the line the following day.
The race was brought forward due to an impending electrical storm, and it proved a highly-charged contest, with the top 10 peppered with talent including South Africa’s Richard Murray in fourth, Norway’s Kristian Blummenfelt in fifth, Spain’s Javier Gomez in ninth and Leeds WTS winner, Australian Jake Birtwhistle, in 10th.
“It was the first winter in two or three years that I wasn’t injured, and I was very motivated,” Geens said. “At the Europeans but I was third and at Leeds I had one of the fastest runs but was coming from the second pack. Everything just clicked and came together today.”
Asked whether it was the greatest day in his triathlon career, he replied: “By far, by far.”
Mola, who has won the past three world titles was gracious in defeat after putting an end to an unprecedented poor run of results that has seen him finish 25th and 29th twice.
“I pushed from the beginning to the end, but I’m really happy for him,” Mola said. “He deserved a race like this. You always have doubts when you don’t perform at your best, but luckily the last couple of weeks have gone well and I put in a good performance today.
As for retaining his title. “It’s a very open world championship and I’ve got to focus on Hamburg and Edmonton and see what happens from there,” he added.
Mislawchuk, who proved his form by winning a second tier World Cup event in Mexico at the start of June, was almost as elated as the winner.
“It was crazy, on every corner there were Tyler chants,” he said. “I’m sure the other dudes were praying their name was Tyler. For no reason I just believed I could win, but I think the crazier part was at 2.5km [on the run] I thought I had the race won.
“My legs kind of came off in the last kilometre, but racing the best in the world that’s not a surprise. I’m over the moon and will have a beer tonight and celebrate.”
In stark difference to the women’s race earlier in the afternoon, the wind whipped up, the sky darkened, and the thunderclaps could be heard ringing over the city.
Commonwealth champion Schoeman was first to emerge from the 750m swim, before undoing his good work by mounting his bike too early and picking up a 10sec penalty.
A large pack came together during the 20km cycle with no-one looking likely to force a breakaway. It included Bishop before he was involved in an incident towards the latter stages that left him over 45sec down into T2 and out of contention.
Who was in contention was anyone’s guess, and Murray, Geens and Blummenfelt set the early pace on the 5km run before Mola, Mislawchuk and Gomez joined them.
With the latter having come second in the Ironman 70.3 European Championship less than a week earlier, it wasn’t surprising that he was the first to crack.
The others couldn’t be separated until they entered the final kilometre and although the heavens opened, it was Mola who was pouring on the pressure.
Geens refused to wilt and as the lead changed hands several times in the closing yards, he eventually burst away on the blue carpet for the narrowest of wins.
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Alarza finished sixth to lead the world rankings ahead of Luis, Gomez and Birtwhistle. Yee is the best placed Brit in eighth, but has only contested three events and with the overall champion decided by the highest points total from the best five performances plus the Grand Final, he remains in contention.
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The most unpredictable men’s World Triathlon Series yet continued in Montreal as the little-fancied Belgian Jelle Geens out-sprinted world champion and training partner Mario Mola to take his first WTS victory.
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The 26-year-old became the fifth different winner in five WTS races in 2019 and increased the chances of the world title coming down to a straight shootout in the Grand Final in Lausanne.
Spaniard Mola was thankful to return to the podium after three disappointing races, and home favourite Tyler Mislawchuk was delighted with third for his first WTS medal.
The only British competitor was Tom Bishop, who finished 29th, as WTS leader Vincent Luis opted to sit out ahead of another sprint race in Hamburg next weekend, with the World Mixed Relay title on the line the following day.
The race was brought forward due to an impending electrical storm, and it proved a highly-charged contest, with the top 10 peppered with talent including South Africa’s Richard Murray in fourth, Norway’s Kristian Blummenfelt in fifth, Spain’s Javier Gomez in ninth and Leeds WTS winner, Australian Jake Birtwhistle, in 10th.
“It was the first winter in two or three years that I wasn’t injured, and I was very motivated,” Geens said. “At the Europeans but I was third and at Leeds I had one of the fastest runs but was coming from the second pack. Everything just clicked and came together today.”
Asked whether it was the greatest day in his triathlon career, he replied: “By far, by far.”
Mola, who has won the past three world titles was gracious in defeat after putting an end to an unprecedented poor run of results that has seen him finish 25th and 29th twice.
“I pushed from the beginning to the end, but I’m really happy for him,” Mola said. “He deserved a race like this. You always have doubts when you don’t perform at your best, but luckily the last couple of weeks have gone well and I put in a good performance today.
As for retaining his title. “It’s a very open world championship and I’ve got to focus on Hamburg and Edmonton and see what happens from there,” he added.
Mislawchuk, who proved his form by winning a second tier World Cup event in Mexico at the start of June, was almost as elated as the winner.
“It was crazy, on every corner there were Tyler chants,” he said. “I’m sure the other dudes were praying their name was Tyler. For no reason I just believed I could win, but I think the crazier part was at 2.5km [on the run] I thought I had the race won.
“My legs kind of came off in the last kilometre, but racing the best in the world that’s not a surprise. I’m over the moon and will have a beer tonight and celebrate.”
In stark difference to the women’s race earlier in the afternoon, the wind whipped up, the sky darkened, and the thunderclaps could be heard ringing over the city.
Commonwealth champion Schoeman was first to emerge from the 750m swim, before undoing his good work by mounting his bike too early and picking up a 10sec penalty.
A large pack came together during the 20km cycle with no-one looking likely to force a breakaway. It included Bishop before he was involved in an incident towards the latter stages that left him over 45sec down into T2 and out of contention.
Who was in contention was anyone’s guess, and Murray, Geens and Blummenfelt set the early pace on the 5km run before Mola, Mislawchuk and Gomez joined them.
With the latter having come second in the Ironman 70.3 European Championship less than a week earlier, it wasn’t surprising that he was the first to crack.
The others couldn’t be separated until they entered the final kilometre and although the heavens opened, it was Mola who was pouring on the pressure.
Geens refused to wilt and as the lead changed hands several times in the closing yards, he eventually burst away on the blue carpet for the narrowest of wins.
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Alarza finished sixth to lead the world rankings ahead of Luis, Gomez and Birtwhistle. Yee is the best placed Brit in eighth, but has only contested three events and with the overall champion decided by the highest points total from the best five performances plus the Grand Final, he remains in contention.
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1. Only Taylor-Brown can stop Zafares: Few would begrudge the genial American a world title, especially after running Vicky Holland so close in 2018. And after her fourth win in five starts it looks – provided she stays fit to the finish of the Grand Final – that Britain’s Georgia Taylor-Brown is the only triathlete with a chance of toppling her. A Taylor-Brown triumph is the longest of shots, though. Her best route would be to win in both Hamburg and Edmonton to reduce the deficit to 286 points ahead of Lausanne’s finale. Another win in the Swiss resort would then gain an extra 1,250 points, but that would still only be enough if Zafares slipped as low as fifth – something that has only happened once to the 30-year-old in her last 12 races.
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2. Men’s WTS racing has never been more unpredictable: Few would have picked Belgian Jelle Geens to take the tape ahead of world champion Mario Mola, but it’s symptomatic of how the season has played out. There have been five different winners in five races and 13 different names (but no Brownlees) sharing a possible 15 podium spots. Who will win in another sprint contest next weekend in Hamburg is anyone’s guess. Leading us on to our next point…
3. Men’s world title will be a straight shootout in Lausanne: It’s good news for those who have long-argued the world champion should be the one who performs best on a given day, because with just two events to go before the Grand Final, it looks likely that whoever crosses the line first in Switzerland – barring a Brownlee cameo – will have done enough to claim Mola’s title. And despite three poor races, this means not discounting the Spaniard himself.
4. ITU needs to green-up its schedule: There has no doubt been logistical challenges that we’re not privy to, but an eight-event World Triathlon Series that goes from the Middle East to North America, to the Far East, to Europe, back to North America, then back to Europe, then back to North America again, and then returning to Europe, cannot be good for either the athletes or their carbon footprints. And remember, while there’s some option to pick and choose, triathletes can only afford to miss two races before they are ruled out of contention for the world title.
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5. The Olympic test event damages the series: Choosing to prioritise between the Tokyo test event or maximising their chances in the WTS should not be a compromise that triathletes needed to make. Although confirmed after the WTS calendar was published, the test event should be part of the series, as it was in London 2011. Instead it has led to big names opting out of races such as Montreal because they don’t want to undermine their Olympic prep or qualification chances.
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1. Only Taylor-Brown can stop Zafares: Few would begrudge the genial American a world title, especially after running Vicky Holland so close in 2018. And after her fourth win in five starts it looks – provided she stays fit to the finish of the Grand Final – that Britain’s Georgia Taylor-Brown is the only triathlete with a chance of toppling her. A Taylor-Brown triumph is the longest of shots, though. Her best route would be to win in both Hamburg and Edmonton to reduce the deficit to 286 points ahead of Lausanne’s finale. Another win in the Swiss resort would then gain an extra 1,250 points, but that would still only be enough if Zafares slipped as low as fifth – something that has only happened once to the 30-year-old in her last 12 races.
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2. Men’s WTS racing has never been more unpredictable: Few would have picked Belgian Jelle Geens to take the tape ahead of world champion Mario Mola, but it’s symptomatic of how the season has played out. There have been five different winners in five races and 13 different names (but no Brownlees) sharing a possible 15 podium spots. Who will win in another sprint contest next weekend in Hamburg is anyone’s guess. Leading us on to our next point…
3. Men’s world title will be a straight shootout in Lausanne: It’s good news for those who have long-argued the world champion should be the one who performs best on a given day, because with just two events to go before the Grand Final, it looks likely that whoever crosses the line first in Switzerland – barring a Brownlee cameo – will have done enough to claim Mola’s title. And despite three poor races, this means not discounting the Spaniard himself.
4. ITU needs to green-up its schedule: There has no doubt been logistical challenges that we’re not privy to, but an eight-event World Triathlon Series that goes from the Middle East to North America, to the Far East, to Europe, back to North America, then back to Europe, then back to North America again, and then returning to Europe, cannot be good for either the athletes or their carbon footprints. And remember, while there’s some option to pick and choose, triathletes can only afford to miss two races before they are ruled out of contention for the world title.
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5. The Olympic test event damages the series: Choosing to prioritise between the Tokyo test event or maximising their chances in the WTS should not be a compromise that triathletes needed to make. Although confirmed after the WTS calendar was published, the test event should be part of the series, as it was in London 2011. Instead it has led to big names opting out of races such as Montreal because they don’t want to undermine their Olympic prep or qualification chances.
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