Vancouver, Canada, 20 October 2010 - The International Triathlon Union (ITU) today released its 2011 schedule for the ITU Triathlon World Cup Series. In addition to $400,000 USD in prize money, athletes will compete for ranking points for the 2011 World Championship and 2012 Olympic Games qualifying points.
2011 ITU Triathlon World Cup Series:
March 27: Mooloolaba, Australia
April 17: Ishigaki, Japan
May 8: Monterrey, Mexico
July 3: Edmonton, Canada
August 14: Tiszaujvaros, Hungary
October 9: Huatulco, Mexico
October 15: Tongyeong, South Korea
November 6: Guatapé, Colombia
The Series retains a consistency from 2010, welcomes back an old favourite and introduces an exciting new event. The ITU Triathlon World Cup Series will travel to Colombia for the first time since 1992. Guatapé will become the first South American city since Rio de Janeiro in 2004 to host a World Cup. Returning to the calendar after a 3-year hiatus is Edmonton, site of the 2001 World Championships and six time host of the World Cup Series. The city that now boasts a world class triathlon academy thanks to the legacy of the long-running World Cup there.
Along with the elite competitions, the 2011 ITU Triathlon World Cup Series will also attract some 15,000 athletes worldwide.
"ITU remains committed to delivering a World Cup series that's comparable to the World Championship Series," said Marisol Casado, ITU President and IOC Member. "We are delighted the World Cup Series will travel to seven different countries and touch four continents in 2011. It's a testament to the global nature of triathlon and the positive growth we envision for the future."
Entering its 21st season, the ITU Triathlon World Cup began as ITU's flagship series. Showcasing the world's top triathletes, the World Cup Series has traveled to 30 different countries since 1991, which plays a significant role to develop the sport and athletes across the world.
"Next year's World Cup series is an exciting mix of new events and long-running races with a strong place in ITU history," Casado added. "We're proud to offer a dynamic series with cities that have shown to be incredible hosts and proven to be among the athletes' favourites."
Earlier this month, ITU also announced its 2011 calendar of the Dextro Energy Triathlon ITU World Championship Series, the highest-profile international triathlon circuit. Four best scores in the world championship series events and the ITU Triathlon World Cup events, plus the points gained in the Dextro Energy Triathlon ITU World Championships Grand Final are considered as an athlete's final score, which decides world champions of the year.
2011 Dextro Energy Triathlon ITU World Championship Series:
April 9-10: Sydney, Australia
May 14-15: Yokohama, Japan
June 4-5: Madrid, Spain
June 18-19: Kitzbühel, Austria
July 16-17: Hamburg, Germany
August 6-7: London, Great Britain
Grand Final - September 10-11: Beijing, China
/www.everymantri.com
When the word went around the warm up pool that Chrissie Wellington had failed to turn up there was no doubt disappointment among the other women pro’s, but maybe a touch of excitement as well as they realised that now they all really were racing for first place. Perhaps they only two women who believed they could really take it up to Chrissie, Britain’s Julie Dibbens, and Australia’s Mirinda Carfrae would have certainly known that it was game on.
Dibbens really put the pedal to the metal on the bike recording a 4hr 55min split to gap the rest of the field by six minutes. Caroline Steffen was the only other woman to crack the five hours, which saw her consolidate her second placing, with Amy Marsh of America in third. Carfrae came off the bike in fourth a full eleven minutes down on the leader. Her split of 5hrs 4 minutes was none the less a great improvement for her and there was some concern that she may have pushed too hard and her formidable run leg may suffer.
Mirinda then set about proving that she is one of the sports great athletes, on a par with any current woman pro. At no stage did she relax her pace or take things easy, she was determined to put in a great time and prove she is a worthy champion. Behind her Dibbens started to struggle, and was forced to walk through some of the aid stations, knowing you are no longer in the lead can break you mentally. Caroline Steffen has also settled into a very fast and comfortable pace and soon also passed Dibbens.
In one of the most exciting finishes in years Chris McCormack and Andreas Raelert went stride for stride when Raelert caught McCormack at around 21miles. McCormack made a surge at each aid station to push Raelert but couldn’t shake him until the last aid station. With less than two miles to go McCormack surged and that was it for Raelert. McCormack then went on to win in an extrodiary effort.
Full race results on Ironman.com
