segunda-feira, 21 de novembro de 2011

Hewitt, Gemmell Take Home Wins At ITU Auckland World Cup



Women’s Recap
New Zeland’s Andrea Hewitt and Kris Gemmell took victories over the weekend at the ITU Auckland World Cup.
149 200x300 Hewitt, Gemmell Take Home Wins At ITU Auckland World Cup
Photo: Triathlon.org/ Delly Carr
New Zealand’s Andrea Hewitt put the perfect finishing touch on her already excellent 2011 season, leading a bike breakaway en route to a dominant World Cup win in Auckland.
After impressive victories in Beijing and Yokohama, Hewitt was the female triathlete to beat at home in the final World Cup race this year. And the World Championship silver medallist did not disappoint on the course that will host the 2012 Dextro Energy Triathlon Series Grand Final.
After quickly catching the leaders from the swim, Hewitt rode hard to lead a breakaway of five athletes on the tough, hilly and technical bike course before easily pulling away on the run for her third consecutive major win in a time of 2 hours 14 minutes and 12 seconds, almost a full minute ahead of Japan’s Tomoko Sakimoto who claimed her second consecutive World Cup silver. Her teammate Mariko Adachi claimed bronze, finishing a further 13 seconds behind Sakimoto.
Hewitt’s comfortable winning margin allowed her plenty of time to soak up the atmosphere in Auckland, where thousands of people lined the CBD streets. In the final kilometre, she took the time to wave and high-five fans, and had a huge smile on her face all the way to the finish line.
“It’s amazing, the feeling was so incredible running that last lap. It’s actually really hard to run and smile at the same time. But, it was just such a great race,” Hewitt said.


Elite Women

1.Andrea HewittNZLNZ02:14:12
2.Tomoko SakimotoJPNJP02:15:09
3.Mariko AdachiJPNJP02:15:22
4.Alice BettoITAIT02:15:51
5.Kiyomi NiwataJPNJP02:16:39
6.Maaike CaelersNEDNL02:17:10
7.Anne HaugGERDE02:17:14
8.Kathrin MullerGERDE02:17:34
9.Ai UedaJPNJP02:17:49
10.Vicky HollandGBRGB02:18:05

Men’s Recap



Kris Gemmell dedicated an emotional win to everyone affected by cancer, as he banished six months of ordinary results and his own fitness problems to complete a New Zealand golden sweep at home in Auckland today.
After detailing his own struggles with fitness this year at the pre-race press conference, Gemmell revealed in a TV interview that he would be racing two battles in Auckland, one for him and one for a cousin recently diagnosed with a brain tumour. 
And after coming out in second place in the swim and putting in the hard work early on one of the toughest ITU bike courses, Gemmell upped the ante with a breakaway from the breakaway with 10 kilometers to go. Early on it didn’t look like it would work, but eventually it paid off in the best fashion as he claimed his first world cup win since 2008, and his fifth title overall in 1 hour 59 minutes and 59 seconds. His compatriot Bevan Docherty ran into silver to make it a Kiwi 1-2 at home in 2:01:06, while Australian Ryan Fisher claimed his first world cup medal with bronze in 2:01:19.
But the race belonged to Gemmell. In the final few hundred metres, he spelled out ‘Tim’ to the TV camera and struggled to put words together afterwards. Docherty added some for him.
“It’s just a magical event. It was such a demanding course and we just dominated out there, everything was under control…it was just a perfect race,” Docherty said. “I’m so happy for Kris, it’s been a tough year for him.”
Before Gemmell added, “I’d just like to thank the public for the atmosphere was amazing out there, I’d just like to say that for all those people out there who have struggled with cancer…. I hope that the show we put on today has done something to help.”
The win gives Gemmell five ITU World Cup wins, which means he is now equal with Docherty. The result is also important for New Zealand’s possible Olympic campaign, with the valuable Olympic qualifying points putting them in a better position to secure three men’s spots in London.
The battle for top-10 spots was a thrilling affair as the No.1 ranked Laurent Vidal (FRA) smashed through the field on the run to finish fourth. Vidal’s run split of 31 minutes and 58 seconds was the only sub 32-minute split of the day, while Jarrod Shoemaker (USA), Ivan Rana (ESP), Clark Ellice (NZL), Ryan Sissons (NZL), Marek Jaskolka (POL) and Fabio Carvalho (BRA) also ran themselves through the field to round out the top 10.


Elite Men

1.Kris GemmellNZLNZ01:59:58
2.Bevan DochertyNZLNZ02:01:05
3.Ryan FisherAUSAU02:01:18
4.Laurent VidalFRAFR02:01:55
5.Jarrod ShoemakerUSAUS02:02:05
6.Ivan RanaESPES02:02:14
7.Clark ElliceNZLNZ02:02:23
8.Ryan SissonsNZLNZ02:02:47
9.Marek JaskolkaPOLPL02:02:58
10.Fabio CarvalhoBRABR02:03:02

LLANOS AND CAVE CLAIM TITLES AT IRONMAN ARIZONA 2011


TEMPE, Ariz. - More than 2,500 athletes ranging in age from 18 to 74 entered Tempe Town Lake at the eighth edition of Ford Ironman Arizona. Top professionals Eneko Llanos (ESP) and Leanda Cave (GBR) celebrated victories, with Llanos setting a course record, in Tempe and crossed the finish line in 7:59:38 and 8:49:00, respectively.
In one of the most competitive fields for an Ironman race this season, John Dahlz (USA) exited the water first followed by Stephane Poulat (FRA). A number of professionals would surge throughout the three-loop bike course with Llanos making his move into first at mile-marker 45. Combined with a solid finish into T2, Llanos would broaden his gap on the field, outlasting the competition with a run-split of 2:46:09 and becoming the second male to go under eight hours in a North American Ironman event.

Top five professional men's results are below:


1. Eneko Llanos ESP 7:59:38
2. Paul Amey GBR 8:01:29
3. Viktor Zyemtsev UKR 8:14:36
4. Torsten Abel USA (TUCSON, Ariz.) 8:16:44
5. Stephane Poulat FRA 8:18:55



Amanda Stevens (USA) was the first professional female to exit Tempe Town Lake, followed by Kelly Williamson (USA) and Meredith Kessler (USA). The multi-looped bike course out and back through the Salt River Maricopa Indian Community tested many of the female professionals, but Stevens would remain in the lead heading into the final transition. It would ultimately come down to the marathon, where Cave was able to overtake Stevens to win her first Ironman Arizona title and set the second fastest time in this course's history.

Top five professional women's results are below: 

1.Leanda Cave GBR 8:49:00
2 Linsey Corbin USA 8:54:33
3 Meredith Kessler USA 9:00:14
4. Amanda Stevens USA 9:09:39
5. Michelle Vesterby DEN 9:11:23

One of nearly 30 events in the global Ironman Series, Ford Ironman Arizona leads athletes along a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike and 26.2-mile run on a course that utilizes a variety of Tempe's scenic areas. Athletes complete a single-loop swim in Tempe Town Lake, followed by a challenging bike course through the Sonoran Dessert and a run around Tempe Town Lake, finishing in Tempe Beach Park. The finish line officially closes at midnight. The event offers a total professional prize purse of $75,000 and 65 coveted slots to the 2012 Ironman World Championship, taking place on Oct. 13 in Kailua-Kona, Hawai`i.       http://www.xtri.com