Africa Triathlon

Triathlon action was not lacking this weekend with championship races plentiful across three continents. Cogne hosted the ITU Winter Triathlon World Championships, while the OTU Sprint Championships were held in Devonport. Races wrapped up in Lima with the ITU Pan American Cup and the Ibero American Championships. Check out this quick recap of the events to stay up on your triathlon results.

2013 Cogne ITU Winter Triathlon World Championships
Reigning champions Helena Erbenova (CZE) and Pavel Andreev (RUS) defended their world championship titles on Saturday at the 2013 Cogne ITU Winter Triathlon World Championships. Erbenova led the elite women’s race line to line to stamp out her second title. She posted the top ski split by more than a minute to win in one hour, 20 minutes, 10 seconds. Elisabeth Sveum (NOR) stopped the clock more than three minutes later for silver, and Sarka Grabmullerova rounded out the podium for bronze 1:24:24.

Andreev’s quest for his third consecutive title was harder fought. In the final meters, Andreev had to dig deep to move just centimeters ahead, claiming the win by just over half a second in 1:08:24. Daniel Antonioli (ITA) took silver for the second time, while Evgeny Kirillov (RUS) crossed over 10 seconds later for bronze.
Click here for the full recap and results of the elite, Under23 and junior races.

2013 Cogne ITU Winter Triathlon World Championships – Mixed Relay
The Mixed Relay event at the Winter Triathlon World Championships saw a see-saw battle between Russia and Norway’s first teams. Margarita Ovsyannikva secured Russia a solid lead as the first leg of the run, bike, ski four-person relay. U23 male champion Carl-Fredrik Hagen attempted to make up ground for Norway, but it was the women’s runner-up Elsiabeth Sveum who put her team back in the race with the fastest female split of the race. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to hold off men’s world champion Pavel Andreev from overtaking the Norwegians with the top split of the day. Russia took gold in 1:45:51, while Norway clocked in for second at 1:46:14 and the Czech Republic took bronze four minutes later. For full results, click here.

2013 Lima ITU Triathlon Pan American Cup and Ibero American Championships
Australia’s Ashlee Bailie looked prime to win the women’s race at the Lima ITU Pan American Cup and Ibero American Championships after cycling two minutes ahead of the field. However, Mexico’s Paola Diaz (MEX) battled back on the 10km run with the top run split by nearly a minute to claim the title. Argentina’s Romina Palacio Balena also ran ahead of Bailie for silver in 2:22:50, as did Anahi Leon (MEX) in 2:24:42.

The men’s race saw a tight battle for the podium with nearly the entire field hitting T2 within a minute of each other. However, the pack was quickly diluted on the run with Vicente Hernandez (ESP) and Anthony Mcsweeney at the helm. The pair sprinted down the finish chute in a heated hunt for gold, but it was Hernandez that blasted across the finish line first for a time of 1:59:31. McSweeney stopped the clock five seconds later, while Mexico’s Irving Perez crossed over just under two hours in 1:59:58.  Click here for results.

2013 Devonport OTU Sprint Triathlon Championships
Choppy surf didn’t stop Great Britain’s Jodie Stimpson from flying to gold at the Sprint Oceania Championships on Saturday. Stimpson, who has focused on her run training in the last six months, was too great to chase down, as she locked up gold with the fastest run split of the day. Gwen Jorgensen (USA), who clocked the only other sub-18 minute run of the day, crossed over for silver, while Aileen Reid (IRE) took home third almost 40 seconds later. Charlotte McShane was the first Aussie to finish, posting the fourth-fastest time of the day.

Likewise, Australia’s own Peter Kerr, who has a background in surf livesaving, conquered the swell to claim the men’s sprint title. Although Ryan Bailie (AUS) attempted to break a large run group, it was Kerr who switched into turbo gear on the final 500 meters, leading a heated sprint for the finish chute. Kerr claimed the win by four seconds, followed by Bailie and Jamie Huggett (AUS). Full recap and results can be found here.