Chris McCormack and Caroline Steffen take 2012 ITU Long Distance Triathlon world titles in Spain
Created On: 30 July 2012
Australia's Chris McCormack and Switzerland's Caroline Steffen
have claimed the 2012 ITU Long Distance World Championships, over
the 4km swim, 120km bike and 30km run in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
yesterday.
Elite Men's Review
Australia's Chris McCormack added the ITU Long Distance World
Championship to his already impressive resume with a stellar run
leg in Vitoria-Gasteiz on Sunday, bettering Spain's Eneko Llanos
and Luxembourg's Dirk Bockel over the 4km swim, 120km bike and 30km
run.
The 1997 ITU World Champion and two-time Kona winner said it was
one of the most special wins of his career, largely thanks to the
huge crowd gathered in Spain's basque country.
"It was incredible...there was so many people on run course
today and it really made the run fast," McCormack said. "It's a
fantastic victory for me, I've won lots of races in my life but
this one is very special."
McCormack's last ITU world title came in 1997, and yesterday he
was among the favourites in this year's long distance world titles.
However he left the water in the middle of the pack and two minutes
down on Llanos and Bockel among others. While he made up time in
the bike leg, he still exited T2 in sixth place and with plenty of
ground to make up over the leaders.
But after serving a 15 second penalty, McCormack started to reel
in those ahead of him. While Llanos had rocketed to the lead in the
first lap of the run, overtaking Denmark's Emil Dalgaard to do so,
he couldn't hold off a charging McCormack. The Australian hit the
front at the start of the third lap of four, and surged ahead to
claim his first ITU Long Distance world title. He said the past
18-months of Olympic distance training and racing had helped give
him the speed he needed in the run. He was the only man to go under
1 hour and 45 minutes, with a split of 1 hour 44 minutes and 55
seconds in the final leg.
Llanos was the people's favourite in his home town of
Vitoria-Gasteiz, but said he couldn't be disappointed with a silver
medal. While Bockel was exhausted, but pleased with his bronze, his
first world championships medal. Dalgaard ended-up finishing in
fourth spot, after leading from the swim through to the start of
the run, and Ukraine's Viktor Zemtsev clocked the second fastest
run split of the day to finish 6th. Click here for full
review
Vitoria-Gasteiz ITU Long Distance Triathlon World
Championships - 29 July 2012
Final Results - Elite Men - 4km swim, 120km bike, 30km
run
|
1.
|
Chris McCormack
|
AUS
|
05:29:47
|
|
2.
|
Eneko Llanos
|
ESP
|
05:31:39
|
|
3.
|
Dirk Bockel
|
LUX
|
05:34:54
|
|
4.
|
Emil Dalgaard
|
DEN
|
05:38:39
|
|
5.
|
Martin Krnavek
|
CZE
|
05:44:47
|
|
6.
|
Viktor Zemtsev
|
UKR
|
05:45:49
|
|
7.
|
Nikolay Yaroshenko
|
RUS
|
05:46:23
|
|
8.
|
Duarte Silva Marques
|
POR
|
05:50:51
|
|
9.
|
Pedro Miguel Reig
|
ESP
|
05:52:11
|
|
10.
|
Miquel Blanchart
|
ESP
|
05:52:42
|
Click here for full results
Elite Women's Review
A killer bike leg helped Caroline Steffen to her second ITU Long
Distance World Triathlon Championship, as she turned a lead at T2
into a world title winning margin ahead of Denmark's Camilla
Pedersen and Great Britain's Jodie Swallow in Vitoria-Gasteiz.
Steffen - who also won this title in 2010 - paid tribute to the
Spanish crowd, as thousands lined the streets to cheer on the elite
and age-group athletes in Spain's basque country.
"Of course I'm very happy, it's another title, my second one,
I'm really glad I had a good race today," she said. "I never saw as
many people on a race course before. It was unbelievable on the
bike and on the run."
The eventual medallists emerged right from the start in Spain,
as Swallow exited the water first, with Pedersen and Steffen just a
few minutes behind. While Swallow pushed the pace at the front for
the first lap, Steffen took the lead at the start of the second
60km lap and didn't look back. She left T2 with a six minute lead
on the field, and with the third-fastest run split of the day, it
was more than enough to hold on to win. Steffen crossed the line
for gold in a time of 6 hours 4 minutes and 17 seconds, a full five
minutes ahead of Denmark's Pedersen who claimed her first ITU World
Championship medal.
The 2011 ETU Long Distance European champion was sitting in
third leaving T2, but overtook a slowing Swallow at the 24
kilometre mark of the 30km run. It was another impressive result
for Pedersen in just her second full year competing at the elite
level. Swallow was one of three previous title winners in the
field, but said her bronze medal marked an important point in her
comeback from severe plantar fasciitis. Spain's Virginia Berasategi
posted the fastest run split of the day, a time of 2 hours 2
minutes and 34 seconds, to finish fourth, while her teammate Maider
Gaztañaga Dorronsoro finished fifth. Click here to read the full race
review
Vitoria-Gasteiz ITU Long Distance Triathlon World
Championships - 29 July 2012
Final Results - Elite Women - 4km swim, 120km bike, 30km
run
|
1.
|
Caroline Steffen
|
SUI
|
06:04:17
|
|
2.
|
Camilla Pedersen
|
DEN
|
06:09:23
|
|
3.
|
Jodie Swallow
|
GBR
|
06:12:48
|
|
4.
|
Virginia Berasategi
|
ESP
|
06:20:36
|
|
5.
|
Maider Gaztañaga Dorronsoro
|
ESP
|
06:23:52
|
|
6.
|
Ewa Bugdol
|
POL
|
06:24:46
|
|
7.
|
Jeanne Collonge
|
FRA
|
06:35:15
|
|
8.
|
Olesya Prystayko
|
UKR
|
06:37:23
|
|
9.
|
Gurutze Frades Larralde
|
ESP
|
06:45:38
|
|
10.
|
Estefaia Gomez Villanueva
|
ESP
|
06:47:13
|
Tags: news,ITU,chris McCormack
