Thursday, June 25, 2009
ITU RELEASE: Triathlon Beats Recession With Hy-Vee ITU Triathlon
Elite Cup in Des Moines, Iowa
Des Moines, Iowa, USA (June 24, 2009) - The triathlon circuit moves across
the USA to Des Moines, Iowa for the Hy-Vee ITU Triathlon Elite Cup and ITU
Triathlon Team World Championships where a total of over one million dollars
of prize money is up for grabs over the weekend.
With the largest prize for any triathlon race in the world on offer in the
Elite Cup races on Saturday, the big guns are eyeing up the $200,000 first
place positions, making Hy-Vee one of the most sought after and exciting
competitions for spectators and athletes alike. However the athletes will
have to battle the oppressive conditions as well as each other with
temperatures likely to peak in the mid-thirties on race day. Sunday will see
the athletes join up with their compatriots to contest the ITU Triathlon
Team World Championships where two women and two men complete super sprint
triathlons before tagging their team mates as they battle it out for the
honour of being the best triathlon nation. The ITU are currently lobbying
for this race format to be contested at the London Olympic Games in 2012.
The men's race draws in the Olympic medallists, Jan Frodeno from Germany,
Simon Whitfield from Canada and New Zealand's Bevan Docherty, as well as
2008 world champion Javier Gomez from Spain. Gomez faired the best of the
four at last weekend's Dextro Energy Triathlon - ITU World Championship race
with a second place finish, with Frodeno in sixth. Both Whitfield and
Docherty failed to finish.
The Aussie pairing of Commonwealth champion Brad Kahlefeldt and the ever
reliant Courtney Atkinson will look to take the cash back Down Under,
although New Zealand's Kris Gemmell will have other plans. Home support will
rest on the shoulders of Jarrod Shoemaker who looked strong in Washington to
clock a top ten finish. Andy Potts and Hunter Kemper, who were fourth and
fifth in DC, will save their energy for the team championships.
A strong European contingent will be looking for success despite the race
coming just a week before their continental championships. Russia's Dmitry
Polyansky returns to action following victory in last weekend's European
under 23 Championships and will line up alongside Ivan Vasiliev. Will Clarke
and Tim Don spearhead the British assault in the absence of double World
Championship winner Alistair Brownlee, whilst Africa's sole representative,
Hendrik De Villiers from South Africa, will hope to perform better than in
Washington where he suffered mechanical failure and a crash on the bike.
The big question in the women's race centres around whether Emma Moffatt can
beat compatriot and Olympic gold medallist Emma Snowsill for the second
weekend in a row.
The Australian pairing have dominated the Dextro Energy Triathlon - ITU
World Championship Series thus far this year, although few expected Moffatt
to outrun Snowsill in Washington, DC. With the seemingly invincible triple
world champion suffering her first defeat to anyone other than Portugal's
Vanessa Fernandes since 2005, can Snowsill register her second Hy-Vee win?
Laura Bennett delighted the American fans as she crossed the line in first
place at Des Moines in 2006, although a repeat performance looks unlikely as
she continues to come back from a prolonged injury. Sarah Haskins might be
USA Triathlon's best shot at a medal having finished fourth last weekend in
Washington.
With Switzerland's Daniela Ryf, the 2008 under 23 world champion, finding
some excellent form in Washington, a repeat performance for her would
guarantee a big pay day; whilst her training partner, Lisa Norden from
Sweden, will be hoping that the cramping she suffered on the run in DC will
not return come Saturday afternoon.
Japan's Juri Ide usually races strongly in the warmer climates, and the
Beijing Olympic Games fifth place finisher could cause an upset on race day.
Britain's 2008 world champion Helen Jenkins put herself back in the running
following a fifth place finish in Washington as she looks to find the form
that gave her third place and a cheque for $25,000 at last year's race.
An outsider for a good result may be Lauren Groves from Canada who ran
through to tenth place in Washington, posting the third fastest run split
behind the two Emma's from Australia. She will line up alongside Kathy
Tremblay who has already shown some fine form with a fourth place finish at
the Tongyeong Dextro Energy Triathlon - ITU World Championship race in
Korea.