With just a few hundred metres to go
and Chile’s Diego Moya leading the country’s first ever World Cup, it was to be
Spain’s David Castro Fajardo who pounced down the final straight to win a
dramatic sprint finish on Sunday afternoon at the inaugural World Triathlon Cup
Vina del Mar. Earlier in the morning, Sandra Dodet of France delivered another
supreme run display to win the women's race.
Men's Report
The Santiago 2023 Pan American Games
course was getting its first workout before next November’s championship, and
Castro had put together a good swim in choppy conditions to exit 15 seconds
behind Moya and alongside Morocco’s Jawad Abdelmoula, the trio remaining locked
in battle for the rest of the race.
Out onto the run, Castro and Moya
moved quickly to the front, the crowds urging on their idol but the Spaniard
stuck firmly on his shoulder, Abdelmoula unable to reel them in. Down the final
straight, it was Castro making the decisive move and as he took the tape and
debut gold, the crowd was lifting Moya to edge silver ahead of the Moroccan
star in third.
“The swim was hard, the water very
cold, but the group worked well on the bike to catch up and I wanted to start
picturing the run on the last lap” said a happy David Castro. “Diego set a good
pace and my legs were tired but I had enough to give at the end. I saw him
check the watch and the crowd was calling his name, but that was good for my
focus too, and finally I could get my first World Cup victory.”
The top-ranked athletes split their
beach-start positions, number one Jawad Abdelmoula and Spain’s Roberto Sanchez
Mantecon to the right, Genis Grau (ESP) and Diego Moya the left.
Just as in the women’s race two hours
earlier, the currents and waves caused a few headaches as the field spread
before finally spearing towards the buoy, but it was Moya slicing through the
clear water, Nicholas Quenet (RSA) and Alessio Crociani (ITA) on his feet.
Moya had carved out a healthy
advantage but struggled out of the waves before the long run up to his bike.
Undeterred, it was a near-perfect transition that saw him out all alone and
taking the race to the rest of the field, but by the end of lap one of three he
was joined by five more athletes and on the long straight that began lap two
another pocket of chasers bridged up.
That meant 18 athletes were riding
together, another Chilean Vicente Trewhela taking a solid pull out front,
Matthew Wright (BAR) Stefan Zachaus (LUX) and Jannik Schaufler (GER) also
pushing the pace just over 30 seconds ahead of the Sanchez-led chasers.
That gap stayed the same as the
leaders hit transition for the second time, Germany’s Chris Ziehmer out onto
the run first, Crociani and Abdelmoula for company, Darr Smith right with them
for USA.
Castro and teammate Esteban Basanta
Fouz were quickly amongst them, Moya and Crociani likewise, and the Chilean was
soon moving his way to the front with the adrenaline pumping.
It was a rapid pace Moya was laying
down to try and drop some of his main competitors, Smith and Aram Michell
Peñaflor Moysen (MEX) the first to go but even Abdelmoula struggling to hang
tight.
The final 2.5km was cat-and-mouse
between Moya and Castro for the gold as the crowd ramped up their support,
Abdelmoula and Schauffler for the bronze.
The Moroccan pulled into third before
the last turn, which was also Castro’s moment to charge, searing away to the
tape while Moya emptied himself to hold off his ASICS World Triathlon teammate
Abdelmoula, the pair making history as the first duo from the development squad
to stand together on a World Cup podium.
Schauffler held on for fourth ahead
of Jordi Garcia Gracia (ESP) and Crociani, with Alois Knabl (AUT), Smith,
Penaflor and Basanta closing out the top ten.
“I’ve been working so hard for this
race, I’m really happy with the work i’ve done with my coach Anita (Maria
Lecumberri),” said Diego Moya. “I’m so happy. I was feeling really good in the
swim but it was all about the run. There was a lot of pressure, I tried a few
times to get away but David finished strong. The crowd here was amazing.”
“I’m very happy to finish third, my
first race as the number one and my first time in Chile, so I just want to take
away the experience and a good result from a very strong start list,” said
Jawad Abdelmoula. “Diego pushed very well and I didn’t know where my form was
so I preferred to be patient. Two months ago I was injured so this makes me
very happy.”
Women's report
It was to be another weekend to
remember for Sandra Dodet of France as she took the last World Triathlon Cup
gold of 2022 in Viña del Mar on Sunday morning.
Yet another assured display at the
level from the Cup specialist takes her win count to four and an eighth podium
appearance. A strong swim in difficult conditions set her on the right course,
and after the 20km bike had brought a large pack together, it was soon the
familiar sight of Dodet setting the pace at the front of the run before holding
on all the way to the line to wrap up her 2022 racing in style.
Behind her, Gina Sereno (USA) was
putting in an excellent surge to work her way through the contenders and was
into second by the first turn on the last lap, crossing for silver and a debut
podium, Colombian Maria Carolina Velasquez Soto delivering an excellent bronze.
“Towards the end of the run I was
worried that the American (Sereno) might come back to me,” admitted a smiling
Dodet afterwards, “so I knew I had to keep a good pace and that was a really
good way to finish my year with another podium.”
It was cold and choppy on the Pacific
coast for the beach start, the top-ranked athletes all starting on the left of
the line but then drifting even further that way on route to the first buoy.
Sara Vilic (AUT) was able to find the
clear water ahead, Lea Coninx (FRA) right with her and race number one Emy
Legault (CAN) also going well, but with sighting proving difficult, the
Austrian veered off course again after the final buoy, allowing the likes of
Tamara Gorman (USA) and Luisa Baptista (BRA) to make up ground.
Dodet sprinted the long transition to
also get back in touch with the leaders, but it was teammate Coninx out on the
bike ahead with a little daylight before Baptista and Legault caught on.
Sadly for Coninx she slid out on the
first corner and hit the deck, Legault unable to swerve in time and also coming
off hard. Shaken but avoiding serious injury, the pair were unable to continue
and with the pace slowed, the two front groups came together.
A group of 26 now rode together,
Gorman dropping off the back, Mathilde Gautier (FRA) driving the pace up ahead.
After three laps, each packing a sharp climb and rapid, twisting descent, Ana
Godoy Contreras (ESP) led the swarm into transition for the final time with Eva
Daniels (LUX) and Hiraku Fukuoka (JPN) for company, but it was Hungary’s Marta
Kropko out onto the 5km first, Belgium’s Claire Michel 8 seconds back, Baptista
12 seconds, Gorman by now over a minute off the pace.
Another former Junior World Champion,
Beatrice Mallozzi (ITA), was going well alongside Audrey Merle and Godoy, but
it took only a few hundred metres for Dodet to click into gear and pull
alongside then clear of that trio, quickly opening a precious gap up ahead.
It was a gap that was never really to
be reeled in, the leader accelerating through the turns while the chasers had
to battle for the best lines, Cecilia Sayuri Ramirez Alavez (MEX) looking in
good form alongside Marta Pintanel Raymundo (ESP) and Baptista, but it was the
Colombian Velasquez who hung tough and patiently awaited her moment in the sun.
Sereno found herself clear in second
for the majority of the second lap and Velasquez finally managed to shake off
Pintanel down the last straight, Dodet having taken the final dead turn with
just enough daylight to be able to soak up the victory despite Sereno’s
pressure, an excellent first podium for the American and Velasquez likewise
with bronze.
Pintanel crossed ahead of Michel in
fifth, Tereza Zimovjanova (CZE), Elizabeth Bravo (ECU), Mallozzi, Baptista and
Ramirez completing the top 10.
“It’s a huge jump for me and good
progress so i’m very happy with this result,” said Gina Sereno. “I struggled a
bit in transition and was getting gathered with the second group when we saw
the aftermath of the crash. You had to be smart positioning yourself for the
bike chill which I didn’t do that well. Then the power was very variable with
trying to catch up, but it was definitely a fun course. I wish i’d been a
little closer earlier on the run but Sandra is a phenomenal runner and gave me
a great carrot to chase.”
“I am very happy with only my third
World Cup and I want to thank my Colombian team and Olympic Committee for their
support,” added Velasquez.
For the full results from Vina del
Mar, click here and watch back the action on TriathlonLive.tv. https://triathlon.org/results/result/2022_world_triathlon_cup_vina_del_mar?mc_cid=225564c336&mc_eid=6139649918
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