The second event of the Sovereign Tri Series went down at Roys Bay in Wanaka today. The festival attracted around 260 athletes and included a duathlon race. Athletes looking to represent New Zealand this year in Penticton and Rotterdam were also racing for selection today.
The Splash n Dash race for the kids aged 5 - 10 got underway just after the major races. There were some familiar faces in there with the Peterson sisters from Christchurch, who also raced at Tinman in November last year.
Crossing first over the line with a time of 1:55:54 in the Duathlon race was Sam Bell from Canterbury Tri Club. He was followed by fellow club member Marc Prutton (2:00:01) and Matt Summer (2:00:09) from Dunedin Tri and Multisport Club. Alice Coombs grabbed herself a convincing win with a time of 2:14:51. Melanie Mitchell came in second (2:22:06) followed by Sarah Saunderson-Warner (2:26:52).
The oldest competitor, aged 83, Ray Bennet came home strong and proud in the duathlon. "I wasn't going to clock a 'good' time so that wasn't an issue but once I start, I need to finish", he said. Bennet's time may not reflect the outstanding performance he made on the course today, windy conditions meant the ride was difficult but like all athletes today, he remained resilient.
Another stand out performance from Hayden Wilde, who was in great form off the back of his third place at Port of Tauranga last weekend. The 19 year old snatched up first place in the Standard distance race with a time of 1:48:03. "The legs were still a little frazzled from POT, especially powering up hills on hills. I was really happy coming out of the top swim bunch and heading out on the bike first, not knowing I had all time bike legend Dougal Allan chasing me," he said.
