A brave front running effort from Andrea Hewitt fell just one lap short of a podium finish at the rich Des Moines ITU World Cup Triathlon in Iowa this morning with the gutsy Kiwi tiring over the final 2.5km to finish in 6th place to pick up USD$12,500 in prize money.
The Christchurch triathlete was on the pace throughout the day emerging 5th out of the water and leading the field into transition two off the bike and out on to the 10km run in energy sapping high humidity.
Hewitt ran shoulder to shoulder with Australian Emma Moffatt for half the run distance before the Aussie pulled away, leaving Hewitt to slowly but surely fall into the clutches of a chasing group that included defending champion Emma Snowsill (AUS).
Hewitt though was pleased with a second consecutive 6th place finish after also earning that spot at Washington in the World Champs Series last week.
“I had a good swim and stayed in touch with the leaders throughout,” said Hewitt. “Our group worked hard on the bike and we caught (leader) Sarah McLarty halfway through. I did a lot of work into a wind though and I think that took effect later on.
“Getting off the bike I felt good though and really tried on run, putting it all on the line. But with one lap to go I knew I was struggling. I had a feeling in my head that I was blowing a bit, I could feel everything hurting, and it was really just one foot in front of the other for the final 2.5km, it was all I could do at the end.”
Moffatt won in brilliant fashion from countrywoman Snowsill with Lauren Groves (CAN) securing third place.
Of the other Kiwis, Wellington’s Kate McIlroy showed the benefit of her time at the Tri NZ training camp in Boulder with a strong performance to finish 17th, clearly her best result in a still fledgling triathlon career.
It was also McIlroy’s biggest pay day with USD$4,500 the reward for her efforts.
“I had a good swim and managed to stay in contact with a good group which meant a good bike as we stayed together throughout. I found it hard to stay on though and had to work hard the whole way, but I was determined to stay in the group. Consequently I was ‘had it’ by the run but managed to pick off a few girls and finish 17th, I can’t ask for much more than that to be honest.
“This is the best field I have raced in so far with Olympic and World Champions. My goal today was simply to finish but to be in the top half was more than I expected and is a great reward for the hard work of recent weeks.”
Sam Warriner never recovered from a poor swim which saw her exit the water in 41st, some 3:23 behind the leaders. The Whangarei triathlete showed her determination however and put aside any lingering pain from her recent bike crash to ride strongly, leading a chase group of athletes throughout the 40km bike but had nothing left on the run after two weeks of limited training and came home in 31st place for USD$2,000.
Rebecca Spence failed to finish the event, withdrawing early in the bike after exiting the water in 37th place.
2009 Hy-Vee Elite Triathlon World Cup
Des Moines, Iowa
Elite Women
| 1. | Emma Moffatt | AUS | 1:59:46 |
| 2. | Emma Snowsill | AUS | 2:01:19 |
| 3. | Lauren Groves | CAN | 2:01:31 |
| 4. | Magali Di Marco Messmer | SUI | 2:01:48 |
| 5. | Liz Blatchford | GBR | 2:02:04 |
| 6. | Andrea Hewitt | NZL | 2:02:26 |
| Plus | |||
| 17. | Kate McIlroy | NZL | 2:06:14 |
| 31. | Samantha Warriner | NZL | 2:11:26 |
| DNF | Rebecca Spence | NZL | |
Tomorrow sees the New Zealanders return to the Des Moines venue for the first ITU World Team Championships.
The Team Championship will be raced in a mixed relay format with four competitors per team, each racing the entire super sprint distance of 250m swim, 7km cycle and 1.8km run before ‘tagging’ their next triathlete. The first team across the line takes the honours and a $40,000 USD prize.
The New Zealand teams are:
New Zealand A
- Sam Warriner
- Andrea Hewitt
- Bevan Docherty
- Kris Gemmell
New Zealand B
- Kate McIlroy
- Rebecca Spence
- Clark Ellice
- Ryan Sissons
Reserve: Martin van Barneveld
Note: Debbie Tanner and Nicky Samuels are not racing in Des Moines so were not considered
The ITU Triathlon Team World Championships will consist of a 4 x mixed relay, consisting of two women and two men. Each member will complete a super sprint triathlon (250m swim, 7km bike and 1.8km run) in succession, with the first team across the line representing the top triathlon nation in the world.
A $70,000 USD prize purse will be available for the top three teams (1st - $40,000, 2nd - $20,000, 3rd - $10,000).
ITU World Team Champs
4 x mixed relay
Monday 29th June, 5.30am NZT
