Vaseline XTERRA triathlon kicks off today

A challenging race course and a tough lineup will highlight today’s Vaseline Men XTERRA Off-Road Triathlon starting at the Sea Front Beach Resort in Liloan town, northern Cebu.

Twelve of the world’s best off-road triathletes, headed by defending Philippine champion Ben Allen of Australia and two-time world champion Lesley Peterson of Scotland, are among the top bets for today’s 1.5-kilometer swim, 36k off-road mountain biking and 9.4k trail run race that will cover the tough terrain of Liloan.

The 12 will be among the record 460 participants of this year’s race. The inaugural year of the race last 2011 also in Liloan drew around a hundred participants and grew to 200 last year.

“The sport is growing and the people got more interested in off-road triathlon,” said Alaska CEO and Sunrise Events President Fred Uytengsu during yesterday’s press conference at the Crimson Hotel Resort and Spa in Mactan.

The 12 foreign professional athletes composed of Allen, Peterson, Oliver Marceau of France, Dan Hugo of South Africa, inaugural champion Sam Gardner of Great Britain, Matt O’Halloran of Canada, Rory Downie of Scotland, Bradley Sean Weiss of South Africa the only Asian pro category competitor, Shahrom Abdullah of Malaysia, Renata Bucher of Switzerland, Jacqui Slack from Great Britain, and Carina Wasle of South Africa, were also present during the press conference.

“We are really looking forward to getting here in Cebu every year because we can’t wait to see the smiles of the Filipinos and experience their hospitality,” said race director Dave Nicholas.

Nicholas said the participants are eager to see in action in today’s full XTerra Triathlon and in the XTerra Lite category, which features a 500-meter swim, 18k mountain bike and 5.2k trail run.

“We will be having a modified race course and we made it tougher for everyone so that they can experience a more challenging off-road triathlon.”

Allen, the defending champion in the pro category, said he will be having a tough time especially with the presence of Hugo, O’halloran and Downie, who have already won several off-road triathlons.

“I think all of us in the pro category have the equal chances of winning the title. The level of the competition is higher, so whoever has the stronger mental condition emerges the victor,” said Allen.

Peterson, a two-time world champion of XTerra races abroad, said she is excited to race in her debut in the XTerra Philippines.

Bucher, on the other hand, sees a tough competition against Peterson and the rest of the pro female triathletes. “This year is much challenging compared to the previous one where I won the title,” she said. “The bike course looks difficult and challenging but I am ready.” /CORRESPONDENT DALE G. ROSAL