Allen, Patterson bag titles in pro division
He called it his toughest race so far, but Australian Ben Allen managed to emerge on top as he successfully defended his Philippine championship pro-division title in the Vaseline Men XTERRA Off-road Triathlon yesterday in Liloan town, northern Cebu.
Allen crossed the finish line first at the Sea Front Beach with a total time of two hours, 37 minutes and 40 seconds to win the race and earn another ticket to the Maui World Championships of the XTERRA World Triathlon.
“It was absolutely tough, the toughest XTERRA I have ever experienced,” said Allen. “But I have proved again my toughness mentally and physically. I am set for the world championships.”
Allen said he will be competing in Saipan and Guam for his target to claim a grand slam title in the three Asian championships.
Among the challenges that triathletes had to conquer was the 1.5-kilometer swim in the murky waters of Liloan beach. The triathletes had to run around a hundred meters from the shoreline before being able to swim because the race started during the low tide yesterday.
“I held my position after the swim and got behind at second in the bike but I managed to retake the lead in the last part of the trail run,” said Allen.
Meanwhile, Scottish Lesley Patterson won the women’s pro division crown after logging a the total time of 2:45.41.
Just like Allen, Patterson said this race was one of her toughest so far.
“It was intense,” she said. “The race course was very technical but the heat of the sun was very oppressive and I consider this as the toughest XTERRA race I joined. But I was greatly motivated by the cheerers along.”
Patterson will skip the remaining Asian championships in Saipan and Guam but will be joining the Las Vegas XTerra.
Philippine Team member Alexandra Ganzon claimed the top spot in the XTerra Filipino elite category, dethroning Cebuana defending champion Rochelle Tan with a total time of 4:15.03. Tan finished in 4:24.53 while Joyette Jopson rounded off the top three with a time of 4:45.58.
In the men’s side of the Filipino elite category, Zamboanga’s Joseph Miller won the top spot with a time of 3:05.51 followed by Benjamin Rana with a time of 3:10.13 and Jefferson Tabacon at third, clocking with 3:11.20.
INTENSE HEAT
“The race was tormenting because the heat of the sun was very intense. I never imagined I could emerge on top,” said Miller, who is a triathlete based in Cebu.
Dan Hugo of South Africa trailed Allen at the second spot with a time of 2:38.31. Again, the heat of the sun was a problem for him and it showed when he fainted upon reaching the finish line due to exhaustion.
It was not only Hugo who fainted at the finish line. Numerous finishers also needed medical attention after reaching the finish line. They all said that the heat of the sun was the reason.
Rounding off the top three in the pro-division men’s side is Sam Gardner of Great Britain, who had a total time of 2:48.19.
Bucher finished second to Patterson while British Daz Parker claimed third spot with a time of 3:17.03.
Meanwhile, Karina Wasle of South Africa and Canadian Matt O’Halloran were very frustrated after both failed to finish the race.
Wasle’s bike broke down after it hit a rock in a down hill portion while O’Halloran’s swollen right arm forced him to quit the race. He decided to stop after the swim event to prevent his injury from getting worse.
Today, the trail run, which will feature 21k half marathon, 10k and 5k distances, will be held also in Liloan. Organizers said more than a hundred trail runners and triathletes will join the race.
