Eneko Llanos of Spain and Lisa Hütthaler of Austria won the men’s and women’s overall titles against deep, talented fields at Ironman 70.3 Mallorca.
The Men
Llanos advanced from 13th after the swim to 9th after the bike to 1st on the strength of a race-best 1:08:41 run to finish in 3:52:36. Llanos had an 18 seconds margin of victory over the runner-up, Belgian duathlon standout Bart Aernouts, and 2:17 over 3rd-place finisher Andreas Raelert of Germany.
Much of the men’s race, with its high-powered field, was lit by the fire of super-cyclist Andrew Starykowicz, the man who last November set a world best for the Ironman distance bike split with a 4:04 performance while winning Ironman Florida. After coming out of the Mallorca swim 12th, just 13 seconds back of swim leader Stephane Poulat, Starykowicz blasted the challenging bike course with a time of 2:11:58 – 3:38 better than the next best pro, Tim Meyer and more over a pack of star-studded chasers.
Starykowicz’s split gave him a 4:10 advantage starting the run over next best pro, Bertrand Billard of France, with Andreas Dreitz of Germany (-4:34), Andreas Raelert (-4:55), Stephane Poulat (-4:55), Bart Aernouts (-4:57), Jan Van Berkel of the Netherlands (-4:58), Tim Meyer (--4:59) and Llanos (-4:59) arriving in T2 in a such a tight pack that suggests the chasers expended far less energy than Starykowicz.
Starykowicz’s surge, however, was not as fast as top age grouper Antonio Colom of Spain, whose 2:09:45 bike split could either be a sign that the next überbiker has arrived -- or could support the argument that starting with the age groupers offers greater opportunity to get a legal but significant aerodynamic boost by passing a string of lesser riders without the close marshaling scrutiny faced by the leading pro wave. Speculation that Colom’s ride was not as legit as the pro wave might prove false, as Colom closed with an 8th-fastest overall 1:13:10 run that gave him a 4th overall finish, beaten only by three pros.
Starykowicz did not crumble on the run, as it took over 10 kilometers for first chasers Eneko Llanos and Bart Aernouts, followed a few seconds later by Andreas Raelert, to make the inevitable pass. By kilometer 14, Llanos and Aernouts were running side by side in the lead with Raelert 3 seconds down and Starykowicz falling 41 seconds back.
Llanos and his 1:08:41 closing run finally shed Aernouts (1:09:10 run) near the end, while Raelert fell even further back (1:11:03 run) to close out the podium. Starykowicz’s 1:17:29 run was decent enough to win many Ironman 70.3 races, but on this day, against this field, it brought him home 7th pro and 8th overall man, 3:59 back of the winner.
The Women
In the women’s contest, Lisa Hütthaler of Austria outdueled multiple Ironman winner Yvonne Van Vlerken on the run. Hütthaler finished 8th on the swim, advanced to 1st after the bike, just 7 seconds ahead of Van Vlerken. On the run, Van Vlerken immediately charged into the lead, forging a 26 seconds lead by kilometer 5.5 and 32 seconds at kilometer 7.7. But Hütthaler struck back and retook the lead about the halfway point of the run. By kilometer 17.5, Hütthaler established a comfortable 1:21 lead, and then increased it over Van Vlerken at the finish.
In this race, Hütthaler’s tied-for-race-best with Sofie Goos run of 1:20:46 was the difference, topping Van Vlerken’s 1:23:16 effort by 2 minutes 30 seconds
Hütthaler finished in 4:24:25, 2:52 ahead of runner-up Van Vlerken at the finish and 5:38 over 3rd place finisher Lucy Gossage of Great Britain. Tamsin Lewis of Great Britain finished 4th, 54 seconds back of Gossage.
The win was Hütthaler’s first Ironman 70.3 victory and signals a return to prominence after she was assessed a two-year ban in 2009 for testing positive for the performance enhancing drug EPO. Hütthaler remains controversial in some circles as she was accused by two competitors last Fall of illegally riding with her boyfriend while finishing 2nd to winner Leanda Cave at Ironman 70.3 Miami. No penalty was assessed on Hütthaler after that incident.
Thomas Cook Ironman 70.3 Mallorca
Mallorca, Spain
May 11. 2013
S 1.2 mi. / B 56 mi. / R 13.1 mi.
Results
Pro Men
1. Eneko Llanos (ESP) 3:52:36
2. Bart Aernouts (BEL) 3:52:54 – 0:18
3. Andreas Raelert (GER) 3:54:53 – 2:17
4. Antonio Colom (ESP) 3:55:20 * Age grouper
5. Tim Meyer (GER) 3:55:58
6. Boris Stein (GER) 3:56:08
7. Stephane Poulat (FRA) 3:56:09
8. Andrew Starykowicz (USA) 3:56:35
9. Bertrand Billard (FRA) 3:59:38
10. Jan Van Der Berkel (NED) 4:00:51
Pro Women
1. Lisa Hütthaler (AUT) 4:24:25
2. Yvonne Van Vlerken (NED) 4:27:17
3. Lucy Gossage (GBR) 4:30:03
4. Tamsin Lewis (GBR) 4:30:57
5. Natascha Schmitt (GER) 4:33:17
6. Daniela Sämmler (GER) 4:35:05
7. Eva Nystrom (SWE) 4:35:29
8. Anja Beranek (GER) 4:35:45
9. Sofie Goos (BEL) 4:37:28
10. Silvia Felt (GER) 4:38:52
