The global reach of XTERRA off road triathlon was on display their weekend with international pro events in Malta, Costa Roca and Saipan.
Nicolas Fernandez of France and Brigitta Poor of Hungary won the inaugural XTERRA Malta, which served as the first of 12 XTERR European Tour 2015 events. Rom Akerson of Costa Rica and Lesley Paterson of Great Britain won the inaugural XTERRA Costa Rica. And Ben Allen of Australia and Jacqui Slack of Great Britain won XTERRA Saipan.
XTERRA Saipan
Ben Allen of Australia and Jacqui Slack of Great Britain won the 14th XTERRA Saipan Championship off road triathlon Saturday.
Allen's win was his 4th in a row, matching Olivier Marceau's streak from 2004 to 2007.
Slack's win was her second Saipan victory in three years.
Both won wire-to-wire in treacherous, wet conditions which made the jungle course even more difficult. “Some of the worst conditions I've ever raced in,” said Allen. “The rain didn’t let up and it made for super slippery conditions.”
Allen finished in 2:40:25 and topped runner-up Bradley Wiggins of South Africa by 6:20, with Takahiro Ogasawara of Japan filing out the podium, 1:34 behind Weiss.
Slack enjoyed conditions, posting the best swim, mountain bike and trail run splits to finish in 3:02:01 with a 5:32 margin over runner-up Carina Wasle of Austria.
“I thrive on the more challenging conditions,” said Slack. “I always seem to perform well when it is slick and muddy.”
XTERRA Saipan
Saipan, Northern Marianas
March 28, 2015
Results
Men
1. Ben Allen (AUS) 2:40:25
2. Brad Weiss (RSA) 2:46:45
3. Takahiro Ogasawara (JPN) 2:48:19
4. Markus Benesch (AUT) 2:52:24
5. Alexandr Dorovskikh (RUS) 2:55:52
Women
1. Jacqui Slack (GBR) 3:02:01
2. Carina Wasle (AUT) 3:07:33
3. Mieko Carey (JPN) 3:20:45
4. Renata Bucher (SUI) 3:22:11
5. Daz Parker (GBR) 3:36:40
XTERRA Malta
Nicolas Fernandez of France and Brigitta Poor of Hungary won their first major XTERRA titles at the inaugural XTERRA Malta off-road triathlon Sunday. With the victories, Fernandez and Poor stand atop the leader board of the XTERRA European Tour standings.
Men
In contrast to conditions at XTERRA Saipan, Malta had sunny blue skies, easy waves and mild temperatures. Roger Serrano of Spain led the swim, followed by Brice Daubord with Fernandez close behind. Fernandez charged the mountain bike course, taking the lead at 6k and never looked back. Fernandez finished in 2:09:28 with a 2:09 margin over Serrano and 2:24 over 3rd place finisher Daubord.
Women
Brigitta Poor led the women out of the swim, then turned on the jets on the bike and led German competitor Sandra Koblmueller by 9 minutes at T2. Good thing for Poor that super runner Koblmueller had some trouble on the swim. “I swallowed so much water on the waves,” said Koblmueller. “I couldn’t get rid of the taste for a long time.”
“I just kept looking forward and pushing hard,” said Poor. “I did not know how fast Sandra was running but she made up a lot of time on me.”
Poor finished in 2:37:40, 2:33 ahead of Koblmueller and 5:36 ahead of 3rd-place finisher Maud Goldsteyn of the Netherlands.
XTERRA Malta
Mellieha, Malta
March 29, 2015
Men
1. Nicolas Fernandez (FRA) 2:09:28
2. Roger Serrano (ESP) 2:11:37
3. Brice Daubord (FRA) 2:11:52
4. Fabien Combaluzier (FRA) 2:13:33
5. Clement Briere (FRA) 2:14:12
Women
1. Brigitta Poor (HUN)
2. Sandra Koblmueller (GER)
3. Maud Goldsteyn (NED)
4. Elisabetta Curridori (ITA)
5. Louise Fox (GBR)
XTERRA Costa Rica
Rom Akerson of Costa Rica and Lesley Paterson of Great Britain won the men's and women's titles at the inaugural XTERRA Costa Rica Championship.
Men
Akerson, the home town favorite, had the fastest mountain bike split and held off Josiah Middaugh on the run. Akerson finished in 2:19:04, 53 seconds ahead of Middaugh and 65 seconds ahead of 3rd-place Mauricio Mendez of Mexico.
“Rom was on fire today,” said Middaugh. “I pre rode the course with him and I could tell he was fit and ready. I had some leg cramping issues on the bike but it hurt less to pedal than to coast and stretching on the side of the trail. Rom stayed strong on the run and we couldn’t catch him.”
Women
Two-time XTERRA World Champion Lesley Paterson overcame a shoulder injury, slow swim and blistered feet on the run to win her first XTERRA major since 2013.
Emma Garrard took the lead 3 miles into the bike and held it to the halfway point of the run when Paterson zoomed past. “I simply couldn’t match Lesley's pace on the run,” said Garrard. Sara McLarty, who led the swim, finished 3rd in her first foray in XTERRA. “My wheels only left the ground once today, but it was an amazing experience,” she tweeted after the race.
XTERRA Costa Rica
Playa Conchal, Costa Rica
March 29, 2015
Results
Men
1. Rom Akerson (CRC) 2:19:04
2. Josiah Middaugh (USA) 2:19:57
3. Mauricio Mendez (MEX) 2:20:09
4. Sebastian Neef (GER) 2:25:50
5. Fabricio Guidelli (ITA) 2:37:42
Women
1. Lesley Paterson (GBR) 2:44:43
2. Emma Garrard (USA) 2:46:22
3. Sara McLarty (USA) 3:10:32
4. Laura Mia Dias (BRA) 3:11:12
5. Christine Jeffrey (CAN) 3:13:41