Bowden powers to 8:51 in Austria
July 8, 2001, Klagenfurt, Austria (www.slowtwitch.com):
Canada's Lori Bowden successfully defended her Ironman Austria title on Sunday in what is being called the second-fastest Ironman time for a woman: 8:51:22, according to an account on Ironmanlive.com. Paula Newby-Fraser holds the record, an 8:50:55 set in 1994.
The men's winner was Ukrainian Viktor Zyemtsev, a member of the army in his home country who refused the Kona slot, telling the news conference after the race that he will return to the Ukraine to celebrate with the people who helped him get to Austria--his training partners in the army. He finished in 8:16:44, well clear of second place, Austria's Norbert Langbrandtner, in 8:24:03. Germany's Olaf Sabatschus was third in 8:27:05.
According to Ironmanlive.com, no less a legend that Ironman ace Mark Allen urged Zyemtsev to take the slot, but he demurred, saying, through a translator that he didn't feel he was ready to compete at that level, and that: “I think it was tough to arrive in Austria but getting to Hawaii would be nearly impossible with no sponsors and the travel to get there. I will need more time for everything even though the experience would be great.”
Zyemtsev's swim of 49:58 kept him close to the leaders, and he came off the bike still in contention (sixth) in 4:33:22. It was his 2:49:33 marathon that moved him through the field and propelled him into the race lead clear of Langbrandtner and the rest.
The race started 1,562 athletes in Klagenfurt, and ended the day with 1,472 finishers.
For the win, Zyemtsev collected a $10,000US prize from the $50,000 prize purse. He earns $100 a month from his army job.
Bowden, pushed most of the day by Ironman newcomer Kate Allen of Austria, was four minutes down after the swim. She took the lead on the bike's second loop, finishing in 4:50:58 with Allen close by. Once again, though, Bowden smoked the run, turning in a 2:59:55 to come home seven minutes clear of Allen. “It wasn't until I finished and heard in English what my time was that I realized I had such a great race time,” Bowden said on Ironmanlive.com.
Bowden's finish was good for 17th overall.
The race has 50 Kona slots and a $50,000 professional prize purse. The race website is here.
(RESULTS)
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Zäck breezes in Austria, Bowden runs her way to 8:59
July 15, 2001, Klagenfurt, Austria (www.slowtwitch.com):
Fast swim splits catapulted Jürgen Zäck and Lori Bowden toward a pair of sparkling performances in Ironman Austria Sunday.
Kiwi Stephen Sheldrake was first out in 45:33, but Zäck exited the water in 48 minutes and change, only a minute behind the lead pack. That pack included his main rival Rainer Müller-Horner. There is no love lost between the two Germans, and the Chancellor had to feel good exiting the water so close to his main rival.
Zäck clearly could smell blood early, and was into the lead within a matter of a few miles––certainly earlier than he must’ve thought possible. He biked his way to a 12-minute lead by T2, and came home easily with a solid and comfortable run. His time of 8:06:58 bettered his 8:07:16 on this course in winning here a year ago.
Müller-Horner was second, and the always dangerous runner Petr Vabrousek from the Czech Republic came from a long way back to claim third.
This was Zäck’s best effort since his 1999 victory in Roth in 7:56:00. Zäck’s fastest ever is his 7:51:42 achieved as runner-up to Luc Van Lierde’s Roth victory in ’97––still considered the fastest Ironman race of all time––in which four athletes broke 8 hours. The time was far off Peter Reid’s IM Austria course record of 7:51:56 set in ‘99, but it signaled that Zäck––who's career has had its share of ups and downs––is back on track after a disappointing early season.
As for Bowden, she started quickly as well, with a 54:44. She had a little more work to do to get to the front, though, as Wendy Ingraham and short course specialist Manuela Ianesi from Italy exited the water side-by-side in 47-minutes-high. Just behind them, in the same pack exiting the water, was Australian pro Jane Fardell, a 22-year-old for whom Austria was Ironman #4 this year (and counting).
Bowden didn’t take the lead early, as did Zäck. She came into T2 a couple of minutes down on Ingraham, and didn’t make the lead caravan her own until the second mile of the run. From then on it was no looking back, and she cruised to the win in 8:59:41. Ingraham came home a solid second in 9:19. Ariane Gutknecht from Switzerland came next in 9:28, with Katrin Friedrich from Germany fourth in 9:41. Ianesi––the ITU world cup racer who was victim to Italian politics which left her off what some felt was a deserved spot on the Italian Olympic team––got through her long-course debut in fifth, with Fardell sixth (her best Ironman finish yet).
(RESULTS)
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Zack, Ingraham win Ironman Austria titles
July 23, 2000, Klagenfurt, Austria (www.slowtwitch.com):
Germany's Jurgen Zack earned his Hawaii Ironman qualifier when he won Ironman Austria, a personal redemption for having had to drop out of Ironman Europe on July 9 with a mechanical problem when he was barely onto the bike.
Zack won in 8:07:16, just clear of runner-up American Tim DeBoom (8:08:55).
USA's Wendy Ingraham (9:12:54) won for the third time here, although the first year for the race (1998) was not a Hawaii Ironman-qualifier. She beat the Ukraine's Tamara Kozulina (9:25:53), whose last Ironman-distance effort was a fifth-place finish in Almere last September.
(RESULTS)
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Jurgen Zack starting at Kärnten Ironman Austria
July 18, Klagenfurt, Austria (www.slowtwitch.com):
With just five days to go to the second Kärnten Ironman Austria, Germany's Jürgen Zäck has signed up for Sunday's race.
Zäck has four wins at the Ironman Germany, two wins at the Ironman Australia, a second place at Hawaii and the second-fastest time ever for an Ironman.
He will be racing as he continues to chase a starting spot in the October 14 Hawaii Ironman, for which he has not yet qualified. He tried to race Ironman Europe on July 9, but had to quit the race a few kilometers into the bike with mechanical problems.
Another late-entering German is Rainer Müller-Hörner. The full starting list of pros:
- Men from Australia: Grant Webster, Jason Shortis
- Men from Austria: Robert Bocek, Michael Dimmel, Norbert Domnik, Hubert
Hammerl, Adi Hanel, Elmar Schuberth
- Men from Belgium: Marc Herremans, Jean Moureau
- Men from Czech Republic: Jan Strangmüller
- Men from England: Matt Belfield
- Men from Estonia: Kirill Litovtsenko
- Men from Germany: Thomas Braun, Harald Feierabend, Ingo Herzog, Stefan
Holzner, Rainer Müller- Hörner, Dirk Steinbach, Alexander Taubert, Jürgen
Zäck
- Men from Hungary: Attila Fazekas, Tibor Lehmann
- Men from Italy: Diego Gazzari, Alessandro Valli
- Men from Netherlands: Tiedo Tinga, Richard van Diesen
- Men from South Africa: Freddy Lampret
- Men from Spain: Pascual Lorente
- Men from Ukraine: Taras Petrenko
- Men from USA: Tim DeBoom
- Women from Canada: Lori-Lynn Leach
- Women from Germany: Gabriele Keck, Annette Mack, Ute Schäfer, Silvia Vaupe,
- Women from USA: Sara-Jane Cox-Conklin, Wendy Ingraham
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Reid, Ingraham on form for Ironman Austria
January 25, Klagenfurt, Austria (www.slowtwitch.com):
Canada's Peter Reid and America's Wendy Ingraham -- Ironman Austria's defending champions -- will line up again for the race on July 23. That news was announced today by race director Georg Hochegger.
Reid covered last year's course in an astonishing 7 hours, 51 minutes, 56 seconds. The 2000 course will be ever-so-slightly different: "Because we have more athletes than before -- because of the interest of athletes from all over the world -- we have to change the location of the second transition area, as well as a short part of the run course," Hochegger said. "But hand-in-hand with making these slight changes for the run, we will have the course officially measured again to provide an exact length for the bike and the run."
Reid says of his return: "I know the course now, and I think I can go even faster." That, however, would make for a world record for the Ironman-distance.
Ingraham is a crowd favorite in Klagenfurt, where she has won the last two years. 1999 was the first year as an official, World Triathlon Corp.-sanctioned Ironman race, although the 1998 race -- while not a WTC event -- was also Ironman-distance.
Further details on the race may be found at its website.
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• Bowden powers to 8:51 in Austria
• Zäck breezes in Austria, Bowden runs her way to 8:59
• Zack, Ingraham win Ironman Austria titles
• Jurgen Zack starting at Kärnten Ironman Austria
• Reid, Ingraham on form for Ironman Austria