|
NEWS FROM FRANCE:
• World champ Marceau wants French triathletes to unite
• French duathletes will run European Cross Country Champs
• French title for Mouthon, but no French Tri Champs for the men
• Reto Hug leads Tri Team Henniez to Iron Tour win
•Was Nice Worlds prize money switched to "ITU way" at last minute?
• ITU: "Worlds prize money is equal"
• Denmark's Sandvang repeats as Worlds champ
• France's Mouthon is Worlds champ at home
• The way things were: Erin Baker speaks up on Nice prize money
• Nice Triathlon draws the Worlds' best again
• World champ Marceau takes Nice in stride
• Nice Worlds has unequal prize money
• ITU World Cup at Monte Carlo is canceled
• See Industry
|
|
World champ Marceau wants French triathletes to unite
December 23, Paris, France (www.slowtwitch.com):
France's Olivier Marceau, the current triathlon world champion, is asking his fellow professional triathletes to unite against alleged moves by the French Triathlon Federation to ban them from competing in Europe's major races this coming season.
Some members of France's national team have reportedly been contacted by French officials, and were told that that they risk losing training camp priviliges, stipends and other national team amenities, plus championship-team selection, if they enter any of the European Triathlon Union events in 2001.
Marceau, seventh in the Olympic triathlon, has spoken out against the pressures. "I still want to race in some ETU races," Marceau told the Reuters newswire on Friday. "I would be disappointed if we can't do it, because athletes should be totally free to race where they choose."
The ban is a result of the French federation's decision earlier this month to put its backing behind the new Triathlon Council of Europe, a new rival to the longstanding ETU. Seven other European countries -- Britain, Denmark, Italy, Greece, Switzerland, Monaco and Spain -- have joined with France in the formation of the Triathlon Council.
France's ban on its elites supporting ETU races particularly affects Marceau, because his personal sponsor -- Arena -- is also the major sponsor of the ETU. Arena has also been a longtime sponsor of the French federation, but its contract ends at the end of this month. Starting on January 1, 2001, the federation will work instead with Adidas as its major sponsor.
Marceau further told Reuters: "I don't want to fight with anyone, I just want to get some good reasons for not racing in ETU events. I hope all the athletes will join each other to protect their rights."
---
French duathletes will run European Cross Country Champs
November 29, Paris, France (from correspondent David Monti for www.slowtwitch.com):
The Fédération Française d'Athlétisme has selected Yann Millonn and Edwige Pitel for their teams which will compete in the EAA European Cross Country Championship in Malmö, Sweden, on December 10.
Millon, from Stade Bordelais, was second at the ITU World Duathlon Championship in Calais, France, on 8-Oct (10k R, 40k B, 5k R). He was recently fifth at both the Cross de la RATP in Fontenay-Les Briis and the Cross de Sud-Ouest in Gujan-Mestras.
Pitel, from Ste-Marguerite Marseille, is a versatile athlete. She recently won the ITU Long-Distance Duathlon World Championship (10k R, 60k B, 10k R) in Pretoria, and was fifth at the shorter ITU World Duathlon Championship in Calais. On the roads she was third at the French Half-Marathon Championships last June in Lille, and fourth at the national 10-K Championships last September in Alès. Most recently, she was on the French national team at the Chiba Ekiden in Japan, and third at the Cross de Sud-Ouest.
------
French title for Mouthon, but no French Tri Champs for the men
August 29, Vassivière, France (www.slowtwitch.com, with help from Cyril Deblois):
Isabelle Mouthon won the women's French Triathlon Championships title Saturday on a rain-shortened course, but when it came to the men's race, there was none.
French Triathlon Federation officials found the conditions too difficult to conduct the separate, later men's race on Saturday, where hail had actually kept the women from completing the third lap of the 10k run course.
Officials decided to call the men back for a race on Sunday, but when they gathered, and when conditions were still awful, they called for a "Criterium National d'Aquathlon" (swim-run), rather than the French Triathlon Championships.
Laurent Jeanselme was the first out of the water, together with Stephane Poulat and Stephan Bignet. Bignet never looked back and managed to hold back Sylvain Dodet, the fastest runner. Neither Olivier Marceau nor Carl Blasco, both going to race in Sydney with Stephan Bignet, raced that day.
(RESULTS)
-----
Reto Hug leads Tri Team Henniez to Iron Tour win
July 31, Charleville-Mézière, France (www.slowtwitch.com):
Switzerland's Reto Hug won three of the four stages of the France Iron Tour, which finished up Sunday in an abbreviated format that was a concession to the Olympic-year schedule.
Ordinarily, the France Iron Tour is a seven-day event in late summer, drawing most of the biggest European men's names in the sport. This time, given the September 17 date for the Olympic men's triathlon, the event switched to the end of July.
It also dropped to just four stages over four days, and featured just 10 five-man teams, rather than the usual 20 or so.
Hug's Swiss mates for the winning Tri Team Henniez were Markus Keller, Peter Alder, Dominik Rechsteiner and Christoph Mauch.
Hug, who will be in Sydney, captured stages 2, 3 and 4 after finishing 11th on the first day. On accumulated time, he won the Tour title by 44 seconds over New Zealand's Paul Amey, racing for the Triathl'Aix team, and by 49 seconds over France's Sylvain Dodet, racing for the Poissy team.
Sunday's race, the last, was the longest event of the four stages -- 1,350m swim, 36k bike, 9k run. Hug won in 1:33:20, just three seconds clear of Dodet.
Stage 1, in Strasbourg on July 27, was 375m swim, 10k bike, 2.5k run.
Stage 2, in Vesoul on July 28, was 750m swim, 20k bike, 5k run.
Stage 3, Vittel on July 29, was 1000m swim, 27k bike, 6k run.
France Iron Tour July 27-30, France 4 races in 4 days
Final individual standings
1. Reto Hug (SUI/Tri Team Henniez), 4:10:31
2. Paul Amey (NZL/Triathl'Aix), @44
3. Sylvain Dodet (FRA/Poissy), @49
4. Markus Keller (SUI/Tri Team Henniez), @1:18
5. Carl Blasco (FRA/Poissy), @1:39
-----
Was Nice Worlds prize money switched to "ITU way" at last minute?
June 20, Nice, France (www.slowtwitch.com):
Four versions of the prize money list for the ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships at Nice reached Triathlonlive.com both before and after Sunday's race at Nice -- none of them detailing the actual money that the top-20 athletes will receive, once doping controls are cleared.
The top 20 athletes, men and women, will receive equal money, distributed according to the ITU's standard breakdown by percentages. But in spite of attempts to discover the actual breakdown, Triathlonlive.com has still does not know what it is with any certainty.
Even athletes who placed in the top 20 don't have an idea of how much they will receive -- because they and their managers were given a different list, drawn up by the local organizers, the French Triathlon Federation.
Bernard St. Jean, of the federation, said on Tuesday: "ITU will pay the prize money, $55,000. But there is no problem with our list. We presented it at the Perth Congress (on April 27), and it was approved. We worked out with our accountants what the ITU percentages were for 20 places deep."
However, the athletes were given a list within the pre-race magazine that differed substantially from a list that would follow the official ITU breakdowns. The Nice list indicated equal money for 20 places, with the 1-2-3 places getting checks for $9000, $4000 and $3000.
Those work out to 16.36 percent, 7.27 percent and 5.45 percent -- not in line with the ITU's standards for paying 20 places -- 12.5 percent, 10 percent and 7.5 percent. Once corrected to the ITU way, the Nice money should actually be $6,875 for first; $5,500 for second; and $4,125 for third, and so on.
The prize money matter came to light publicly when athletes at the pre-race briefing on Friday questioned whether the money was equal for men and women. After all, the race's website -- which ITU was directing athletes and others to get their information from -- showed a list that paid out money for men in places 9 through 20, but none for women in those places.
The question caught even the race director, Claude Meyer, by surprise, who acknowledged on Tuesday: "The prize money details are not that important to me." The question was handled in the briefing by the ITU's Loreen Barnett. She said that the money was equal, and would be paid according to ITU percentages.
Barnett later told Triathlonlive.com that the money was $57,500 total, rather than $55,000 -- but didn't give a breakdown. "All ITU events have the same prize money breakdown, and everyone is aware that if the event is an ITU event, it has the same percentages," she added.
Yet what the race's website said, what the Nice pre-race magazine said, and what Barnett said, are all different from what the ITU's marketing agency, SSM-Freesport indicated on Monday afternoon, 24 hours after the race. Asked for a prize money list, the ITU's account executive in London returned a list that specified 320,000 FF for individuals, and 60,000 FF more for teams.
It appeared to be the same money shown on the website, with the addition of equal prize money extended to women in places 9-20. Noted the ITU account executive: "Both men and women are the same, which is great to see."
Asked late Monday why there are four versions of money lists for the World Championships, the ITU did not respond. However, the unequal prize money list -- still displayed on the website -- seems (by using Page View Info) to have been updated as recently as 4 April, 2000.
------
ITU: "Worlds prize money is equal"
June 18, Nice, France (www.slowtwitch.com):
The ITU said on the eve of the Nice Triathlon, also the ITU World Long-Distance Championships, says that the prize money for Sunday's race is absolutely equal, distributed to the top 20 men and women according to standard ITU percentages.
The ITU's general secretary, Mark Sisson, blamed the mis-information on a "year-old (website) page" -- which seems to have been left in, indicating last year's unequal money, amid all the new race information for 2000.
Asked to identify the total prize money and its breakdown per place, the ITU did not reply.
-----
Denmark's Sandvang repeats as Worlds champ
June 18, Nice, France (www.slowtwitch.com):
Denmark's Peter Sandvang confirmed his position at the top of the long-distance triathlon world when he won Sunday's Nice Triathlon, also the ITU World Long-Distance Triathlon Championships. It was his second straight such title -- he had won his first title a year ago July, when the race was in Sater, Sweden.
Sandvang was a winner by 1:21 over France's Cyrille Neveu, who was the surprise of the field. Frenchmen also took places 3-4-5 in Francois Chabaud, Gilles Reboul and Philippe Lie.
Neveu led Sandvang into the second transition after the 120k bike, but the two men traded the lead throughout the 30k run. With three kilometers to go, Sandvang pulled back into the lead for good and ran home.
Few had expected the French challenge to come from Neveu, who has finished just 10th in each of the last two ITU World Long-Distance Triathlon Championships. With the rest of his results combining for a No. 34 ranking among the world's long-distance triathletes, Neveu had the performance of his career over the course. Last September, he was only ninth in Nice -- and 17th, the year before.
Sandvang's winning time, 6:22:01, was considerably slower than the 6:09:47 course record established last September by Switzerland's Christoph Mauch on the "new" course. Mauch finished sixth Sunday in 6:30:07.
(RESULTS)
------
France's Mouthon is Worlds champ at home
June 18, Nice, France (www.slowtwitch.com):
Isabelle Mouthon, already the winner of the Nice Triathlon in 1993 and 1994, won here again on Sunday. But this time, the title meant more: The race served as the ITU World Long-Distance Triathlon Championships.
Mouthon passed Switzerland's Natascha Badmann late in the run to win in 7:04:48. Badmann was 56 seconds back in second, followed by Italy's Daniella Locarno -- six minutes off the pace. Denmark's Susanne Nielsen, the 1999 Worlds champ who was leading for much of the bike, faltered in the last 10k of the run to finish fourth, 10 minutes off Mouthon's winning time.
The course record, 6:56:13 by Australia's Joanne King last year, remained safe.
(RESULTS)
------
The way things were: Erin Baker speaks up on Nice prize money
June 17, Christchurch, New Zealand (www.slowtwitch.com):
Erin Baker, the New Zealander who twice won the Nice Triathlon, is saddened by the lack of understanding that today's triathletes carry into Sunday's race, which doubles as the ITU World Long-Distance Triathlon World Championships.
The race provides about FF 360,000, or about US$52,813, in prize money. Yet while men in places 9 through 20 earn money, women in those same places will get nothing.
The unequal prize list is an unprecedented first in the history of any of the ITU World Championships.
"More women need to front up and express themselves with their support of events that treat them well, and avoid ones that don't," Baker said from Christchurch, where she is now retired from the sport.
"Perhaps the lack of a unified, loud, clear athletes' voice that has a presence, or the lack of a charismatic leader, may mean that many of the gains made by women in the sport are slowly eroding. I hope not."
Baker won the race in both 1985 and 1988. But she also stayed away from Nice one year in protest, because organizers were giving a car to the men's winner, but not the women's winner. By race day they had changed the specifics to giving the car to the "first person across the line" -- which was, of course, Mark Allen.
Allen is the race's most famed winner, taking the title an unprecedented 10 times, starting with its first year in 1982. Allen was also keen to lend support to the women's cause.
Recalls Baker: "Before the event (when the car was designated for the men's winner only), Scott Molina (Baker's husband) did ask Mark to try and apply some diplomacy to the race organization. I think he and his agent at the time might have had some input, as they made it equal the following year.
"Mark was really the only athlete/person with any clout -- probably the only one -- they were going to listen to. Same in Avignon (at the first ITU World Championships in 1989, when the prize money was initially unequal for men and women). Without his support, and the support of the other men, our united front probably wouldn't have resulted in equal prize money."
Baker's fight didn't come without its consequences.
"In the end, it probably cost me a very lucrative sponsorship deal with Le Coq Sportif, as they always expected me to front at the highest-profile events, and Nice has historically been the most covered event in Europe. Even if the travel and appearance money has always been very lopsided.
"Of course, many of the young people racing today won't know the history behind the sacrifices made to get to a point where most events have equal prize money. Indeed, they might expect that there will always be equal prize money.
"This shows it ain't necessarily so."
------
Nice Triathlon draws the Worlds' best again
June 16, Nice, France (www.slowtwitch.com):
The world's best long-distance triathletes are gathering for Sunday's Nice Triathlon -- and the Danish and the Czech teams, if any, look as formidable as the French in the race that doubles as the ITU World Long-Distance World Championships.
There is team prize money for the first time in an ITU World Championships. And, apparently also for the first time in an ITU World Championships in its 11 years, there is unequal prize money for the women. Both the ITU Women's Committee and the ITU Athletes Committee have appealed to the ITU to force a change in the prize-money format, which currently pays equally only through eighth place. Men in places 9-20 receive prize money, but the women in those places go empty-handed.
Out on the course, which makes for Europe's grandest, most fabled event, the triathletes will tackle a 4k swim, 120k cycle and 30k run. Nice is where Mark Allen won for 10 years, forging his European image and contributing much to the aura of the Nice event.
The women's field is led by Denmark's Susanne Nielsen, who won the world title in Sater, Sweden, last year; and Switzerland's Natascha Badmann, who is back to racing the longer events - her specialty - after trying, unsuccessfully, the shorter, Olympic route for a few seasons.
Denmark has the 1-2 finishers in the Sater Worlds back to defend, in Peter Sandvang and Torbjorn Sindballe. But Switzerland has Christoph Mauch, who won the Nice Triathlon in 1999, when it was conducted in September. And the Czech Republic has the very hot racer, Petr Vabrousek, winner of Ironman California last month, and his rising countryman, Jan Strangmuller.
But the French are most at home at Nice. Yves Cordier leads the bunch, and Olivier Marceau - the world short-course champ - and Rene Rovera could challenge for the first team prize.
Here are the starters for Sunday's race:
- Men from Argentina: Martin Sturia - Men from Australia: Jarrod Brauer, Nick Marland, Peter Taylor - Men from Austria: Wolfgang Egger, Alexander Fruthwirth, Hubert Hammerl, Adolf Hanel, Albuin Schwarz - Men from Belgium: Michel Kombard, Gerrit Schellens, Philip Segers, Alain Vervoort - Men from Canada: Philippe Bertrant, Fred Biondi, Eric Blais, Luc Morin - Men from Czech Republic: Michal Adamec, Ondrej Exner, Jaroslav Hyzl, Thomas Petr, Michal Pilousek, Jan Strangmuller, Petr Vabrousek - Men from Denmark: Michael Jensen, Allan Mansson, Per Nilsson, Johnny Pederson, Peter Sandvang, Torbjorn Sindballe - Men from Finland: Tero Hyppölä - Men from France: Francois Chabaud, Yves Cordier, Xavier Galea, Alexandre Guerin, Christophe Hamard, Maxime Hamon, Xavier Le Floch, Philippe Lie, Olivier Marceau, Gilles Reboul, Rene Rovera - Men from Great Britain: Ryan James, Julian Jenkinson, Lawrence Oldershaw - Men from Italy: Nicola Carpanse, Federico Girasol, Massimo Guadagni, Marco Marchese, Alessandro Vannacci - Men from Japan: Chiharu Chiba, Tsubasa Morita, Shingo Tani - Men from Luxembourg: Dan Dethier - Men from Monaco: Pierre Lorenzi, Jean-Paul Scorsolio - Men from Netherlands: Vincent Bruins, Guido Gosselink, Frank Heldoorn, Jan van der Marel, Richard Van Diesen - Men from New Zealand: Cameron Brown, Peter Clode, Stephen Sheldrake, Andrew Vane - Men from Norway: Trond Hegglund, Pal Magndal, Arild Treiten - Men from Portugal: Pedro Cordeiro, Luis Lopes, Paulo Pereira, Sergio Santos - Men from Russia: Sergey Badanin, Andrei Kremlevsky - Men from Slovakia: Filip Kristl - Men from Slovenia: Jani Tomsic - Men from South Africa: Deon Swart - Men from Spain: Asier Bilbao, Hektor Llanos, Felix Martinez, Alejandro Santamaria, Alfredo Tutor - Men from Sweden: Bjorn Andersson, Robert Schelin - Men from Switzerland: Pierre-Alain Burgdorfer, Christoph Mauch, Martin Soliva, Konrad Von Allmen, Bruno von Flue - Men from USA: Eric Bean, Kirk Framke, Kevin Joyce, Andy Kelsey, Chuck Veylupek, Tim Watson
- Women from Australia: Kim Beckinsale, Anne Martin - Women from Belgium: Mieke Suys - Women from Bolivia: Agnes Eppers - Women from Canada: Isabelle Gagnon, Joanne Kay - Women from Denmark: Susanne Nielsen - Women from Spain: Cristina Ananza, Teresa Benet - Women from Finland: Riikka Kelja - Women from France: Virginie Blondeel, Liliane Lafforgue, Isabelle Mouthon, Estelle Patou, Nathalie Raynaud, Helene Salomon, Cedrine Soulet - Women from Great Britain: Helen Purdy - Women from Italy: Alessia Bertolino, Daniela Locarno, Edith Niederfriniger - Women from Netherlands: Bianca Van Dyk, Cora Vlot, Marike Zeekant - Women from Norway: Anne Eldegard - Women from Russia: Natalia Sushkova - Women from South Africa: Caroline Koll - Women from Sweden: Lena Wahlqvist - Women from Switzerland: Natascha Badmann, Dolorita Fuchs-Gerber - Women from USA: Dolly Ginter, Alison Hayden, Wendy Ingraham, Marci Mauro, Mary Uhl
------
World champ Marceau takes Nice in stride
June 16, Nice, France (www.slowtwitch.com):
Olivier Marceau, the Frenchman who surprised himself and everyone else when he won the ITU World Triathlon Championships in April in Perth, is racing Sunday's Nice Triathlon -- but not exactly with his eye on another world title for himself.
He has finished as high as second on the course in Nice, beaten only by Luc Van Lierde in 1996. While many of the world's long-distance stars are pointing toward a podium-level performance on Sunday, Marceau says he's more there to support the sport and the race.
"Nice is where the triathlon was born in France," he said on Friday. "I love this race, and I live in Antibes, which is very close to Nice. I rather like competing in long distance, more than short. But I have to keep thinking more of Sydney (the Olympics in September).
"I hope to go well on Sunday, of course. But if I don't, it doesn't matter. nice could be a bonus if I feel good -- but never mind if not. I'm going there to have fun. If I have a hard time, I will just pull out. You have to race smart if you want to go well."
Marceau has raced Nice three times before. After this fourth time over the course, he plans a two-week break, before starting his season's final focus toward Sydney. He will race in Beauvais, France, on July 2, then in the French Iron Tour from July 27-30. His last race before the Olympics will be the ITU World Cup in Lausanne on August 12 - which he calls his favorite World Cup.
His February-through-September schedule for 2000 makes for a long grind. After taking second in the Santos Triathlon in Brazil, he went south to Australia for three months of training with coach Col Stewart. Then he won at Worlds - and his world turned upside down.
"I was very busy when I came back to France," he said. "I was asked everywhere, of course. And although I was not training, I wasn't resting, either. I enjoyed my new status for about two weeks, then I started training for Nice. But I never do more than 25 hours a week. I get fed up with more training than that."
He says Nice is not a serious goal. But Sydney, obviously, is.
------
Nice Worlds has unequal prize money
June 14, Nice, France (www.slowtwitch.com):
The prize money for Sunday's Nice Triathlon, which doubles as the ITU World Long-Distance Triathlon Championships, is a total of FF 360,000 -- about US$52,813.
But in an unprecedented departure from ITU standards, the prize money is not split equally among men and women.
About $8,800 is going to team prizes for the first three teams, both men and women. Teams will win prizes of 15,000; 10,000; and 5,000 FF.
For the money for individuals, however, the money is equal only through eighth place. First-place prize is FF 60,000 -- approximately $8,802.
But then the men's list continues, with amounts of $513 for 9th, $440 for 10th, $367 for 11th, $293 for 12th, $220 for places 13 and 14, and $147 for places 15, 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20. There are no such prizes for the women in those places.
Such a money list -- approved by the ITU -- goes against even the ITU's owns standards of equality, long a hallmark of ITU racing.
There was a resolution passed in the ITU Congress a year ago (1999) that reinforced the ITU's signature stance. That read:
"Whereas a main policy of ITU is gender equity,
"therefore be it resolved, that all National Federations at all triathlon and duathlon events as well as all National Grand Prix/National races distribute prize money equally to men and women in both amount and depth.
"and be it further resolved that if the number of women is fewer than 20% of the men, the prize money must be equal up to and including 5th place.
"and be it further resolved that when additional gifts are awarded to both men and women they shall be of equal value. This is to be considered as a minimum criteria."
That resolution was directed to national-championship level races, and actually doesn't touch the ITU's trademark equal-money position when it comes to World Championships.
-----
ITU World Cup at Monte Carlo is canceled
June 6, Monte Carlo, Monaco (www.slowtwitch.com):
Less than one month before the world's best triathletes were set to gather for the first ITU World Cup since the World Championships, the event has been canceled by the ITU.
The race director, Monaco Triathlon Federation Christian Giovannini, told the ITU on Tuesday that he had no choice but retire from his duties, after no major sponsors had committed to the July 2 date.
Noted the ITU: "We regret any inconvenience this may have caused athletes and their travel plans. We also share Mr. Giovannini's loss for the athletes and event volunteers of the Triathlon Club in Monaco"
The lack of sponsors is due to Italian television unable to guarantee reasonable coverage of the event -- because it falls on one of the year's biggest soccer-championship weekends in Europe, the Euro 2000.
"You can understand that, without any guarantee from my sponsors, I cannot continue. I am really sorry for all the people: athletes, supporters, ITU members who were looking forward to our event," Giovannini conveyed to the ITU in his note.
The cancellation creates an additional hardship for several federations, who were sending their best athletes to Monaco as a last-chance place to prove their fitness toward Olympic-qualifying. This includes the British Triathlon Federation, which was using this World Cup as one of its three trial races to determine its third Olympian man and woman. Additionally, both the Dutch and Austrian federations, with Rob Barel and Jasmine Haemmerle, respectively, were looking toward top-notch performances in a World Cup setting in order to confirm those athletes' Olympic status.
|
|
|
