Aussie Annabel Luxford stormed to a fine win at the 2015 IRONMAN 70.3 Western Sydney. David Mainwaring captured the men's race in Penrith with a race best 1:12:40 run, and in the end he and four fellow Aussies completely swept the podium.
The women
Annabel Luxford led the women out of the water in 27:43, but 5-time champion Caroline Steffen and Kiwi Gina Crawford were only a few seconds behind her.
Luxford initially rode with Steffen but at roughly the halfway point put the hammer down and disappeared up the road. In the end her 2:14:56 bike split proved to be race best and dropped Steffen by more than 5 minutes, and added even more time over the other female professionals.
Luxford did not relax during the 13.1 mile run and her 1:23:45 split also set the top mark. Luxford was crowned the new champion in 4:08:29. Steffen was next 6 minutes later and Andrea Forrest in third place was another 6 minutes adrift.
“I’m very happy with that win, I wasn’t expecting that performance. The course is fantastic, the weather was ideal for me. Great swim, great ride and you can see everyone on the run,” said Luxford.
The men
Nicholas Kastelein was first out of the water in 25:15 with Jake Montgomery and Casey Munro not far behind. These 3 athletes had at least a minute advantage over the next group of pros led by Mitch Dean.
During the bike leg Montgomery and Munro dropped Kastelein and added even more time over the pursuers. In the end Montgomery had the fastest bike split of 2:04:47, and this young upcoming athlete who finished 2nd at 70.3 Mandurah was looking to add another good result and possibly a big win to his resume. The chasers were led by Tim Van Berkel and included Kastelein, David Mainwaring, Mitch Dean, Mark Bowstead, Bryan Rhodes and Mitchell Kibby, but they had a 3 minute disadvantage.
Montgomery quickly got rid of Munro, but behind him Mainwaring ran like a man possessed. Mainwariing's race best 1:12:40 run allowed him to reel in Montgomery and beat him to the line by 25 seconds. Kastelein grabbed third place with a very fine 1:14:31 run.
“It feels like a long time coming, having never been on the podium at an IRONMAN 70.3 event. To win is amazing. I have been working hard for this for a long time, hopefully it’s just the start,” said Mainwaring.
“I’m happy again with second, it was the same as Mandurah again. When he caught me in the last 3km I didn’t have another gear,” said runner-up Montgomery. “It has been an awesome year, I’m having another crack at Geelong in February so hopefully I can go one better there. I am definitely focused on IRONMAN 70.3 racing from now on.”
IRONMAN 70.3 Western Sydney
Penrith, NSW, Australia / November 29, 2015
1.2m swim / 56m bike / 13.1m run
Top women
1. Annabel Luxford (AUS) 4:08:29
2. Caroline Steffen (SUI) 4:14:29
3. Andrea Forest (AUS) 4:20:37
4. Gina Crawford (NZL) 4:23:21
5. Michelle Bremer (NZL) 4:26:37
Top men
1. David Mainwaring (AUS) 3:48:24
2. Jake Montgomery (AUS) 3:48:49
3. Nicholas Kastelein (AUS) 3:50:19
4. Tim van Berkel (AUS) 3:51:36
5. Mitch Dean (AUS) 3:52:20
