World Triathlon

In the inaugural race of the snowshoe, skate, ski winter triathlon format, two-time Slovakian biathlon Olympian Dusan Simocko and Annie Gervais (CAN) topped the charts this weekend in Quebec. The event enjoyed a star-studded lineup that included a mixture of winter Olympians and triathlon champions.

Women’s Review
Canada swept the medals in the women’s race, with Gervais leading the way in a time of 1:14:44. Gervais snowshoed her way to a top position, trailing just Amber Ferreira (USA) and Evelyne Blouin (CAN) after the first discipline. But the competition was no match for Gervais’ speed on ice, as the Canadian skated her way into the top position with just the ski left to go.

While Canada biathlon National Team member Claude Godbout did major work to close in on the ski, it wasn’t enough to overtake her compatriot, leaving Gervais with the win. Godbout skied past Blouin for silver in 1:14:58, while Blouin took third in 1:15:19.

Men’s Review
In the men’s race, the podium was again decided in the ice rink. The snowshoe acted as a separator, with no clear packs formed amongst the front runners. Four-time winter triathlon World Champion Pavel Andreev (RUS) positioned himself well in fourth place heading into the first transition, but eventual top medallists Simocko and Canadian Olympic biathleteMarc-andré Bédard (CAN) skated by Andreev.

Simocko then followed up his ski with a solid ski performance to solidify his place as the fastest man in snow shoes, skates and skies in a time of 1:04:33. Bédard took second on home soil in 1:05:33, while Andreev rounded out the podium in 1:06:19.

The men’s race also featured two-time athletics Olympian Joel Bourgeois, ultra marathon and adventure racer Simon Donato, two-time Olympic speed skater Benoit Lamarche, and longtrack speedskating World Champion Jay Morrison.