With ETU athletes racing all over Europe, it was the Powerman athletes who very definitely got the best deal in terms of sunshine. Down in the Mediterranean, the weather Gods were making it tough going for many but further north the athletes, spectators, families, friends, technical officials and sponsors were blessed with dry and sunny conditions.
As we all know – the sun comes out, we relax, we enjoy.
The good feeling started during the briefings that were held on Saturday. Briefings are an all-important part of any event as it is here that the LOC and the Technical Delegate can communicate any last-minute changes to the race. It is also the great chance for everyone to get together; to meet old friends, encounter new friends; to wonder who in the age group category is stronger and faster; to compare aches and pains and to check out the new bike or new shoes that might just make the difference between a top-ten position and a medal.
Briefings over. Last-minute preparations done, a bit more food fuel eaten than usual and after a good night’s sleep it was Race Day.
The 2016 Copenhagen ETU Powerman Long Distance Duathlon European Championships would be raced over the “Classic Distance” of 10k / 60k / 10k. No drafting for the Elite here and of course no-drafting for the Age Group athletes. This distance is a test, a real test for the individual athlete. Great preparation for anyone considering the big step up to the ultimate duathlon challenge in Zofingen in September. So – now you have conquered Copenhagen, why not sign up for Zofingen (4th September, apply through your national federation, wear your National Race Uniform with pride and try for a world title!)
As the race day unfolded it became the warmest day of the year in Denmark – a delight for the spectators but bringing its own blossom-filled problems to the athletes.
It was the women who started first.
A small but highly select field of Elite Women toed the line and no doubt the huge crowds were hoping that Maja Stage Nielsen and Susanne Svendsen could keep the other Europeans behind them and secure the top places on the podium. However, with the sunshine beating down upon and the excess pollen them it would create breathing problems for Svendsen that reduced her ability to race to her best. Nina Brenn’s 5th in Zofingen showed us that she had run pace but that over the Swiss hills there was room for improvement. Over the pan flat Danish course would she use her run speed and take an early lead with a view to just grinding out the miles on the bike?
Well, she held Svendsen off on the first 10k and entered T1 with just a 10 second advantage.
They hit the road together and she managed to just about keep in front.
Stage, with a slower first run, was soon catching up and entered T2 just behind Svendsen, with Brenn in front. After a swift T2 it was all down to the run. Brenn’s pace was now the deciding factor and she pulled away with Stage having more in reserve and being able to pass Svendsen.
Despite the 5,000 strong crowds, most of whom were Danish, they could not get Stage or Svendsen to go any faster and on the day it was Switzerland’s Brenn who took the ETU title. As we look ahead to later in the year, this result in Denmark will make Zofingen even more exciting than ever!
Nina Brenn was economic with her post race words, “European Champion Long distance Duathlon!” Her work out on the course said it all.
After the race Stage said, “2nd at the ETU European Long Duathlon Championship and Danish Duathlon Champion 2016! My race was powered by will ... One that is not only in my mind but comes all the way from my heart. Happy to start the 2016 race season this way. Thank you for all the support on the course in beautiful Copenhagen yesterday.”
For Svendsen, “A big thank you for all the likes and comments you have sent me means the World for me. Even though the 4. International medal was bronze I am still very proud of it. A special thanks to my beloved family who always support me no matter what and choose to spend their Sunday watching me - they came all the way from USA to see little me!”
The 650+ Age Group athletes had the chance to see not only the Elite Women start but also the Elite Men. Under the watchful eyes of Mr Powerman, John Raadschelders and Mr Zofingen, Stefan Ruf, the men lined up.
Once again the Danish fans were hoping for a great day for their hero, Søren Bystrup Jacobsen. As the strongest amongst the Danish athletes he would have to do battle with the reigning Double World Champion, Frenchman Gaël Le Bellec. This race would feel a bit like a sprint for him as his title is for victories over the 10k / 150k / 30k distance. Yes, that is just how BIG Zofingen is. Against them would be the powerful Belgian team, led by Seppe Odeyn who comes to the race after a very tough and very muddy Cross Duathlon Championships in Transylvania. He is joined by the defending ETU Champion from last year, Kenneth Vandendriessche.
The first run saw Odeyn, Vandendriessche and Frenchman Yannick Cadalen take early control. Cadalen’s silver in Zofingen meant that he can go the distance but without the massive hills, could he threaten the two Belgians and where were the Danes?
Bystrup and Kasper Laumann Hartlev were some 15 seconds down but once out on the road the leaders were able to keep each other in sight and make it a challenging day for the Technical Officials who successfully managed the athletes to avoid any drafting penalties. Yes, this is a non-drafting event, so none of that “I’ll just sit at the back of the pack and take it easy ….”
As they came into T2 it was Le Bellec who led with five athletes following him in.
The Danes had managed to get close to the front and they, with the Belgian athletes were joined by Thomas Bruins NLD who soon found the pace over the final 10k a little too tough to stay with them.
As the men set off the break-away group was captured by one of Cadalen's supporters (great photo!). The group, comprised Vandendriessche, Odeyn, Cadalen, Anthony Le Duey FRA and Jerome Philippe BEL. Interesting. Why? Because both Le Duey and Philippe are in their 40’s and Philippe was a late entry after his stunning performance in Luxembourg.
The pace upped and it was Vandendriessche who posted the fastest run to cross the line just 9 seconds ahead of Odeyn. Cadalen took bronze and the two older statesmen; Philippe and Le Duey took 4th and 5th.
After the race Cadalen explained, “On the run course, which was quite twisting, we had to overtake quite a few Age-Group athletes, which made it a challenge but once on the bike it was good. We managed an average of 43km per hour on the first lap of the bike. There were a bunch of 8 of us leading the race. On the second lap we encountered more athletes as the course was filling and that meant we had to hit the brakes a lot. 2 more joined us and effectively there were 10 of us setting off for the run more or less together. We were running 3:15 or 3:20 for each km and it was about 7km into the final run that one of the Belgian guys kicked and really upped the pace. That broke up the pack and I simply couldn’t go with them. They were about 100m ahead and so it stayed to the finish line.” Read his blog here.
For Odeyn, “I lost today to a tough opponent. We worked well today, the Belgian guys and that sparks you into getting it done. Shame that I cannot go out and party, because next week I’m racing Bilzen and then the Leuven Half. Both of these are part of my preparation for IM Nice.”
For defending ETU Champion, Vandendriessche, 'When we came into the park near the Little Mermaid for the last time, Seppe and I decided to speed things up. Once we had established a gap between us and those chasing, we just dug in and went further. In the sprint I was really happy that I could get away from Seppe and claim my title again. This is what Duathlon is all about.”
For the Para Athletes, it was a chance for Spain and Germany to show the rest of Europe that they dominate.
From Spain came Joaquin Carasco in the PT3 category and Rafa Solis Torres in the PT4 category brought home gold medals.
For Germany it was Andrea Thamm in the PT4 category who won gold. These athletes have now claimed gold in both the Standard and Long Distance ETU Championships and we wish them success for races later this year where World Titles are up for grabs.
Amongst the Age Group athletes it was once again Team GB that came in the greatest numbers. ETU is actively promoting Age-Group participation.
Way back in the late 1990’s several federations were invited to join a scheme that would provide the management of selection races, the management of team selection and then limited support at World Championship events. At that time the focus was not on Age Group athletes despite them being the back-bone of our sport. Whilst some federations chose to focus on the Elite athletes, the Brits decided that Europe could be exciting and what better way of combining a holiday with our great sport was there than to go to the ITU and ETU championships.
In Paris this January Nicky Dick, British Triathlon’s Director of Age Group Teams, delivered a workshop to all the attending National Federations. She explained just how Team GB had developed the philosophy of Age-Group participation and it is hoped that other federations will start to follow the trail that Team GB has created. It will make our competitons more exciting, our interractions better and will ultimately, we hope, inspire bigger and better sponsors to support our events. Speak to your National Federation. Order your race uniform. Join the family.
Sensation of the Age-Group race was GB’s Gill Fullen. She started as a clear favourite, with a 2012 European gold in Nancy, 2013 World gold in Belfort, 2013 World gold in Ottawa, 2013 World gold in Zofingen and a 2014 European gold in Horst. A silver in Pontevedra at the Worlds in 2014 was upgraded to gold in Adelaide. Not only did she win her category but in fact she won the entire Age-Group women’s race and was over 4 minutes ahead of any challenger. Anyone in the age-groups beneath her, and that will be anyone under the age of 50, just sit back and study her run / bike / run times.
Amongst the men it was an overall victory for Austria, with Christian Tortorolo dominating his 35-39 category. He too was a comfortable margin ahead of any other men but in the younger category we should keep an eye on Sören Otten GER. The young 3defacto athlete from Wahl-Darmstadt led from the very start and clearly had put his 6th place in Kalkar far behind him. „Ich habe mich zu Beginn sehr gut gefühlt und machte Tempo. Dabei habe ich immer wieder in meinen Körper gehört und der hat gesagt ‚weiter so‘. Es war ein perfekter Auftakt“ “I felt good from the start and pushed the pace. I was listening to my body and it kept saying, ‘go on, go on’. It went perfectly” The final 10k was for him almost a victory lap, „Ich habe schon Gas gegeben. Die Beine taten auch ganz schön weh. Aber mit diesem Vorsprung war es einfach nur ein unbeschreibliches Gefühl“ “I had accelerated. The legs were really hurting. But with this lead it was simply an indescribable feeling”
Each and every medal-winner has a story to tell. Each and every competitor has a story to tell and from a dip into the social media it seems that the sunshine and great organisation worked in Copenhagen’s favour and all the wind and cold of Kalkar was forgotten. Duathlon is growing and the solid partnership between ETU and Powerman is building the popularity of the run / bike / run.
Did Team GB sweep up on the Age-Group medals?
For all the results, please click here.
Well, not entirely. They might have gone home with more but it was the host nation, Denmark scored highest.
We will have a look at the ETU medal standings for Age Group athletes in the next day or two.
Our duathlon races are complete and soon we have the race for triathlon medals.
Stay tuned for Lisbon!
A big thank you to Powerman Copenhagen for the photos. You can see the albums here 1, 2, 3, 4
