CAN & GBR Junior Champions

by World Triathlon Admin on 01 Sep, 2006 12:00

Alistair Brownlee of Great Britain and Kirsten Sweetland of Canada have just won the 2006 ITU Junior Triathlon World Championships in Lausanne, Switzerland.  As the sun rose over the Swiss mountains, 173 Junior athletes, aged 16 to 19 started the 750metre swim, 20km bike and 5km run.

Watch highlights from the 2006 Lausanne ITU Triathlon Junior World Championships now.

Brownlee was favoured to do well coming into todays race after a third place finish only a few weeks ago at the European Triathlon Championships and performing well during the 2006 season. Alexander Brukhankov from Russia and Joao Silva from Portugal finished second and third with times of 59:16 and 59:25 respectively.

“I thought I might have a chance of a medal but I didn’t expect this,’’ said Brownlee.  In the sport for nine years, Brownlee said he had a forgettable 2005 world championships. “Don’t ask. I think it was 40th or something.’‘

Brownlee was ten seconds down coming out of the swim but was able to join the lead group of 21 athletes early in the bike.  With pre-race favourite American Steven Duplinsky, the current duathlon champion and reigning Junior world champion, 90 seconds back after the swim, the race was left wide open.

The large group on the bike included Brukhankov and Silva as well as eighteen others who worked well together over the hilly bike course to increase their lead coming into the second transition.

Onto the five kilometre run course, Brownlee immediately moved to the front of the group and never looked back finishing 13 seconds ahead of his nearest rival.

In the Womens event it was the young Canadian Sweetland who took the women’s world crown in Lausanne in a time of 1:05:58.  The 19-year-old said she had “an almost perfect race’’ to claim the gold medal from Bermuda’s Flora Duffy and German Rebecca Robisch.

“It was almost perfect. I would have liked to have had a bigger lead after the bike but my run totally surprised me today,’’ Sweetland said.

It was a performance in total contrast to a year ago when Sweetland was unable to finish in her debut world championship appearance.

“This is the first time I have finished a world title and I’ve won it. I’m ecstatic,’’ she said.

Sweetland was in the lead group from the starters horn until the finish as she cruised home to defeat the second place Duffy by 10 seconds.  Robisch was able to erase a 60 second deficit after the swim with the fastest bike split of the day, pulling herself into the final podium place.

Click here for official results.

Click here for the full live timing splits.

Click here for official photo gallery.

Watch highlights from the 2006 Lausanne ITU Aquathlon World Championships now.
ITU Triathlon World Championships Junior Men
1.BROWNLEE, Alistair (GBR)58:40
2.BRUKHANKOV, Alexander (RUS)58:51
3.SILVA, Joao (POR)59:03
4.PARIENKO, Artem (RUS)59:18
5.NICHOLLS, Ritchie (GBR)59:18
6.DIEMUNSCH, Etienne (FRA)59:21
7.CURTAYNE, Will (NZL)59:22
8.SECCHIERO, Andrea (ITA)59:24
9.SALVISBERG, Lukas (SUI)59:26
10.BETTEN, Samuel (AUS)59:26

ITU Triathlon World Championships Junior Women
1.SWEETLAND, Kirsten (CAN)1:05:30
2.DUFFY, Flora (BER)1:05:42
3.ROBISCH, Rebecca (GER)1:05:48
4.YELISTRATOVA, Yuliya (UKR)1:05:57
5.TOTH, Zsofia (HUN)1:06:14
6.MOREL, Charlotte (FRA)1:06:22
7.BONIN, Charlotte (ITA)1:06:22
8.RYF, Daniela (SUI)1:06:24
9.KOVACS, Zsofia (HUN)1:06:35
10.MONIZ, Anais (POR)1:06:39


El britnico Alistair Brownlee y la canadiense Kirsten Sweetland acaban de ganar el Campeonato del Mundo ITU Jnior de Triatln en Lausana, Suiza. En pleno amanecer en las montaas suizas, 173 triatletas de categora jnior, entre 16 y 19 aos, comenzaron los 750 metros de natacin, 20 km de ciclismo y 5 km de carrera a pie.

Brownlee parta como uno de los favoritos en la prueba de hoy tras finalizar tercero hace pocas semanas en el Campeonato de Europa de Triatln y cuajar una buena temporada en 2006. Alexander Brukhankov (Rusia) y Joao Silva (Portugal) acabaron segundo y tercero con unos tiempos de 59:16 y 59:25, respectivamente.

Pensaba que podra optar a medalla pero no esperaba esto, ha declarado Brownlee. En este deporte desde los nueve aos, Brownlee ha manifestado que hizo un discreto Mundial en 2005. No me preguntes. Creo que hice el 40 o algo as.

Brownlee perda 10 segundos al salir del agua pero fue capaz de cazar al grupo de cabeza de 21 triatletas al comienzo del segmento de ciclismo. Con el favorito Steven Duplinsky (EE.UU.), actual campen de duatln y defensor del ttulo mundial jnior de triatln, a 90 segundos de la cabeza de carrera tras la natacin, la prueba qued muy abierta.

El pelotn ciclista de cabeza de carrera inclua a Brukhankov y a Silva as como a dieciocho ms que trabajaron bien juntos en el circuito rompepiernas para incrementar su ventaja al llegar la segunda transicin.

En los cinco kilmetros de carrera a pie, Brownlee se puso rpidamente en cabeza y ya no dej la primera posicin, aventajando en meta en 13 segundos a su inmediato perseguidor.

En la prueba femenina fue la joven canadiense Sweetland quien se coron campeona del mundo en Lausana con un tiempo de 1.05:58. La deportista de 19 aos ha sealado que hizo una carrera casi perfecta para conquistar la medalla de oro por delante de Flora Duffy (Islas Bermudas) y Rebecca Robisch (Alemania).

Fue casi perfecta. Me habra gustado haber llevado ms ventaja tras el ciclismo pero mi carrera a pie me sorprendi totalmente hoy, dijo Sweetland.

Fue una actuacin que contrasta totalmente con la que protagoniz hace un ao, cuando Sweetland fue incapaz de terminar la prueba en su debut en un Campeonato del Mundo.
Es la primera vez que termino un Mundial y lo he ganado. Estoy alucinada, ha comentado.

Sweetland ha estado en los puestos de vanguardia de principio a fin y se ha impuesto con 10 segundos de ventaja sobre Duffy. Robisch fue capaz de remontar 60 segundos de desventaja en la natacin para conseguir el mejor parcial en ciclismo, lo que le permiti alcanzar el podio final.

Related Event: 2006 Lausanne ITU Triathlon World Championships
02 - 03 Sep, 2006 • event pageall results
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