Canuck captures triathlon title
Lionel Sanders charged back on the run to become the first Canadian to capture the gold medal in World Long-Course Triathlon Championship history.
The 29-year-old from Windsor, Ont., clocked in at 5 hours, 20 minutes and 36 seconds to top the Elite Men’s race Sunday in Penticton, wrapping up the inaugural ITU Multisport World Championship Festival in style.
Australian Sarah Crowley continued a terrific 2017 season by winning the Elite Women’s gold medal in 5:51:23.
Heather Wurtele of Kelowna became the first Canadian woman to get to the podium in the 23-year history of the event in a time of 5:55:51.
The event featured a 3-kilometre swim, 120-km bike and 30-km run.
Sanders looked to be in trouble as he entered the run almost seven minutes behind Australian Joshua Amberger.
“I pushed really hard on the last 10K … but my God, it hurt,” said Sanders. “I’ve been racing for eight years and this is a dream come true. It’s going to take a while to set in, but I think it’s going to be amazing when it does.”
Sanders said he actually likes adversity and he got a deflating dose of it when he blew out a tire on a downhill section of the bike course near McLean Creek Road.
“It scared the crap out of me,” said Sanders. “There really wasn’t anyone around to help and it took a while to get my composure. I was a little gun-shy on the descents after that.”
Sanders said it cost him at least four minutes to repair the tire.
“I’m sure a lot of guys are going to laugh at me for taking that long,” said Sanders. “I still ended up doing pretty well on the bike and then I was averaging about 3:30 a kilometre on the run. Considering it was after a 120K bike, I’d say it was probably my best run ever.”
It was the sixth victory of 2017 for Sanders and easily the biggest. He also won five half-Iron distance events this year and set a new course record of 7:44:29 in winning in Ironman Arizona in November 2016.
“I made it harder than it had to be but triathlon is the gift that keeps on giving – there are always surprises out there and you never stop learning,” said Sanders, who is competing at the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii in October.
Peter Reid was the only other Canadian to win a medal at the worlds, taking the bronze in 1995.
Amberger settled for second place at 5:22:09 and fellow Aussie Joe Gambles rounded out the men’s podium in 5:26:23.
The 34-year-old Crowley also won her sixth title of 2017, grabbing the lead from Denmark’s Helle Frederiksen early in the run and cruising to the women’s title. Frederiksen settled for second in 5:55:04, just 47 seconds ahead of Wurtele.
“It’s unbelievable, it’s pretty cool … I didn’t expect that result,” said Crowley, who nabbed her first world title. “I had a real strong back end of the bike and with the run, it’s a lot easier to push hard and keep it together with 30K as opposed to 42K (Iron distance).”
Things didn’t start great for Crowley, who was middle of the pack out of the water in 42:56.
“I fell over at the start of the swim and it took a bit to get going,” said Crowley.
Crowley, who is returning home to Brisbane before heading to Kona for the Ironman world championship, said a more structured training regimen has keyed her success this year.
“Plus, last year I was working full-time (as a chartered accountant),” she said. “I feel great right now and I feel good about my chances in Kona.”
Wurtele, 38, has consistently been on the podium in the highprofile world triathlon competitions in recent years.
“It would be nice to be on the top step (of the podium), but I gave it everything I had,” said the Calgaryborn triathlete, who grew up in Vernon. “We were both really strong on the bike, but Sarah set the pace on the run and I couldn’t catch up to her or Helle.”
Wurtele praised the “brilliant” Canadian support out on the course.
“Everyone was cheering my name,” said Wurtele, whose husband, Trevor, is also a top pro triathlete. “It’s a great triathlon community here. It helped to know the course as well as I do, especially with the downhills. Nice to compete at home, nice to have my parents here because they don’t often get a chance to see me race.
“I was gunning for the win for sure. I had a disappointing swim (42:55) and that sets you back just enough.” There were 43 Elite competitors in the event – 24 men and 19 women.