Mendez, Kahlefeldt seek Alveo IRONMAN repeat
Mexican Mauricio Mendez and Radka Kahlefeldt of the Czech Republic gear up for a tougher, challenging face-off with the very best in long-distance triathlon races as they go for backto-back in the Alveo IRONMAN 70.3 Davao presented by Petron on March 24.
The duo bested a crack roster of rivals in contrasting fashions to rule the inaugural staging of the event at Azuela Cove last year with Mendez, 23, and Kahlefeldt completing a “double” by ruling the Asia-Pacific Championship in Cebu last August.
That should make them the marked bets in the upcoming 1.9K swim, 90K bike, 21K run even organized and conducted by Sunrise Events, Inc., which had lured close to 2,200 entries from 38 countries with Mendez out to better his mark of 3:50:32 in come-frombehind manner and Kahlefeldt seeking to improve her winning
4:25:38 time clinched in wire-towire fashion.
They include 16 pro triathletes clashing not only for top honors but also for World Championship berths with noted Aussies Tim Reed, Sam Betten and Tim Van Berkel, Germany’s Markus Rolli, Frenchman Antony Costes and Bahrain’s Eric Watson joining the title hunt.
Out to foil Kahlefeldt’s title-retention drive are veteran Phl campaigners Caroline Steffen of Switzerland and Dimity Lee Duke of Australia with Guam’s Manami Iijima, who topped the Subic 5150 late last year.
The event, featuring individual and relay competitions, has also drawn campaigners from United Arab Emirates, Czech Republic, Hong Kong, Mexico, Ukraine, India, Malaysia, Qatar, the US, Belgium, Spain, Italy, New Caledonia, Singapore; South Africa, Japan, the Netherlands, Sweden, Great Britain, Korean, Norway, Thailand, Switzerland, Greece, Kuwait, New Zealand, Turkey, China, Guam, Mexico, Panama and Taiwan.
For details, visit the event’s website at www.ironman.com/davao703.