Ben has Point to prove

Record holder returning for another tilt at P2P crown

NO ONE was more surprised than Ben St Lawrence when he looked at the clock and saw he had smashed the race record for the Point to Pinnacle in Hobart last year.

The 38-year-old from Kensington, NSW, blitzed the field with his powerhouse run up Mt Wellington, cutting two and a half minutes off the previous best by Harry Summers, posting 1hr 21min 50sec.

A two-time Olympian, Australian 10km record holder and Sydney City to Surf champion, St Lawrence makes no guarantees about tomorrow’s Point to Pinnacle. “It was just one of those days last year when everything went really well for me,” St Lawrence said.

“The course was tough but it was one of those races where my legs did what I wanted them to do.

“I am hoping for something similar this year, but I’m not sure if I will go faster or whether that’s a benchmark I won’t be able to match anymore.

“I was surprised at the time. It’s a unique course and you don’t know what the splits mean, so I didn’t think I’d go that fast. I’m just looking forward to getting out there and racing to try to win.

“The P2P is like no other event. I’ve done a few trail races that have really big climbs, but they often have downhills as well as uphill,” St Lawrence said.

“This is the only point-topoint uphill road race I’ve ever competed in so it’s a very unique event.

“I’ve come back this year because I loved it so much last year I just can’t wait to get out there and have another crack.”

St Lawrence is nearing peak shape, with Olympic middledistance trials looming in Melbourne next month. He also hopes to qualify for Tokyo 2020 in the marathon.