Holme Pierrepont National Watersports Centre is a location well-known to British triathletes. For over 20 years this has been a venue for the Club Relays. Located centrally it was be this holiday weekend the place to race for the Juniors in their ETU Triathlon European Cup. British Triathlon combined this event with their own Inter Regional Championships for athletes working towards the Junior Category.
As you can see from the photo, this is a rowing lake. As you can see the bike course is flat with four tight turns and along each side a full 2km dead straight chance to chase or to break away. The run is dead flat too and at all times those chasing the leaders can see them. There is nowhere to hide in Nottingham unless you are Robin Hood !
Heading the rankings for the women was Italian athlete Luisa Iogna-Prat. She came so close to the podium in Geneva, missing out on a medal by only 17 seconds. Sarah Hodgson, GBR, has limited race experience abroad but is a regular at the top GB events. She was leading a massive GB team with Kate Curran ranked behind her. She had finished just behind Iogna-Prat in Geneva and with a strong mix of Duathlon and Triathlon around the world including a bronze in Ottawa at the 2013 World Duathlon Championships clearly has strength and speed on the bike.
The one lap swim took saw seven athletes exit the water in the space of ten seconds. This group of six Brits and two Italians had established a small but significant lead over the chasing pack. Iogna-Prat and Curran were in this lead group but Hodgson had missed out and was over 30 seconds down. Swim leader Harmonie Waterman soon lost time on land and it was the fast-moving Curran who sped through T1.
Curran, Iogna-Prat and Megan McDonald (GBR) worked with Leah Peploe (GBR) on the bike to try and secure a chance for the podium. Working hard together a good lead was held. With a fast T2 it was going to be all decided on the final 5k run. The run where there is nowhere to hide.
We have seen fast pace at our races before but every time Bronwen Owen (GBR) races we see super-fast running. She has race in Pontevedra and in Geneva. A 4th was the best place she has had so far but her run pace is breath-taking. Having exited the swim well down the rankings she showed good pace on the bike and once her running shoes were on off she went. Slicing through the field she was watched by the crowds who were all wondering, “Can she do it?” With a run that was 80 seconds faster than the winner it came close but once again she had to settle for a 4th place to match her Pontevedra position. Gold went to the dominant Iogna-Prat. Curran raced wisely and got a well-deserved silver and it was McDonald who comfortably fought off the speedy challenge from Owen to take bronze.
A jubilant Iogna-Prat said after the race, “I'm really happy to be gold medal winner because it is my best international result and this was my last international junior race as I will be under-23 next year. During the race I had really good feelings. The swim has been fast and we started the bike 5 girls together. We worked a lot together and arrived in T2 with more than a minute on other 3 girls and more than 2' on the third group. When I started the run I felt good and immediately started to push. I was really determined and finally left behind the other two British girls (Curran and McDonald) and won the race. It has been an indescribable emotion. The organization was great and I really enjoyed coming to Nottingham!” What a great way to say goodbye to Junior Racing. ETU wishes Luisa all the very best for her U-23 racing !
The men’s’ race was to see a surprise victory but once again British domination along the way. Heading the ranking was Anthony Haynes (GBR) who has been on the international circuit since 2012 with a top ten at a few races including Geneva. James Teagle (GBR) knows what it is like to be on the podium with his silver in the World Aquathlon Championships in London. Team mate Christopher Perham had moved from Age Group racing following his strong performance in the Sprint World Championships and just missed out on a medal in Holten recently.
The massive field of 70 athletes toed the start line on the podium and off they went. A battle from the very start with the swim breaking down into two large groups, led by Ben Goodall (GBR) who was later to DNF. It seemed that the athletes would never end as they exited the water. Well-placed in the front end of this pack was German athlete Jannik Schauffler who had raced in Weert in the YOG qualifiers.
Super-fast T1 pace saw a massive lead pack set off on the bike. The bulk of the work out there on the 20k was done by Teagle who would later pay for his efforts. Into T2 and it was going to be a hard 5k to chase the medals. Schauffler had extra pace and clocked a 14:49. This was the fastest of the day and enough to keep a determined Teagle at bay. All the work on the bike left little left for the sprint to the line and silver had to do for the British athlete on the day. Bronze went to Perham.
After the race Schauffler, speaking to British Triathlon, said, “The swim was ok and I felt very relaxed during the bike. The run was tough as I was trying hard to pull away from the British athlete behind me [James Teagle] and I couldn’t, which made for a tough sprint right to the finish.”
Holme-Pierrepont delivered a great race on Friday. For the athletes their luck was in as the traditional August Bank Holiday rains are now sweeping the country.