After two days of triathlon spectacle at the European Sprint Championships in Kitzbühel, Austria – Laura Lindemann (GER) and Max Studer (SUI) can call uthemselves European Champions. They just won the A-finals thanks to impressive runs for both.
In the semi-finals yesterday athletes had to finish among the first nine in their heat – there were three heats per category – and then three athletes with the fastest times also went through to the finals. Today’s finals included 500 m of swimming, 12 km of biking and 3.1 km of running. In the men’s race a large group stayed together through the swim and the bike, but there was a lot of hard riding without any breaks.
That wasn’t the case during the run though, as Studer pressed the pace along with Spain’s Antonio Serrat Seoane and Kiwi Hayden Wilde. Those three would make up the podium with Studer eventually winning the race in 32:03, while Serrat Seoane and Wilde finished second and third respectively, six and thirteen seconds behind Studer.
Lindemann makes the difference with a strong run
The women’s race went very much the same. A large group stayed together during the swim and bike, although there were a few more escape attempts on the bike than in the men’s race. Among others, the Dutchwoman Rani Skrabanja was briefly away and the Switzerland’s Nicola Spirig also made a short attempt.
Those attempts were unsuccessful, though, and a large group arrived together in T2. Initially Russian U23 athlete Valentina Riasova dictated the pace, but about halfway through the run Lindemann took over. She claimed victory and, with it, the European title in 35:21. Riasova finished second (and first U23 competitor) while France’s Leonie Periault took third overall. These two ladies conceded five and six seconds to Lindemann.
