Australia’s Ellie Salthouse managed to hang on for a 37-second win over a fast-running Canadian – Tamara Jewett, while Portugal’s Felipe Azevedo managed hold off American Jason West for the men’s win at Ironman 70.3 Augusta today.
In the men’s race it was American Luis Ortiz who led a group of nine out of the water that included many of the men expected to contend for the title. Azevedo and Australia’s Timothy Reed managed to ride clear of the group, hitting T2 with a lead of over two minutes on the group that included West. Azevedo was able to pull clear of Reed, as West ran through the rest of the men’s field to get past the Aussie and contend for the win. At 14 km he got himself to 30 seconds back, but that was as close as things got as Azevedo found another gear and held on for the win in 3:39:03 after running a 1:10:05 half marathon. West’s 1:09:03 half got him to second (3:40:03), 59-seconds back with Reed rounding out the podium in 3:43:22.
Jewett blasts to a 1:13 half-marathon
American Rachel Olsen led the women out of the water, with Salthouse amongst a group of three who were about 25 seconds behind. Jewett was fifth out of the water, 2:45 behind the leaders, while Australia’s Mirinda Carfrae continued her return to racing after having her second child earlier this year by coming out of the water in seventh, 3:11 back. Salthouse quickly moved to the front of the bike and was first into T2, 1:04 up on American Danielle Lewis, 3:32 ahead of Carfrae (who was in fourth) and 7:01 up on Jewett, who was sixth off the bike.
Salthouse had a solid 1:19:52 half marathon, but that only proved to be just enough to get the win (4:04:47) as Jewett flew through a speedy 1:13:09 half marathon to move her way to second (4:05:25) with Lewis hanging on for third (4:09:26) and Carfrae getting fourth (4:10:33).
