The first edition of Ironman 70.3 Swansea did not turn out to be a very exciting race and that was thanks to one man: Alistair Brownlee. The former Olympic Champion was way too strong for everyone and won the race with a big lead and an equally big display of power.
Initially, it was Brownlee’s compatriot Andrew Horsfall-Turner who came out of the water first – after 22:15 minutes of swimming 1900 meters – but Brownlee and the also British Thomas Bishop had a good connection. On the bike, however, Brownlee didn’t feel like waiting, pulled his own plan and rode away from the two others within the first few kilometers.
While a lot of things were happening behind Brownlee and a chasing group eventually formed, the leader was able to constantly increase his lead, which grew to more than five minutes. Once back in T2 after 2:38:23 of racing – Brownlee had a 5:39 minute lead on his first pursuer, Liam Lloyd. The group behind Brownlee had fallen apart and after Lloyd it was Thomas Bishop who followed at 6:42 minutes, Maurice Clavel was ten seconds behind Bishop and a few seconds behind Clavel it was Antonio Benito López coming in fifth.
Still, the race was already decided or at least the battle for victory. During the run, Brownlee’s lead only grew and when he won the race in 3:49:34. Benito López came in second in 3:57:15 and Bishop third in 4:01:18.
