It was a perfect day for the home favorites in Cozumel, as Mexico’s Rodrigo Gonzalez and Cecilia Perez claimed commanding victories at Ironman 70.3 Cozumel, delivering on their status as pre-race favorites in front of an enthusiastic local crowd.
The men’s race started with a tightly packed swim, where Miguel Mattox, Justin Riele, Joaquin Pereda, Flavio Morandini, Erik Ramos Croda, Gonzalez himself, Emmanuel Lejeune, and Jesus Carrillo Chavez all exited the water together. It didn’t take long for things to split apart on the bike, however, with American Justin Riele forcing the pace early. His aggression paid off – by the time he racked his bike in T2, he had built a lead of more than three minutes over fellow Americans Mattox and Bach, with Gonzalez trailing in fourth, carrying the same deficit.
Once on the run, Gonzalez showed why he was the man to beat. He quickly dispatched Mattox and Bach, and with a blistering pace, began closing the gap to Riele. At the halfway mark of the half marathon, Gonzalez had cut the lead to just 45 seconds, and soon after surged past Riele without looking back. From there, he only extended his advantage, cruising to victory in 3:39:44. Riele held on for second in 3:44:11, while Belgium’s Emmanuel Lejeune rounded out the podium in 3:45:26.
The women’s race proved to be more of a one-woman show. Perez immediately set the tone with the fastest swim split of the day (23:57), emerging with four other contenders still within a minute. But once on the bike, the Mexican star turned the race into a solo affair, putting everyone at least five minutes behind. Her dominance continued on the run, where her lead only grew with every stride. Perez broke the tape in 4:11:06, well clear of American Kelly Barton, who finished second in 4:20:02. Fellow Mexican Arlette Gonzalez claimed third in 4:29:05.