Merle Brunnée entered the race as the heavy favorite – having won the Powerman World Championships in Alsdorf last year – and she lived up to the hype. Competing on home soil, she has just secured the European Powerman Championship title in Alsdorf.
Brunnée owed her victory primarily to a powerhouse performance on the bike. After the initial 10km run – which she completed in 35:05 – she trailed Rachel Brown by about a minute. However, over the 60km bike leg, Brunnée was nearly five minutes faster than her rival. The massive gap she built on two wheels proved more than enough to maintain her lead during the final 10km run, ultimately claiming victory in a total time of 2:41:48.
Rachel Brown finished second in 2:43:32, while Dutch athlete Dieske Kruisselbrink took third with a time of 2:49:13.
De Smet Unstoppable in the Men’s Race
In the men’s race, Belgium’s Thibaut de Smet was in a league of his own. He took a solo lead during the first run (30:40) and proceeded to extend his advantage even further on the bike (1:18:57).
Although he lost a handful of seconds to Switzerland’s Andrea Alagona during the second run (32:19), his margin was substantial enough to secure the win comfortably in 2:23:48. Alagona took the silver in 2:25:03, and Britain’s Matthew Nelson rounded out the podium in third with a time of 2:25:34.
