Australians Nick Thompson and Penny Slater did not just win Ironman Cairns today; they also dominated the race. Both athletes won by a wide margin and faced no further danger in the final stages.
The race ‘down under’ was only attended by Australians and New Zealanders – and a lost American and Japanese athlete here and there – and in the men’s race, it was actually clear very early on that Thompson would win. After the swim, he lay fourth behind Japanese athlete Jumpei Furuya, Australian Tristan Price, and Australian Jack Sosinski, but within twenty kilometers on the bike Thompson had already ridden to the lead, and from that moment on he would ride away from everyone. Furuya stayed close for a while, but that would not last long, and by T2 Thompson already had a lead of over six minutes on Benjamin Hill, who had then moved up to second place.
During the marathon, Thompson saw his lead increase to nearly ten minutes, but in the final stage, he did lose a few minutes of that. That was otherwise irrelevant to the race dynamics, because Thompson ultimately won the race unchallenged in a time of 7:49:48. Hill finished second in 7:56:52 and Furuya third in 8:01:32.
In the women’s race, Penny Slater ultimately won with the same dominance as Thompson, although for quite a long time it looked like her compatriot Regan Hollioake would win. Hollioake started the marathon with a lead of nearly eleven minutes on Slater, but would pull out of the run after just a few kilometers. This left the road wide open for Slater, and the Australian athlete seized the opportunity to decisively take control of the race.
During the swim, it was initially Rebecca Clarke who led the field, building a lead of a few minutes over Hollioake and over seven minutes on Slater. On the bike, however, Hollioake was unapproachable; she rode rapidly to Clarke and would leave her behind just as quickly. In the final stage of the bike leg, Slater also passed Clarke – at the time in the battle for silver and bronze, but ultimately a decisive move for the win.
Slater won the race in a time 8:59:28. Australian Skye Wallace finished second in 9:08:11 and Clarke finished third in 9:11:34.
