With the Olympics quickly approaching, Jonathan Brownlee just showed he’s ready with a strong win at World Triathlon Cup Arzachena. On the bike it was clear that Brownlee is in shape, but it was on the run he was especially untouchable. The only one who managed to stay with him for quite a while was Switzerland’s Adrien Brifford, who ended up finishing in second place (+0:05). Spain’s Mario Mola crossed the line in third (+0:11).
Hungary’s Mark Devay was the first man to reach his bike after an 8:28 swim. Some race favorites soon followed in his footsteps, among them: Jonathan Brownlee, Richard Varga (POR), Alistair Brownlee and Diego Moya (CHI).
In the first lap on the bike everyone worked hard to gain as much of an advantage on the uphills as they possibly could. That resulted in quite a few athletes being dropped. Jonathan Brownlee, on the other hand, managed to ride out to the front on his own for nearly the entire first lap. Eventually he was caught by a group of 23 chasers.
While the course was tough, many men eventually found a position in the first group, because on the third lap another chase pack managed to reach the front. That meant by the end of the bike the lead group contained 39 athletes. Evidence that the pace didn’t slow was that the group ended up riding spread out over a long line.
After showing his fitness briefly during the first part of the bike, Jonathan Brownlee did it again on the run. The younger Brownlee brother ran himself to the lead after the first lap, but Brifford didn’t let him go. The Swiss athlete stayed with him until the final stretch, but then it was Brownlee who turned out to have some power left for a sprint. Brownlee took the win, Brifford crossed the line in second, with Mola taking the last podium spot.
