The first-ever IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship on European soil, Jan Frodeno and Daniela Ryf claimed victory with a time of 3:51:19 and 4:11:34, respectively. Nearly 2,500 other athletes from 70 countries also competed in this globally recognized event.
Frodeno raced amongst an incredible field consisting of fellow German and IRONMAN World Champion, Sebastian Kienle, IRONMAN 70.3 defending champion, Javier Gomez, IRONMAN Champion, Tim Don and Australia’s seven-time IRONMAN 70.3 winner, Tim Reed, to name just a few. A sizeable pack of men exited the swim together, but Frodeno claimed fourth into the transition area with a swim time of 22:14. Frodeno gained momentum during the technical 56-mile bike, battling fellow Germans, Andreas Dreitz and Andi Boecherer, entering T2 in 2nd place, just 45 seconds behind Dreitz. Despite hot conditions on the half-marathon run course, Frodeno kept a steady pace and held off competition. The top ten men’s results are outlined below:
SWIM BIKE RUN FINISH
1. Jan Frodeno GER 00:22:14 02:09:04 01:16:32 03:51:19
2. Sebastian Kienle GER 00:24:04 02:09:54 01:15:22 03:52:48
3. Javier Gomez ESP 00:22:12 02:13:38 01:15:35 03:55:05
4. Bart Aernouts BEL 00:25:38 02:12:07 01:14:55 03:56:28
5. Michael Raelert GER 00:22:15 02:13:19 01:17:17 03:56:34
6. Andi Boecherer GER 00:22:12 02:09:00 01:21:44 03:56:52
7. Jan Van Berkel SUI 00:22:27 02:13:15 01:18:34 03:57:47
8. Tyler Butterfield BER 00:24:05 02:13:48 01:17:19 03:58:44
9. Andreas Dreitz GER 00:23:04 02:07:35 01:24:37 03:58:58
10. Albert Molins ESP 00:24:30 02:14:32 01:16:58 04:00:11
A strong women’s contingent was seen in today’s event with top names such as IRONMAN Canada winner from the USA, Meredith Kessler, IRONMAN 70.3 South Africa Winner, Jodie Swallow, IRONMAN 70.3 Boulder winner, Alicia Kaye and six-time IRONMAN Champion, Heather Wurtele of Canada.
Ryf completed the swim in fourth position in 23:46 and gained strength as she traveled along the bike course. She battled to hold off Germany’s Anja Beranek, who came into T2 second while Canada’s Magali Tisseyre moved from fourth to third over Alicia Kaye. Ryf had a strong run even with the warm temperatures and high humidity. Similar to the men’s podium finishers, Ryf celebrated alongside the 2nd and 3rd place females, Wurtele and Beranek, with a champagne toast and flower ceremony at the finish line. The top ten women’s results are as follows:
SWIM BIKE RUN FINISH
1. Daniela Ryf SUI 00:23:46 02:21:10 01:22:51 04:11:34
2. Heather Wurtele CAN 00:26:33 02:27:39 01:24:56 04:23:07
3. Anja Beranek GER 00:24:32 02:24:18 01:31:17 04:24:10
4. Magali Tisseyre CAN 00:24:55 02:27:56 01:28:45 04:25:33
5. Alicia Kaye USA 00:24:03 02:28:58 01:30:35 04:27:39
6. Julia Gajer GER 00:24:46 02:33:06 01:27:33 04:29:53
7. Susie Cheetham GBR 00:26:34 02:34:52 01:25:01 04:30:31
8. Ricarda Lisk GER 00:24:03 02:35:38 01:27:14 04:30:47
9. Lauren Barnett USA 00:26:36 02:32:18 01:27:52 04:31:00
10. Emma Bilham USA 00:24:52 02:32:38 01:30:24 04:31:47
The impressive field of athletes tackled a 1.2-mile (1.9 km) swim in Lake Zell, followed by a 56-mile (90 km) bicycle ride through the Austrian Alps and a 13.1-mile (21 km) run around Zellar Lake finishing in the picturesque old town of Zell am See-Kaprun, all of which was completed before an eight and a half hour cutoff time. In order to qualify for the World Championship, age-group athletes earned slots at more than 70 IRONMAN 70.3 events held worldwide. Nearly 100,000 spectators cheered athletes to victory in the city center of Zell am-See and throughout the various areas surrounding the course.
