David McNamee wins Challenge Galway

BMC-Etixx p/b Uplace athlete David McNamee took the victory in Challenge Galway in Ireland today. After a great run and a very convincing performance, he crossed the finish line in a time of 3:51:47. Joe Skipper (GBR; 3:55:11) finished second as Dylan McNeice (NZL; 3:56:50) completed the podium. Bart Aernouts secures qualification for WC IM Hawaii 6^th place finish in IM Austria

Cold and rain made for tough conditions in Ireland. David exited the water in 4th place and thanks to a fast transition was able to jump on his bike in first place.

During the 90k bike leg, McNamee rode together with McNeice and Thornton for most of the time and the lead group entered T2 together. David had a blistering transition, taking a 15 second lead over McNeice at the start of the run.

David immediately found a great running pace as he extended his lead to 1’40 in the first 5 kilometers. He didn’t slow down and kept running very strongly. The BMC Etixx p/b Uplace athlete took the victory in Challenge Galway after a running split of 1:12:23.

Afterwards, David was visibly thrilled with his first victory for the team.

“It was a great day, I swam well and felt comfortable,” said McNamee. “During the first 40 kilometers on the bike, I tried to push hard, but I couldn’t break away. Because we were with 4 or 5 together in the leading group the race became more tactical. I knew it was going to be decided in the run. Coming out of transition, I immediately found my running legs. I felt strong during the run which is always a nice feeling. I opened up a gap early on and held it to the finish. I’m really glad with my first win for the BMC Etixx Pro Triatlon Team powered by Uplace.”

Bart Aernouts secures qualification for World Championship Ironman in Hawaii

Meanwhile, on the same day Bart Aernouts participated in Ironman Austria. The Belgian finished 6th after yet another great comeback. He exited the water in 19th position. During the first part of the bike, Bart moved his way up into the top 10. In the second half on the bike, Aernouts continued progressing through the field and jumped off his bike in 6th place. During the run, the BMC Etixx athlete came close to a top 5 finish, but had to settle for 6th at the end – only 3 minutes from a podium spot. He crossed the finish line in a time of 8:16:32.

Following the event, Bart Aernouts looked back at his race and was happy with his qualification for Kona. “Every discipline was OK but average, I felt the top shape wasn’t there,” he said. “My feeling was that I came a few percentages short for competing for the podium spots. The first 10k of the marathon my legs felt fine, but after that they began to suffer. So you know from that point that it will be a hard race. I finished only 3 minutes from a podium place, so on good day, I could have finished on the podium. The most important thing today is the qualification for Kona.”