XTERRA Short Track Season Finale in Pujols

XTERRA Short Track Pujols France on Sunday was the fourth and final stop on the off-road triathlon racing circuit which featured two stages, the first paired a 400-meter swim, 1.5km run to seed elites for the second stage, a 7km mountain bike and 1.8km run.

Arthur Serrieres (FRA) and Michelle Flipo (MEX), just hours removed from their full-distance wins at XTERRA Nouvelle-Aquitaine on Saturday afternoon, put their speed and skill on display once again in an awe-inspiring Sunday spectacle to take the top spots for the second straight day.

Perfect weather with blue skies set the stage for the women’s elite race among the old churches and vineyards of the Bordeaux region.

Flipo (pictured) was quick to take the lead on the two-lap swim, continuing to pull ahead with every meter then looked increasingly unstoppable on the run, finishing a full one-minute, 27-seconds ahead of Alizée Paties (FRA] and Maria Calleja (ESP).

Stage 1 Elite Women

Pl	Name, NAT	Time
1	Michelle Flipo, MEX	13:35.57
2	Alizée Paties, FRA	15:02.99
3	MariaCalleja, ESP	15:26.36
4	Morgane Riou, FRA	15:27.81
5	Emeline Azam, FRA	15:36.97

In stage one of the men’s race Francois Vie (POR) and Will Crudgington (GBR) dropped the chase group out of the swim that included Serrieres, Ruben Ruzafa, Francois Carloni, Brian Tetard, and Julie Buffe.

On the run, Crudginton pulled ahead of Vie to finish first with a five-second lead. Serrieres came in third but it was tight racing throughout the field, with nine of the elite men finishing within seconds of each other to establish the drama for the afternoon’s second stage.

Stage 1 Elite Men

Pl	Name, NAT	Time
1	Will Crudgington, GBR	10:31.20
2	François Vie, POR	10:36.98
3	Arthur Serrieres, FRA	10:37.94
4	Arthur Forissier, FRA	10:53.58
5	Ruben Ruzafa, ESP	11:02.02

The event’s second stage offered competitors a new location and new opportunities in a pursuit style start. Flipo went first with a big gap that was based on her lead from stage one, with Paties 1’27 later, then Calleja in third at 1’41.

While Flippo lost some time on the bike, she stayed strong on the run to win her first-ever Short Track title. Morgane Riou (pictured above) continued to chip away to build positions from 4th to 2nd, with Paties finishing third.

Final Elite Women’s Results

Pl	Name, NAT	Time
1	Michelle Flipo, MEX	33:44.47
2	Morgane Riou, FRA	35:44.40
3	Alizée Paties, FRA	37:06.00
4	Emeline Azam, FRA	38:17.80
5	MariaCalleja, ESP	40:56.25
6	Camille Jobard, FRA	42:02.96
7	Pauline Vie, POR	43:42.90
8	Gaelle Leduc, FRA	44:32.76
9	Justine Durin, FRA	48:04.67

In the men’s second stage, Vie was quick to hunt down Will Crudgington, while Serrieres (pictured), Ruzafa, and Forissier worked to hunt down the podium. Known as ‘The Boss’, Ruzafa demonstrated his epic biking skills to take the lead on the third of four laps.

Serrieres, as XTERRA fans have come to expect, then ran down everyone once again to win his first XTERRA Short Track title of the season. His French counterpart, Forissier, passed Ruzafa on the run to take second, with the 7x World Champ coming in close behind in 3rd.

Final Elite Men’s Results

Pl	Name, NAT	Time
1	Arthur Serrieres, FRA	28:12.85
2	Arthur Forissier, FRA	28:37.28
3	Ruben Ruzafa, ESP	28:49.54
4	François Vie, POR	29:26.11
5	Will Crudgington, GBR	29:40.62
6	Francois Carloni, FRA	31:01.18
7	Mathias Cloostermans, BEL	31:23.36
8	Geert Lauryssen, BEL	31:30.27
9	*Nicolas Dure, FRA	31:48.44
10	Julien Buffe, FRA	31:55.95
11	Alexandre Gleyze, FRA	32:30.63