Irving, Texas - Some of world's fastest triathletes battled not only the competition but also temperatures in the 90's in Saturday's Dallas International Triathlon Union Pan American Cup. Ten nations were represented in the 1.5-kilomenter swim, 40-kilometer bike, and 10-kilometer contest. The races were part of the PlayTri Triathlon Festival weekend.
Newly turned professional, Lucas Verzbicas, 19 of Colorado Springs, used a race-best run to take the lead from 2012 USA Olympian Manny Huerta with about a mile remaining for the men's title.
"The heat took away my strength today," Huerta said. "I'm happy with second place. This was a hard day for all of us."
Heat cooked most of women's field
The weather was especially harsh on the women where less than half finished. Two were taken to a hospital for recovery.
Two-time USA Olympian Laura Bennett was the odds on favorite to win and she did not disappoint. She crossed the line first in 2:10:22 over Joanna Brown of Canada (2:10:49).
Bennett, 37, of Boulder, Colo, was second out of the water just feet behind Fort Worth’s Lauren Brandon. It did not take long for her to take control of the race by gapping the field 90-seconds before the halfway mark of the bike leg.
It looked like Bennett would create an insurmountable lead but the chase pack of 10 caught up to her in the final 5-kilometer lap. "I knew the run would be hard so I gave my legs a rest and they caught up to me but I didn't feel good of the run at all. I started cramping from the start."
Nonetheless, she led the entire run from pillar to post, flashing a smile and high-fiving spectators, making it seem her win was never in doubt.
Bennett and Huerta will represent the USA in the London Olympics on August 4 and August 7 respectively.
--------------------------------
Elite Dallas area athletes results:
D’Ann Arthur of Dallas finished seventh in 2:18:26
William Huffman of Colleyville finished ninth in 2:00:59
Barrett Brandon of Ft. Worth placed 11th in 2:02:12
Ahmed Zaher of Dallas was 32nd in 2:19:22
Lauren Brandon of Ft. Worth did not finish.
------------------------------
Full results of the mens' and womens' race can be found on the ITU website.
-----------------------------
Comments