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More than 1,100 competitors took part in the half distance race (1.9km swim, 90k bike and 21.1k run) under a blazing hot sun.

The first out of the water was the Slovenian Alena Stevens. However Cheethman had a strong bike leg and was first through T2, followed by fellow Brit Kim Morrison, who eventually finished fourth. Morrison was overcome in run leg by the Catalan Sara Loehr and the Australian Kirralee Seidel.

Cheetham’s surged to victory with a strong run and posted an overall winning time of 4:15:55.

Iñaki Baldellou from Spain won the men’s race with a time of 3:52:41, ahead of  Brazilian Eduardo Lass with Italian Jonathan Ciavattella in third.

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Photos by www.joseluishourcade.com

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The new course incorporates a challenging ocean swim, a stunning ride through the Mooloolaba hills, and a picturesque run along its famed coastline.

Local Queensland-based professional Josh Amberger says that a key point in this race will be the swim. While it will be a deep water start, athletes from oversees especially will need to be aware of the rolling surf conditions that are common to the Sunshine Coast.

 “The surf swim is a first and anything could happen with a beach swim. The race could break up with the surf conditions, or the run on the soft sand,” Amberger said. “Plus, there’s a hill straight out of T1 that will soften the legs further.”

In terms of the bike, the previous multi-lap course has been replaced by a one-lap route that takes in the rolling hills to the west towards Palmwoods.

“Credit goes to the organisers for putting together a unique bike course. It should be a fair race, and while it’s not as tough as last year, we have a real championship course,” Amberger added.

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Fellow local pro Caroline Steffen believes the hilly nature of the bike will affect the outcome: “There’s one good climb of 18 percent and overall it’s lumpy and technical. If it doesn’t break up completely on the bike itself, it will definitely take the sting out of the legs of the pure runners,” she said.

In the woman’s elite race India Lee, straight from her win at the European Championships, also won in dominating style. India has had a fabulous 2016 season winning the Cagliari ITU Triathlon World Cup, as well as gold at the Europeans, proving she will be definitely a force to be reckoned with in future years, and could be one to watch for Tokyo.

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Blenheim Place makes a stunning backdrop for this great triathlon, which is popular among beginners and elites, and other famous names competing here included former Spice Girl Mel C.

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You can find the full results of Bloodwise Blenheim Palace Triathlon here

“I never feel safe on the bike, I don’t quite relax until I’ve got my running shoes on, but I’m so happy to defend my title,” she said.

Emma Pallant and Ben Dijkstra win 2015 World Duathlon titles

Emma Pallant: “Triathlon has taught me I always have to fight”

 A great performance from Alex Yee saw Great Britain retain the ITU Duathlon Junior World Championship, while Kate Waugh added to the weekend elite medal haul with silver in the Junior Women’s race.

The mixed relay team struck silver on Sunday with the team of Emma Pallant, Gwen Kinsey, Carl Avery and Danny Russell. They finished 40 seconds behind the hosts, Spain.

In the elite men’s race GB’s Carl Avery came home in tenth position and was the best of the Brits.

ITU Duathlon World Championships results

ELITE– 10km / 40km / 5km

WOMEN

1st – Emma Pallant (GBR) – 1:56:45

2nd – Andrea Steyn (RSA) – 1:56:52
3rd – Margarita Garcia Canellas (ESP) – 1:57:17

11th – Michelle Dillon (GBR) – 2:03:22

MEN

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1st – Richard Murray (RSA) – 1:42:18
2nd – Emilio Martin (ESP) – 1:42:35

3rd – Jorik Van Egdom (NED) – 1:42:41

10th – Carl Avery (GBR) – 1:45:36
19th – Philip Wylie (GBR) – 1:46:18
21st – Danny Russell (GBR) – 1:46:33
25th – Daniel Jenkin (GBR) – 1:47:44
DNF – Richard Horton (GBR) – DNF

ELITE JUNIOR – 5km / 20km / 2.5km

WOMEN

1st – Delia Sclabas (SUI) – 58:55

2nd – Kate Waugh (GBR) – 59:14
3rd – Madalena Amaral Almeida (ESP) – 59:16

6th – Serena O’Connor (GBR) – 1:02:28

MEN

1st – Alex Yee (GBR) – 51:40
2nd – Alberto Gonzalez Garcia (ESP) – 51:50

3rd – Javier Lluch Perez (ESP) – 52:06

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19th – Lewis Byram (GBR) – 55:30

The system allows quantified gains from wetsuit use to be measured and evidenced, and the development of this  Measuring Active Drag (MAD) system is now a key component of the company to prove the performance enhancement developed suit technology. 

“The M.A.D system represents a landmark not only in Huub’s history but also in the triathlon and swimming market,” said Dean Jackson founder of HUUB Design.

” No company has this type of testing and analysis available in-house. As a company we take pride in delivering industry leading levels of research and data that is then factored in to all our products. Working with The BEST Centre represents a major land mark for us and gives us access to some of the best facilities in the world.”

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Situated on the south coast of Mallorca, the Best Swim Centre was founded by Olympic swimmers James Parrack and Matthew O’Connor, with the intention to create the ideal training environment for athletes of all different levels.  James said: “We are always looking for best in class partners, and we are very proud to be working with HUUB on such ground breaking technology.  We are looking forward to a long relationship with Huub to help wherever we can in the pursuit of improved performance and broadening the knowledge base for the next generation of athletes and coaches.”

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ÖtillÖ confirm launch of UK qualifier race in 2016

 To whet your appetite hare are some images from last week’s ÖTILLÖ Swimrun Utö and the sprint swimrun Utö (a shorter sprint version of 12 km), which saw almost 750 competitors from 19 nationalities competing in the Stockholm archipelago.

The main race at Utö was a 39,8 km long swimrun where you alternate between trail running and open water swimming, around the beautiful but tough course on Utö and surrounding islands. The top teams are increasing their speed for every year and the Swedish brothers Jonas and Lars Ekman were the first team over the finish line and the only team under four hours with 3:56:49. The mixed team Daniel Hansson and Kristin Larsson did a sensational race and charged over the finish line as third team overall, only seven minutes after the winners with the impressive time, 4:03:24. Annika Ericsson and Elisabet Pärsdotter Westman were the fastest team in the women’s discipline with the finishing time of 4:38:25.

Caught the swimrun bug? Don’t miss our swimrun feature in the July issue of 220 which highlights the kit needed

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Swimrun gets world series
Utö Swimrun 2015 – in pics

Given we already know the women’s team of this issue’s cover stars Non Stanford and Vicky Holland, plus Helen Jenkins in her third Olympic Games, the big news of the day was who will join the Brownlees in the British men’s team.

The B’s of Adam Bowden, Tom Bishop, Mark Buckingham and Gordon Benson were just a quartet of athletes vying for what’s likely to be a domestique/supporting slot, and it was announced here today that the Leeds-based Gordon Benson would take the honour as the Brownlee’s wingman come the 18th of August on the Brazilian starting pontoon. Thus making it a Yorkshire 1, 2 and 3 for the Brit men’s team.

“I told my mum the news and i think she cried,” said Benson. “There was an opportunity there for a support athlete in the squad but I didn’t want to waste two seasons and not qualify for the role, so I’ve raced as I normally would. Support athletes were a massive influence for me in my races, like at the European Games at Baku. Now I’ve focussed more of my training on the swim and bike disciplines, and it’s paid off. I’m still only 22 and have only just finished my uni degree in nutrition, which has actually been a nice distraction from tri.”

 WHO IS GORDON BENSON?

The 22-year-old Benson was voted the British Triathlon Male Elite Junior Triathlete of the Year in both 2011 and 2012. Benson won the 2015 European Games in Baku and has scored plenty of European Cup and Championship success as a junior.

The domestique role was filled by Brit veteran Stuart Hayes at the London Games in 2012, who successfully dictated the pace on the bike to provide a platform for Alistair’s gold and Jonny’s bronze-winning performances. Benson cites running as his strongest discipline, but the 6ft 3in tall Yorkshireman has obviously done enough in his ITU races (including at Yokohama this year) to suggest to the selectors that he’s got enough speed on the swim and bike to keep pace with the leading pack in Rio.

Speaking at today’s launch, Mark England, the Chef de Mission of Team GB’s Rio charge, said that the 350 athletes Britain is taking to South America is “the most talented team we’ve ever taken away,” and this certainly applies to the Brit tri squad, which – from the experience of Jenkins to the rising force of Vicky Holland, a fit Non Stanford and, of course, the Brownlees – has five feasible medal contenders in its ranks.

What the athletes said:

Jonny: “There was huge pressure ahead of London, we countdown clocks telling you there were 81 days to go and things like that. So Rio won’t have that element and we’re ready for it. The hilly and technical bike course suits our skills more than the flat and fast London route.

Alistair: No one has raced to the level of London 2012 since then, but I can see the same three on the podium. Seeing myself on the posters and billboards around Leeds is a bit embarrassing, I’m not a huge fan of seeing myself up there and I’m getting plenty of abuse from my mates! 

We didn’t have any input on Gordon’s inclusion as such but we’re really happy for him on a personal and professional level. He’s a Leeds United fan so will have plenty to talk about with Jonny. He’s someone we’ve trained with for 10 years and he’s a Leeds lad, and he’s worked really hard for it. We push each other on in training. And he proved how much he’s progressed by coming out of the swim high up at WTS Yokohama. I see a similar role for him as Stu Hayes played in London.”

Vicky: “It’s good to be formally announced at last. It was great to qualify with Non at the same time, as it would’ve been tough for one of us to have been celebrating the achievement and the other knowing they’ve still got to qualify. We could then relax and have the same build-up together. It’s turning into a Leeds takeover, which is testament to the set-up they have here.

Non: Today makes it all a bit more real. I’ve never been to an Olympics before and this brings it home. It’s exciting and special to be a part of a golden year for British triathlon. The British team send medal contenders and the objective is to win medals.

Non Stanford on Rio, training, and maintaining motivation…

 Helen: “I’m the odd one out with five out of six Leeds-based athletes in the squad! Sometimes I struggle to understand Gordon when I’m tired but it’s all good fun. And it’s a testament to how strong the set-up is here, and the facilities have developed around the Brownlees.

“Yet I’ve always been based in Wales and that’s what I know and what works for me. I’m not racing this weekend and I really wanted to, but I need some downtime. I peaked in April, so I can’t maintain that until August. I’ll race Stockholm next with Non and Vicky, it’s so exciting to be part of such a strong team and it almost takes the pressure off a bit.

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Routes announced for World Triathlon Leeds
8 UK cities to host Olympic live screenings
Rio Olympic kit launched
Non Stanford and Vicky Holland podium at Rio Olympics test event

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The provisional line-up of elite women taking to the start pontoon in Roundhay Park at 1pm include two-time world champion Gwen Jorgensen of the USA, who will be taking on the Great Britain contingent headed by Leeds-based duo Non Stanford and Vicky Holland.

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The strong Great Britain line-up also features Jodie Stimpson, who is a world title contender after winning the season-opener in Abu Dhabi, Leeds’ own Jess Learmonth and Lucy Hall, who is also based in the city.

The women’s field also includes current 2016 Columbia Threadneedle Rankings Leader Flora Duffy of Bermuda and established frontrunners at world level Andrea Hewitt of New Zealand, Emma Moffatt of Australia and American Sarah True.

The elite men race will begin at 3:45pm and all British eyes will be on hometown stars Alistair and Jonathan Brownlee, as well as Leeds-based European Games Triathlon Champion Gordon Benson, who has just been announced as the final member of the British Olympic triathlon squad and Tom Bishop, together with Adam Bowden in a five-strong team.

Reigning and five-time world champion Spain’s Javier Gomez will be making his first appearance in the series this season, as he begins his final preparations for Rio.

Also in the men’s line-up are French duo Dorian Coninx and Pierre Le Corre, Australia’s Ryan Bailie and Aaron Royle, along with Richard Varga of Slovakia who trains in Leeds with the Brownlees. Switzerland’s Sven Riederer and Russia’s Polyanskiy brothers Igor and Dmitry also feature but South African star Richard Murray unfortunately misses out as he continues to recover from a broken collarbone.

Chief Executive of British Triathlon Jack Buckner said: “The Columbia Threadneedle World Triathlon Leeds has attracted a world-class field with the biggest names in the sport racing. The combination of great athletes, a challenging course and a fantastic home crowd for the Brits will create an incredible atmosphere. I can’t wait for the 11 and 12 June to arrive – don’t miss it.”

After a 1500-metre swim in Roundhay Park, the elites will cycle a 41.5km ride through Roundhay, Moortown, Meanwood, Weetwood, Headingley and Woodhouse before completing seven circuits of a city centre loop.

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 They will then transition on Millennium Square fand run 10km in four shorter laps culminating in a thrilling finish on the square.  

Routes announced for World Triathlon Leeds

It’s no surprise then, that the centre makes the perfect location for a swim festival. Every year swimmers congregate for Bestfest, seven days of open-water swimming, pool coaching and fun with fellow athletes from all over the world – and when 220 were invited out to experience the new 1.9km and 3.8km tri-distance swims, it was too good an opportunity to miss!

We arrive in the town partway through the week and many of the athletes have already taken part in distances ranging from a 1.5k to 4.5k sea swim. One race – the 5k – had to be cancelled due to choppy waters, but with a whole week and plenty of events to pick from, nobody seems too concerned about that!

Swim skills and Team GB

I’ve got two days before my race, so I take part in a couple of pool and open-water training sessions with some of the centre’s resident coaches. We work on drills, pacing, sighting, dolphin dives, turning round a buoy and how to run in shallow water – basically everything we might need for the upcoming races!

My race is on the Friday, but on the Thursday I’m lucky enough to be there to watch the week’s longest races – the 7k and 10k ‘Colonia Classics’. There’s a strong field too, with the GB Open-water swimming squad in attendance, as well as several other elites from around the world. Rio-bound Jack Burnell is there being filmed for the BBC Olympics coverage and is a strong favourite. In the end the three-lap course is pretty tight and there’s a run to the finish between the top three athletes with GB’s Caleb Hughes just edging the win from his team-mate by 00:00:02 – nail-biting stuff!

Taking on 3.8km

Friday comes around all too quickly – and my race with it! Regular 220 readers will know that I’ve only learn to swim in the last couple of years. I absolutely love the open water though and have been working hard to improve my skills, so have opted for the full 3.8km rather than the 1.9km. My previous longest was the 1.9km swim at Hever Castle’s Gauntlet last year, so this marks quite a step up.

Luckily though, the conditions don’t look too choppy today. Talk of the waves earlier in the week have made me a bit nervous, but although there’s some breeze, the sea looks relatively calm. Come 3pm and I’m hiding in the shade of a beachfront café on the pretty Cala Galiota beach, zipping myself into my wetsuit. Most of the field are in skins, but I’m taking all the help I can get for this one!

I’ve made some great friends already on the trip and my new buddies from the Myrtleville Swimmers in Ireland are also competing (and acting as my support crew/photographers!), so we walk to the start together. By now we’ve found out that the sea is in fact ‘a bit lumpy’ further out, so the course has been modified and is now four smaller 950m laps of a triangular route, rather than two big 1.9km ones.

It’s a deep water start so I line up alongside the others and at the klaxon I’m off – excited to be swimming and getting on with it after all the nerves! We head out to the first buoy and the conditions seem reasonable – although turning left around it on to the top straight and things get a bit bumpier. The waves are coming towards us and I’m trying by best to roll with them and seem to be doing ok – there are still swimmers around me, anyway!

We head back to shore and swim around two more buoys to take on lap two. Here the waves seem to be bigger (although maybe that’s because it’s the second lap!) and I’m starting to get thrown around a bit. I’m enjoying myself though and am marvelling at the elite swimmers shooting past me. Their technique is just brilliant to watch and while I’m struggling to keep on course, they glide like fish around me. Jealous isn’t the word!

Navigating the waves

Finishing lap two and the 1.9km swimmers head in to the finish line, while I crack on to lap three. It’s starting to feel a bit tough, but I tell myself to just keep going – if I finish three laps, that’s still a new ‘longest distance in open-water’ PB for me! By now the stretch out to the first buoy is getting choppier and I’m finding the top straight quite tough. The third lap seems to take forever and part of my brain is telling me to quit while I’m ahead. Luckily though, the bossier part of me is determined to finish and makes me swim around the bottom buoys again to take on lap four, rather than quitting!

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This is where things get a bit ‘interesting’ as fatigue and the (still increasing) waves combine to make me wonder if I’m actually moving at times. The sea is so clear that you can see right down to the bottom though and I’m encouraged to see the rocks moving so I know I’m making progress – even if I’m finding it near impossible to sight and feel more like I’m surfing than swimming at times.

The support crew are truly fantastic though and by this point I’ve got a couple of kayaks with me for company (one of the perks of being at the back!) which is massively reassuring. Little by little I inch towards the finish until I finally get out of the chop into clear waters and swim to shore. Standing up far too quickly and trying to run I slip over a couple of times, but it’s a great feeling hearing the crowds cheer and race director, James Bainbridge, calling me in over the tannoy!

Setting a swim PB

My final race time turns out to be 01:41:23 – but that’s a PB and I’m so happy to have completed the challenge I set myself (even if it won’t be troubling anyone at Kona any time soon!) and I hope it shows that even newbies can make huge steps with their swimming with a little time and dedication. Plus I’ve got one day left in Mallorca so have time to enter the fun relay races on the Saturday – a great ending to the week and a chance to have a final swim with all the great people I’ve met on the trip.

Race director James tells me: “A week long programme comprising eight events in seven days takes a great deal of planning and execution. Luckily we’re blessed with dedicated and hard working volunteer staff, without whom Bestfest just wouldn’t happen. I’m proud of what we’re achieving in our little corner of Mallorca, we love meeting new swimmers and also seeing familiar friends return to swim with us and hope that our success this year will be a stepping stone for 2017 and beyond!”

For anyone wanting to work on their swimming ahead of an Ironman or long-distance tri, I’d definitely recommend this week. I’ve had a great time, achieved what I set out to and made some brilliant new friends. It’s safe to say that Bestfest deserves the ‘best’ in its name!

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To find out more about training at Best Swim Centre visit the website here, and for more about Bestfest see here. Thank you to all the Best Swim Centre team for looking after us during our stay and to the Universal Hotel Cabo Blanco and the Bluewater Hotel for our fantastic accommodation.