There are many good things that make the Zarautz Triathlon so successful: 650 triathletes, including pros like Eneko Llanos, Mathias Hecht or Cat Morrison, places sold out in just 3 hours, a really hard course and lots of activities surrounding the race to make one of the greatest triathlon festivals in the Iberian Peninsula.

Direct contact

Once again this year, the race will be sponsored by BH, who is proud to support a race drawing world champions and Ironman winners as well as triathlon rookies. Pros swimming, riding and running alongside people who find here a way to self-improvement, an objective BH feels strongly identified with.

‘Direct contact with the crowds, the feeling that something great is going on…  This is what makes us feel proud of our participation in such a leading event,’ said the head of the BH Marketing Department, Ivan Sarralde.

BH, the brand of triathlon

With BH BIKES and BH FITNESS, outdoor and indoor products, BH is the only brand that offers users all they need to prepare for a triathlon. The development of high performance products results in lighter, stiffer and ergonomic bikes, features that will show when the athletes face climbs such as Orio and Aia in Zarautz.

At the Expo Zone, to open on Friday, 8 June, visitors will discover the new Fitness Triathlon Series, machines that you can use in the comfort of your home, as professional triathletes like Nicholas Ward or Eneko Llanos say.

Off we go

The race will take place on 9 June, starting at 2 p.m. The txapela is waiting for a new winner, who will have to negotiate a course that is considered to be harder than last year’s, with a 18% gradient in the bike section. The streets in Zarautz will get crowded, athletes will come from many different places (60% are from outside the Basque Country), there will even be a Triatloi Txiki and the atmosphere will be great, 100% triathlon.

For all these reasons, we hope the joint work of Tri Zarautz and BH will last for many, many years.

For more info, visit BH Zarauzko Triatloia.

If you haven’t been able to sign up for the Zarauz Triathlon, BH gives you a last chance to rub shoulders with big names like Mikel Elgezabal, Saleta Castro or Eneko Llanos, and be part of one of the most popular races in Northern Spain.

What do you have to do? It’s very easy: Just register in our BH Tri Club and become a BH Triathlon fan on Facebook. Than just answer the question posted on our Facebook wall: Why do you want to enter the BH Zarauzko Triatloia?

What are you waiting for? A place in Zarauz can be yours!

One of their most popular actions is the Tri Training Camp in Algarve. A full week to enjoy triathlon in a place boasting 300 sunny days a year, fabulous roads and mountain trails to ride along and the open sea to swim in. Plus, professional triathlon trainers and triathletes who have taken part in the most demanding Ironmans in the world.

You’ll be staying at five-star apartments (accommodation only), and your price may include a BH Zaphire to ride. The Algarve Tri Training Camp is held four times a year, to suit all users’ demands: April-May, June, September and October-March. According to the organisers, many users like the performance of the bikes they rent so much that they wind up buying their own BH when they come back home.

Triathlon is all the rage. It’s becoming as popular in Portugal as anywhere else in the world. And with initiatives like those from Cycling Rentals, it can be expected to be alive and kicking for a very long time. Come on, join in!

After an eight-women bike breakaway put 2 minutes and 30 seconds on the first chase group coming out of T2, Jenkins and Australia’s Erin Densham went to the lead into the first lap of the 10km run. In see-sawing battle between the Australian Olympic hopeful and Jenkins, Densham pulled away to almost 10 metres in front in second lap before Jenkins stunningly reeled in the difference and turned the tables. In an incredible second half, she went ahead to record a time of 1 hour 58 minutes and 21 seconds, over a minute ahead of Densham’s time of 1:59:26. The USA’s Laura Bennett claimed third, her first series podium, and with it her second consecutive Olympic Games berth.

Jenkins said it had been hard, but the support on the run had helped her through.

“It was just such a good race, we really had to work really hard for that. I really pushed the swim and we really worked hard on the bike and that was hard all the way,” Jenkins said. “I really enjoyed the run course, it was really cool, there was so many people out there supporting…it was awesome.”

Densham’s third consecutive major podium for 2012 was a huge boost for her own Olympic selection hopes. Densham was the first Australian, with Emma Moffatt finishing ninth, Ashleigh Gentle 10th, Emma Jackson 14th and Emma Snowsill 17th. So far, only Moffatt has been named in the Australian team for London.

Read full story at: www.triathlon.org

The event is geared to promote the Mixed Team Relay and comes on the heels of the recent announcement that Mixed Team Relay will be added to 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games program. It will take place entirely inside the Hawrelak Park in a very media and spectator-friendly setting and will follow the PATCO Paratriathlon Championships.

This will be Edmonton’s first time hosting the new fast-paced format and will take place on a 250 metre swim, 6.6 km bike and 1,600 metre run course. Teams can be made up of athletes from the PATCO junior race and elites who compete in the ITU World Cup.

National Triathlon Federations need to confirm their intention to race by 1 June 2012. Ten teams are required to stage the race, so please inform the LOC.

Source: Triatlon.org

The Canadian athlete finished the race in 4 hours, 28 minutes and 12 seconds, 5 minutes before the runner-up, Mary Beth Ellis from the US, and nearly 20 ahead of Canada’s Sara Gross.

It seems that Naeth is determined to have an extraordinary season; she climbed on the podium in all the races she has competed in so far. She won the Leadman Tri Epic 125 Las Vegas in April, was the runner-up at the Abu Dhabi Triathlon in March and took Ironman 70.3 Panama in February.

‘Simply beautiful! Love St. Croix!,’ Angela posted on her Twitter account after the race. The member of BH Team added in a smiley way, ‘Congrats back to Lance Armstrong. I should hang with you more. I seem to win in your presence.’

St. Croix Ironman 70.3 results

1 NAETH, ANGELA 4:28:12
2 ELLIS, MARY BETH 4:33:34
3 GROSS, SARA 4:46:43
4 KRAFT, NINA 4:47:44
5 KOZULINA, TAMARA 4:47:51
6 LOEFFLER, KIM 4:49:24
7 FLETCHER, JENNY 4:59:40
8 JONES, STEPHANIE 5:01:01
9 DANAIS, MARIE 5:01:50
10 SMYERS, KAREN 5:08:07

Men’s Race

Potts led the men out of the water, with Stéphane Poulat following close behind. Armstrong came into T1 with a group about 80 seconds down of the pair. Armstrong quickly went to work on the bike.  At mile 21 of the ride came the famed hill known as “the beast”, which is a 7/10-mile stretch made up of a 600-foot climb with an average grade of 14 percent and a maximum grade of 21 percent. Poulat crested the hill first, but Armstrong was only 12 seconds back. By mile 45, Armstrong had found his way to the front and had built a minute lead over Poulat and Potts.

At the end of the 56-mile ride Armstrong owned a gap of 1:45 over the pair. The podium was pretty well decided at the start of the run. Behind Poulat and Potts the next fastest chaser was New Zealand’s Terenzo Bozzone at just over five minutes back. At the front of the race, the seven-time Tour de France champion held his lead through the first three miles of the half marathon, but he couldn’t keep the fast-running former Olympians away. Eventually Potts and Poulat started chipping away at Armstrong, with Potts taking over the lead at mile 8. Poulat passed Armstrong a couple of miles later and that’s how the top-three would finish.

Potts ran a 1:12:50 half marathon to take the 4:03:31 win, his second 70.3 victory of the season. Poulat finished second in 4:05:25. Armstrong earned a podium spot with a finish time of 4:07:08. The trip to St. Croix was well worth Armstrong’s efforts as he secured 585 points towards his Kona Pro Ranking. According to his previously-announced schedule, Armstrong will next head back to the mainland for May 20’s Ironman 70.3 Florida event.

Women’s Race

The women’s race kicked off with Germany’s Nina Kraft and the United States’ Mary Beth Ellis building a commanding lead out of the 1.2-mile swim. The pair headed into T1 in just over 27 minutes. A group containing the rest of the contenders, including Canada’s Angela Naeth, exited the water at around 29:45. The gap was no problem for the fast-riding Naeth. She found her way to Ellis by mile 37. Despite suffering a flat tire in the final mile of the bike, Naeth managed to make it to T2 with a nearly two-minute lead over Ellis.

Behind the fast-riding pair, the rest of the field struggled to keep pace. Kraft was the third women into T2, but she sat 10 minutes back of Ellis and 12 minutes back of Naeth. Naeth outpaced Ellis on the run with a 1:18:48 half marathon, easily giving her the win in 4:28:12. Ellis finished second at 4:33:34.

Source: Triathlon Competitor

Now, a full 24 years later, the race has changed only slightly: The original had a 3K swim, 95K bike, and 20K run. It is now an official Ironman 70.3. Three things that haven’t changed are the heat, humidity, and hills. The “Beauty & The Beast,” as it was dubbed in 1988, is arguably one of – if not the – toughest 70.3 courses in the world.

In 1988, Lance came out of the water with the lead pack (just behind Mark Allen and Dave Scott), and biked into second place midway through the bike (behind an extraordinary Mike Pigg); however, the amazing teenager faded out of the top ten on the day. He returns in 2012 to tackle the course one more time and, if there’s one thing we learned between Panama and Texas (his first two 70.3 races), the tougher the bike course, the better.

The Men

One person making his first trip to St. Croix is Andy Potts. “It is one of the great races in our sport and I’m excited at the opportunity to battle The Beast and the entire course,” Potts says. The 2004 Olympian and 2007 Ironman 70.3 World Champion welcomes a hilly race: “The one thing I like about having a challenging hill is that it helps break up the demands on my muscles, as far as holding the same position for hours; and, it also helps break up the challenge of a 70.3 into smaller parts.” With Potts’ swimming strength, it should be a matter of the other men – including now 40 year-old Lance Armstrong – chasing him over the 56 mile bike leg, and possibly through the hilly 13.1 mile run.

Along with Potts and Armstrong, returning Champion, Maxim Kriat (who outran everyone last year) Terenzo Bozzone, and Frederik Van Lierde contribute to a very strong men’s field. Van Lierde, in particular, is one man to watch. The Belgian won both Abu Dhabi and Ironman Nice in 2011 and is coming off a very impressive third place finish at the stellar Ironman Melbourne in March, with a time of 8:01:26.

The Women

With Cat Morrison not returning to defend her title – she is recovering from a nagging achilles issue – last year’s runner-up, Canadian Angela Naeth, must be seen as the favorite. Naeth’s bike split last year rivaled many male pros and she is having a tremendous 2012 thus far: wins at Panama 70.3 and Leadman 125, as well as a strong second place showing in Abu Dhabi. Angela truly loves St. Croix – the people there, and the race, itself: “I think I’m more excited than ever just to see my home stay family, the Rowley’s, again,” says Naeth. “I just love being with them. And the race itself is downright hard, and I love the rawness of it. The course is tough. The heat and humidity is brutal. And the best part? Sitting on the beach post-race!”

One person who is sure to challenge Naeth is American Mary Beth Ellis. “MB” shocked the Ironman world last year after posting victories in Ironmans Austria, Regensburg, and Canada … all within a matter of months. Her time of 8:43 in Austria was the fastest debut Ironman for a female ever! Coached by Brett Sutton (Team TBB), Ellis had a disappointing race in her Kona debut in October, and is certain to want to re-establish herself at the forefront again this year. Ellis took a longer off-season this year after her “Ironman binge last year,” as she puts it; and, has now “started back training, feeling fresh and excited.” This is MB’s first trip to St. Croix.

Kim Loeffler is looking to follow-up on her impressive second place showing last August at Ironman Canada in her 2012 race debut (after flatting in the San Juan 70.3 where she was unable to repair her tire). We know this speedster from Vermont has the mileage in her – she is scheduled to race Ironman Brazil later this month.

Source: www.ironman.com

Elite Women’s Preview

An intriguing women’s field will start in Huatulco, while there isn’t any ITU World Championship or World Triathlon Series winners in the field, there are two previous ITU World Cup winners, Yuliya Yelistratova (UKR) and Vendula Frintova (CZE), and a host more medallists who are after their first win. But perhaps most importantly, those Olympic qualification points are on the line.

While Gillian Sanders has secured a place for South Africa thanks to her African title, she’s one to watch for the podium after her fourth place in Ishigaki and will wear the No.1 in a World Cup race for the first time. For athletes like Yelistratova, Frintova, Line Jensen (DEN), Flora Duffy (BER), Claudia Rivas (MEX), Pamela Oliveira (BRA), Elizabeth Bravo (ECU), Agnieszka Jerzyk (POL), Fabienne Saint Louis (MRI), Mateja Simic (SLO), Margit Vanek (HUN), Lydia Waldmuller (AUT), Alexandra Razeranova (RUS), Radka Vodickova (CZE) and Katrien Verstuyft (BEL), this result could be crucial in their Olympic campaigns. All of them currently sit either just on or off the edge of Olympic qualification simulation right now, and a good result in Huatulco could help seal that berth for their National Olympic Committee (NOC). On the course that favours strong cyclists, keep an eye on Duffy, Oliveria and Simic.

This race could also have an impact on the NOCs who can send a maximum of three athletes. The seesawing battle between Switzerland and Germany for who gets that eighth and final spot will not change again, as neither Kathrin Muller or Daniela Ryf – their NOCs third-placed athletes are racing here. But the NOCs just above them could move further ahead. Currently Spain sits in sixth place, courtesy of Marina Damlaimcourt and New Zealand in seventh, with Debbie Tanner as its third athlete. While the current the difference between Dalaimcourt and Tanner is miniscule, just six points, a top 10 result for Damlaimcourt could help secure Spain’s three places as neither Tanner or Nicky Samuels will race in Huatulco. Damlaimcourt also can’t be discounted in Huatulco, it’s where she claimed her maiden World Cup medal with bronze last year.

Elite Men’s Preview

Argentina’s Gonzalo Raul Tellechea will wear the No.1 for the first time in an ITU World Cup and is in form, coming off his first career podium in Ishigaki. He put Argentina in the Olympic picture with that podium, just like Italy’s Davide Uccellari, and both are backing up in Mexico. The Mexican team at home could also be dangerous, in particular Crisanto Grajales and Arturo Garza, while Brazil is sending a strong team that includes Pan Am Games gold medallist Reinaldo Colucci and Diogo Sclebin, and it’s hard to look past Spanish veteran Ivan Rana.

But just like in the women’s, this World Cup has the chance to be a breakthrough race for athletes. Last year South Africa’s Richard Murray claimed his first World Cup podium in Huatulco, so keep an eye on fellow South African Erhard Wolfaardt to see if he can repeat it, and Bermuda’s Tyler Butterfield who is coming off his career best World Cup result in Ishigaki.

Portugal’s Bruno Pais is also one to watch on the podium, after his bronze medal here last year, while his countryman Joao Pereira is still chasing those important points to keep Portugal in with a chance to send three men. In the hotly contested race to see who can send the maximum three men to London, Ivan Vasiliev‘s incredible April has meant that Russia rocketed from ninth to fourth in the space of three weeks and New Zealand, Australia, Canada and Portugal are fighting it out to fill places sixth through eight. Both Pereira and New Zealand’s third man, Ryan Sissons, are on the start list in Huatulco and will be looking to move further ahead of Australia and Canada, who are in eighth and ninth respectively.

Source: www.triathlon.org

There are many good things that make the Zarautz Triathlon so successful: 650 triathletes, including pros like Eneko Llanos, Mathias Hecht or Cat Morrison, places sold out in just 3 hours, a really hard course and lots of activities surrounding the race to make one of the greatest triathlon festivals in the Iberian Peninsula.

Direct contact

Once again this year, the race will be sponsored by BH, who is proud to support a race drawing world champions and Ironman winners as well as triathlon rookies. Pros swimming, riding and running alongside people who find here a way to self-improvement, an objective BH feels strongly identified with.

‘Direct contact with the crowds, the feeling that something great is going on…  This is what makes us feel proud of our participation in such a leading event,’ said the head of the BH Marketing Department, Ivan Sarralde.

BH, the brand of triathlon

With BH BIKES and BH FITNESS, outdoor and indoor products, BH is the only brand that offers users all they need to prepare for a triathlon. The development of high performance products results in lighter, stiffer and ergonomic bikes, features that will show when the athletes face climbs such as Orio and Aia in Zarautz.

At the Expo Zone, to open on Friday, 8 June, visitors will discover the new Fitness Triathlon Series, machines that you can use in the comfort of your home, as professional triathletes like Nicholas Ward or Eneko Llanos say.

Off we go

The race will take place on 9 June, starting at 2 p.m. The txapela is waiting for a new winner, who will have to negotiate a course that is considered to be harder than last year’s, with a 18% gradient in the bike section. The streets in Zarautz will get crowded, athletes will come from many different places (60% are from outside the Basque Country), there will even be a Triatloi Txiki and the atmosphere will be great, 100% triathlon.

For all these reasons, we hope the joint work of Tri Zarautz and BH will last for many, many years.

For more info, visit BH Zarauzko Triatloia.