Wanaka's Gina Crawford finished runner-up at Ironman Cairns today after a major battle with Olympic-distance convert Liz Blatchford today.
The pair rode most of the demanding 180kms cycle together and for much of the marathon run they could not be separated, until the English-born Australian-based Blatchford broke clear 10kms from the finish.
 The womens podium at Ironman Cairns(Photo: nztri.co.nz) |
Blatchford used all her experience to sit behind the New Zealander for most of the bike, and reeled in a small lead that Crawford etched out early on the run.
Up until the 32km mark of the run the five-time Ironman winner Crawford and Ironman rookie Blatchford spent almost the entire time racing shoulder to shoulder.
In her first attempt at the distance Blatchford held a small lead out of the water, but it was a gap Crawford bridged quickly on the bike. The two then proceeded to ride together throughout the remaining kilometres of the bike.
"The bike was good. Liz was legally right behind me and she just sat there the whole time and I really struggled at the end. She just raced smart I guess," Crawford said.
Neither would back down on the run with Crawford managing to build a lead of 250m on two occasions, but Blatchford refused to go away staying close enough to make a move for the lead. After staying close to Crawford the pair ran shoulder to shoulder until the 32km mark when Blatchford made her move and went for the win.
From there Blatchford powered her way into a very exclusive club by winning her first attempt at an Ironman.
Crawford held onto second with the USA's Stephanie Jones in third.
"It is the beginning of my season and I had a six of seven week block for this race, Crawford said.
"I have had a sinus and ear infection and I didn't know how I would go today but the weather here in Cairns helped and I have been feeling good.
"The swim was hard, I was out there by myself and it was quite choppy. I knew Liz would get out first so I knew I had to work hard on the bike."
"I really struggled at the end. I was losing a lot of time. I was actually dizzy. I just tried my hardest on the run and gave it my all."
Auckland's Anna Ward, who gained a top-10 at the Ironman Asia Pacific Championships in Melbourne two months ago, fought well to finish in fourth place, her best since the move to the Ironman ranks.
Young Queenslander Luke McKenzie scored by far the most credentialed of his six Ironman victories.
McKenzie has earned five previous Ironman wins around the globe, but his last came three years ago, and today he stamped his class on a top-notch field including two-time Ironman World Champion Chris McCormack, 10-time Ironman New Zealand champion Cameron Brown and a host of quality Australians.
He pushed to a 14 minute lead on the bike and held on, finally winning by just over four minutes from compatriot Tim Berkel, while McCormack, who was hospitalised for two days earlier in the week with a kidney complaint, finished third.
It was a challenging day for Brown, who said he felt poorly throughout and withdrew early on the run.
Earlier in the day Sam Warriner dominated the women's Ironman 70.3 race.
