Ryan Sissons (Auckland) was the best finisher of the New Zealanders at the final ITU World Cup of 2013 in Tongyeong, Korea today, coming home in 10th place in the elite men's race won by Tony Moulai (FRA), with Bryce McMaster (Auckland) in 14th.
Sissons was patient on the bike, sitting in the large chase group as Tommy Zaferes (USA), Joe Maloy (USA) and Ben Shaw (ITU) broke away on the hilly 40km, and while a fall brought Maloy back to the field, Shaw and Zaferes enjoyed a 45 second lead heading into the run.
Moulai quickly ate that up though, closing on the first lap and taking the lead midway at the 4km mark, with Sissons and Bryce McMaster not able to go with the Frenchman's early pace. Sissons lost contact with the chase group at the midway point and steadily lost time to the leaders, crossing the line 1:12 behind the Frenchman.
In the women's race, Simone Ackermann (Auckland) and Rebecca Clarke (Auckland) swam and rode superbly to be in the lead group of 7 throughout those two legs of the race. Both however struggled to match the pace of the leaders and in particular eventual winner Emma Jackson (Australia) on the run, falling back to 12th and 14th places respectively.
Maddie Dillon was racing just her second standard distance event and found herself off the pace out of the water but rode and ran steadily to come home 19th in warm and calm conditions in Tongyeong.
Jackson was far too good for the field, winning by close to one and a half minutes as she destroyed the rest on the run to continue a strong finish to the season for the young Australian.
The race marks the end to a long season for the New Zealanders, who will now head home to New Zealand to rest and begin preparations for the New Zealand summer and a 2014 international campaign that has the Glasgow Commonwealth Games as one of the key pinnacle events.
