The Dambuster Duathlon took place on Saturday 19 March at Rutland Water in Leicestershire, with competitors all aiming to book their place in the GE Great Britain Age Group Team for the 2011 Limerick ETU Duathlon European Championships on 17 April 2011.
Conditions on the day produced the perfect setting for an exciting race, with warm sunshine welcoming the duathletes and spectators alike to the Leicestershire countryside.
The men’s race delivered a thrilling finish with two in-form duathletes Hugh McKenzie and Julian Lings battling it out from T2 until the finish. At the finish, it was Hugh, who had the edge on his rival clinching victory with a time of 1:52.00, 19 seconds ahead of Julian at 1:52.19. The finish was particularly pleasing for Hugh, who finished second at the Clumber Classic Duathlon behind his rival Julian. Lee Rankin finished in third place with a time of 1:55.53, with Lee Calderon in fourth.
Corinne Abraham won the women’s race in a time of 2:06.18, with Danielle Stewart continued her excellent start to the season in second and Becky Glover rounding out the podium.
Joan Lennon, the GE Great Britain Age Group Team Manager for the 2011 Limerick ETU Duathlon European Championships is now looking forward to the main event commenting: “This was the last of the qualification races for the ETU Duathlon European Championships and the second qualifier for the ITU Duathlon World Championships.?
“I think we are going to have a very strong GE Great Britain Age Group Team racing in Limerick this April, and I can’t wait to see the duathletes in action. Hugh, Julian and Danielle have all previously qualified for Limerick and I hope they will replicate the form they have shown over the last few weeks.”?
Qualification for the 2011 Limerick ETU Duathlon European Championships is now complete, but there are still two opportunities to qualify for the 2011 Gijon ITU Sprint and Standard Distance Duathlon World Championships. The next qualifier takes place at Oulton Park on 3 April with the final opportunity at Cambridge Duathlon on 17 April.
The event was organised by Pacesetter Events, with more information available on www.pacesetterevents.com. Full results can also be found on www.tri247.com.
