WOLLONGONG, Aus.—Canada’s Stefan Daniel came up shy in his quest to successfully defend his World Para Triathlon Championship title on Saturday in Wollongong, Australia.
The 28-year-old Calgarian battled to find his top gear throughout the triple sport sprint distance challenge, clocking a fourth-place time of 1:00:01.
“It wasn’t very good today. It just wasn’t my day. I didn’t have it in any of the disciplines,” said Daniel. “I felt like I was in pretty decent shape coming into this, but unfortunately it didn’t show. I gave it my best effort, but it wasn’t good enough to stay with the front guys. They were on it all day, and they are all deserving of where they placed.”
The six-time World Championship medallist was seventh out of the 750-metre swim. He climbed two positions throughout the 20-kilometre course before picking up one more spot on the field in the five-kilometre run.
American Chris Hammer was crowned World Champion in the men’s standing classification, breaking the tape with a time of 58:33. Australia’s Jack Howell was second at 59:01, while Germany’s Martin Schultz held on for the bronze medal with a time of 59:23.
Junior Canucks Put Up Strong Fight
Quebec’s Beatrice Filion led a pair of Canadian women into the top 20 of the Junior World Championship race.
Filion battled her way through the pack after coming out of the choppy surf in the middle of the field. The Candiac, Que. teen bolted out of second transition in 13th spot. She gained one more position before crossing the finish line in 12th at 1:06:02.
“I tried to go all out in the swim. People kept pushing me, and it was really hard,” said Filion after crossing the finish line in the blustery conditions. “On the bike, the first two laps were crazy hard. I stayed on the back of the pack and on the run, I gave it all I had to improve my position. It was so windy and hard today, but everyone had the same conditions. I’m happy with this race.”
Calgary’s Brooke Rousselle was rock solid in her first World Championship appearance after having began the sport just one year ago. The feisty 16-year-old, who trains with Triathlon B.C., progressed as the race went on, scrapping her way into 19th spot with a top-10 run time. Rousselle crossed the finish line with an overall time of 1:06:33.
“It got better as the disciplines went on. The swim was very rough. Nobody was giving room. Everyone was fighting for position,” said Rouselle, who leveraged her strong swimming background to navigate the high surf. “My bike pack wasn’t t working but I was trying my best to motivate them to work. On the run, I just told myself this is my ideal in these conditions, and I gave it my all. There were lots of lessons learned this week. I fought to the end so I’m proud of that.”
Lea Houart, of France, placed first with a time of 1:03:40. Hungary’s Fanni Szalai was second at 1:04:16, while Slovakia’s Diana Dunajska rounded out the junior women’s podium at 1:04:53.
Regina’s Henry Bristol was the top Canuck in the junior men’s race. Bristol posted a 21st-place time of 56:46.
“It started off pretty tough with the swim. I lost my goggles off the start, but I recovered well. I bridged up to the front pack on the first lap of the bike which was tough. I came into T2 in an okay position and ran the best that could,” said Bristol, who added they changed the swim course prior to the junior race. “It was a solid result but it was tough working hard in the heat all day.”
Leandra Binette, of Saint-Christophe d’Arthabaska, Que., also held his own against the future triathlon stars. Binette placed 27th at 57:18. Robi Racine, of St-Paul, Que., did not finish.
Tristan Douche, of France, won the junior men’s title with a golden time of 55:41. Great Britain’s Alex Robin was second at 55:46, while Chile’s Ignacio Flores Arana stopped the clock at 55:49.
The World Championship races wrap up on Sunday in Australia when the men’s and women’s elite athletes toe the line.
