Sam Warriner Wins 70.3 On Her Birthday

Sam Warriner celebrated her 38th birthday in just the way she
wanted, by racing in the Ironman 70.3 Steelhead Triathlon in Benton
Harbour, Michigan.

Since breaking two ribs just eight weeks ago all that has been on her mind is
getting back on the start line. For her birthday Sam said all she wanted
to do was race, nothing more. So she made the trip to Michigan for the
half ironman race and pitted herself against the likes of; Leanda Cave
(Past ITU Long Course World Champion), and Nina Kraft (Past Ironman World
Champion).

The race over a 1.9 km Swim, 90 km bike, and 21 km run, was centered
around the beautiful Lake Michigan and exiting the swim Leanda Cave (GBR)
had put 35 seconds into Sam. But within the first 10 kms of the bike Sam
caught and passed the Brit and never looked back. By the end of the 90 km
bike Sam had extended her lead to 4.45 minutes over Cave, with Kraft a
further 30 seconds back with the chasing pack of girls.

Sam continued to extend her lead out to around 7 minutes on the half
marathon run, giving herself plenty of time to soak up the applause of the
crowd along the beachside finish straight who'd been warmed up by Andy
Potts (USA) winning the men's race just before.

Sam's focus now shifts to celebrating her 38th birthday (1st August),
before heading back to LA to join her training camp where she'll focus on
speed work for Septembers ITU Grand Final on the Gold Coast of Australia.