Hewitt on the Podium at Season Opener in Sydney

Christchurch triathlete Andrea Hewitt has finished third in the season opening Dextro Energy Triathlon ITU World Championship race in Sydney today, behind winner Paula Findlay (Canada) and Barbara Riveros Diaz (CHI).

Findlay charged ahead in the final 200 metres of the run leg to defeat defending champion Barbara Riveros Diaz of Chile in a time of 2:01.21 with Hewitt in third. OF the other Kiwis Debbie Tanner raced strongly in her return from injury, coming home in 21st while Nicky Samuels was 28th and Anna Cleaver 49th on debut in the World Champs Series.

It was a disappointing day for the two favoured Aussies, with Emma Moffatt completing the journey in 13th place whilst Beijing Olympic champion Emma Snowsill was well back in 42nd.

“It’s an amazing feeling to win here,” Findlay said.

“The race went well. I felt really good going into the run leg but there were so many surges it was hard to know exactly what was going to happen,” she added.

Findlay was always well placed throughout the journey and broke away with five other athletes to fight out the placings – in fact the run leg became a six woman breakaway from early on in the 10 kilometre final leg.

The 2000 Olympic Games host city put on a magnificent day for the start of the race with temperatures hovering in the early 20’s with some scattered cloud cover providing comfortable respite as the cream of the worlds triathletes dived into what became quite choppy water at Farm Cove outside the Sydney Opera House.

But, by the time the athletes had transitioned into the bike and run legs, heavy cloud overtook Sydney, dropping temperatures and in doing so, making conditions for racing ideal.

In scenes reminiscent of those “best ever Olympics” Sydneysiders packed the various vantage points to watch the world’s best perform against such an iconic backdrop. Something that race winner Findlay thought was terrific.

“That crowd was just amazing. It was great to have the age-groupers compete before us which meant they all stayed around and watched, and the men’s race is on after ours so everyone is making so much noise. It was hard at the end because all I could hear was their cheering.

“I didn’t want to look around,” she laughed.

The Dextro Energy ITU World Triathlon Series continues in Japan next month with a further 4 events before the Grand Final in China in September.

Further information at www.triathlon.org

Podium shot: www.nevrilk.com