Oceania Triathlon Championship Results
Clean sweep for U23 Kiwi Women – Another title for Nielsen – Gemmell agonisingly close in elite men’s
The Oceania Triathlon Championships were held in Devonport, Tasmania today with titles on the line in all age groups and in elite Junior (U19), U23 and Elite categories with New Zealand well represented in all races.
Kris Gemmell (Palmerston North) went agonisingly close in the elite men’s race, finishing second to Australian Brendan Sexton with another Aussie Aaron Royle in third.
Of the other Kiwis Tony Dodds was fourth, Martin van Barneveld 6th while provisionally Clark Ellice and Tom Davison also finished in the top ten (yet to be confirmed) with Davison (Christchurch) second in the U23 race.
Bevan Docherty raced bravely despite suffering ill health, working hard for the team cause on the bike but was forced to withdraw midway through the run with a stomach upset that had him in some discomfort.
Gemmell looked back on a bitter sweet day.
“Oceania’s is always a nice race for me, I think the worst I have ever finished is second but it would have been nice to be on top today and secured an Olympic spot for New Zealand. But on some days you can do everything well and someone still does better, Brendan was a little bit better today.
“I’m getting close though, this was a good field, I just got beaten by the best one on the day. Things are going in the right direction, I feel strong, I know there is more to eke out and with a harder bike course I’ll go even better but today everyone was fresh off the bike, and my strength is endurance. I got spun out on the first couple of kilometres on the run; I came right though and worked up, dropped Atkinson but couldn’t close to Brendan. I gave it my all and tried my best.”
While disappointed to have missed out on defending his Oceania title and with it the chance to ‘book’ New Zealand a spot at the London Olympics, Gemmell’s effort was a continuation of his return to form after winning the Barfoot & Thompson ITU World Cup in Auckland last November, and improves his ranking as the third best Kiwi behind Bevan Docherty and Ryan Sissons and strengthens New Zealand’s position inside the top 8 countries to get 3 spots in London.
It was the Australians who went on to dominate the elite women’s race, with green and gold filling the podium. Emma Jackson won from Ashleigh Gentle and Erin Densham with Debbie Tanner the best of the Kiwis in 4th.
That didn’t tell the story of the initial stages in the race though with Nicky Samuels and U23 competitor Teresa Adam leading a breakaway group of four on the bike, but the two Kiwis were unable to drop Jackson and Densham and the workload on the bike eventually told on the run with Samuels finishing 5th and Adam 10th.
Of the other Kiwis, Simone Ackerman finished 6th, Sophie Corbidge 8th and Rebecca Kingsford 9th overall with Ackerman winning the U23 category from Corbidge and Kingsford for a Kiwi clean sweep on the elite U23 podium.
17 year old Mikayla Nielsen (Waikato) continued her incredible form in the junior ranks, backing up her win at the ITU World Championships in Beijing last year with a dominant display against the best the Aussies had to offer to take the Elite Junior (U19) title.
Nielsen’s performance was well backed up by Maddie Dillon (4th) and Elise Salt (5th), these two athletes in the process claiming podium positions in the New Zealand National Championships, with NZ titles on the line in all elite races in Devonport today.
In the Junior Men’s race, Sam Ward (Auckland) was the best of the Kiwis in fourth place with the Australians dominating proceedings.