Kiwis come of age for 25th anniversary Ironman NZ
Seven-times Ironman New Zealand champion Cameron Brown will be the No 1 seed for next week’s 25th anniversary Bonita Ironman New Zealand in Taupo.
Brown said that after 25 years the sport had truly come of age in this country with the quality of New Zealand talent and record numbers the key components in this year’s race.
The 36-year-old faces a major challenge from three world class New Zealanders along with some accomplished internationals if he is to become the first male to ever win the same Ironman event eight times.
There is a record 842 kiwis entered among the biggest-ever field of 1495 for the 25th anniversary of the world’s original international Ironman. For the first 22 years overseas triathletes out-numbered locals while until the arrival of Brown and six-time women’s winner Joanna Lawn, the spoils went mostly to internationals.
“Most of the years that I have competed I have had to fight off top internationals. I think it’s great that in this 25th anniversary, without taking anything away from some of the overseas competitors, it’s likely to be a genuine battle against a group of top quality New Zealand athletes,” Brown said.
“And to see so many New Zealanders line up in the event this year shows how far this sport has come and I am excited to be part of it.”
Just 68 New Zealanders lined up for the first Ironman New Zealand in Auckland in 1985.
Brown has been pleased with his preparation, following a programme of shorter but significantly more intense training on the bike and run.
“It’s a change I made with my coach for the Ironman World Championships in Hawaii last year. It definitely worked for me there and but for a flat tyre, I would have reaped some better rewards. So we have worked on the same approach this time.
“All the indications are that I am going really well. And I will need to.”
Brown will face a considerable challenge from Aucklanders Kieran Doe and Terenzo Bozzone along with former world adventure racing champion Richard Ussher among the kiwi ranks along with some strong internationals including Stephen Bayliss (GBR) and Jan Raphael (GER).
Doe is the No 2 seed following his third placing last year and his breakthrough victory in Ironman Canada in a race record in 2007. He is a noted swimmer and super-strong cyclist who will no doubt look to lay down the gauntlet from the front.
Bayliss, who thrives on a massive number of races, is the No 3 seed. He enjoyed a superb 2008 season with Ironman wins in South Africa and UK, as well as fourth in New Zealand and second in both Ironman Austria and Embrunman.
Ussher (Nelson), an impressive seventh last year in his first ever triathlon, is seeded No 4. He bypassed this year’s Coast to Coast, which he has won twice, to focus on a tilt for the podium this year.
Bozzone, 24, is the most exciting addition in his eagerly awaited Ironman debut. He is a truly outstanding athlete who won the 70.3 (Half Ironman) World Championship in November. As a junior Bozzone won four world junior titles in duathlon and triathlon before moving up to the endurance distances with real success.
“You never know what Terenzo is going to pull out,” Brown said. “It will be interesting to see how he goes at the full Ironman distance but I expect him to be a real threat. After all he’s not a world champion for nothing and will do well I am sure.”
Taupo’s Duncan Milne, who held off Brown to win the Port of Tauranga Half Ironman last month, is the sixth seed ahead of Raphael, a talented German who won Ironman Florida and is a regular training partner of two-time world champion Normann Stadler.
The men’s seeds for the 25th anniversary Ironman New Zealand are:
1. Cameron Brown NZL
2. Kieran Doe NZL
3. Stephen Bayliss GBR
4. Richard Ussher NZL
5. Terenzo Bozzone NZL
6. Duncan Milne NZL
7. Jan Raphael GER
8. Mike Neill CAN
9. Marc Pschebizin GER
10. Benjamin Rossmann GER
Event website: www.ironman.co.nz