Jorgensen emerged from the 1,500m swim with a 40-second deficit behind Learmonth and Spain’s Carolina Routier, but her effort on the early laps of the bike catapulted her into the lead group and she was able to remain there for the entire 40km — giving her the time to push ahead early on the 10km run.

Crossing the finish line in 2:09:04 with a lead of over 90secs, she earned her second gold of the year and in the process became the first female athlete ever to hold ten WTS golds.

>>> Gwen Jorgensen wins WTS Abu Dhabi 2015

“I really wanted to be with the leaders in T2 so I am really happy that I was able to do that,” said Jorgensen afterwards. “I was able to execute with my run today but my main goal is to keep with front pack during the bike.”

After the first transition, a strong lead group was pulled along by Lucy Hall (GBR) and Sarah True (USA) for the first couple laps of the bike. But entering into the third lap a huge push from the chase group caused the frontrunners to turn into a 21-women merger. The last part of the bike ride the leaders dwindled down to an 11-athlete pack that included Jorgensen, True, Lisa Norden (SWE), Andrea Hewitt (NZL) and Vendula Frintova (CZE).

Norden executed a strong performance on the bike as she brought herself back from a 40sec deficit from the water to be the leader on the bike for five out of the eight laps. However she was forced to pull herself out of the race once she hit the run portion with confirmed Achilles trouble.

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On the pavement the three podium positions were determined early with Jorgensen, Zafares and Hewitt breaking away from the pack. While Jorgensen took off on her trademark run, fellow teammate Zafares was able to hold onto a consistent run to land her the second-place finish. Britain’s highest-placing athlete was Lucy Hall in 17th position, while Learmonth failed to finish.

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It took me four years to conquer #WTSAuckland Thank you for all of the support. I’m very happy.

Brownlee was always in a good position throughout the first Olympic distance race of 2015 (1,500 swim/40km bike/10km run), having been helped through the swim by Leeds-based Slovakian, Richard Varga, and Tom Bishop on the bike.

Very happy to win #AucklandWTS today. It is a honest triathlon course. Just like the Yorkshire hill’s! pic.twitter.com/0XwkMWy9B4

— Jonathan Brownlee (@jonny_brownlee) March 29, 2015

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He burst out of the second transition and established an immediate lead over Gomez and Pierre Le Corre of France. Current world number one, Mario Mola (ESP) was a minute down by this stage.

Running through heavy rain in the final stages of the 10km run, Brownlee was visibly delighted with victory. He celebrated around the final corner and with the crowd in the final metres before crossing the finishing line as a clear winner.

He said: “In [the previous round in] Abu Dhabi I made many mistakes, and I’ve been beating myself up about it for the last few weeks. I’ve been training hard because I didn’t want to do that again, and I wanted to be able to show how fit I was.” 

>>> Read our report on the men’s race at WTS Abu Dhabi

Brownlee now takes up the world number one ranking, which he’ll carry through to the next round on the Gold Coast in two weeks. Tom Bishop finished 13th, a good result and reward for his efforts on the bike. 

Olympic Champion, Alistair Brownlee, missed this round through injury, but is hopeful of a return in time for the fourth round of the Series in Cape Town (25-26 April).

1. Jonathan Brownlee (GBR) – 01:55:26
2. Javier Gomez Noya (ESP) – 01:55:41
3. Pierre Le Corre (FRA) – 01:55:52
4. Fernando Alarza (ESP) – 01:56:48
5. Ryan Bailie (AUS) – 01:56:53
6. Henri Schoeman (RSA) – 01:57:03
7. Richard Varga (SVK) – 01:57:07
8. Crisanto Grajales (MEX) – 01:57:17
9. Ben Kanute (USA) – 01:57:20
10. Tony Dodds (NZL) – 01:57:39

For the full results head here. Highlights of today’s racing at WTS Auckland will be shown on BBC 2 at 4pm this afternoon.

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It wasn’t all plain sailing though – fierce winds forced the organisers to change the format in the junior women’s and both senior races, cancelling the bike leg and make it a straight 10km run.

Buckingham completed the run in a provisional winning time of 31:10mins, finishing ahead of Adam Bowden and David Bishop (times still to be confirmed). “It feels great to win – I’m really happy with how it all went,” said Buckingham afterwards. 

“Obviously, we all came here to do a duathlon but the weather just wasn’t on our side. Coming from a running background, I guess it helps me, but knowing Adam Bowden was in the race, it’s still a level playing field. We’re big rivals and great friends – we have been for a number of years – so we had a good tussle.”

Buckingham looks to be on a good run of form with a second place at the ETU Triathlon European Cup in Quarteira, Portugal a week ago, and says he now plans to use April to build up his training ahead of racing WTS Yokohama in May.

>>> 2015’s triathlon highlights – a guide

Women’s race 

Emma Pallant took the chequered flat in the women’s race for the second year in a row, crossing the line in a time of 37:07. The 2014 British Triathlon Super Series Champion was followed across the line by last year’s Super Series runner-up India Lee who finished just four seconds behind in 37:11mins. Third place went to Chloe Cook who completed the 10km in 37:27mins.

Emma Pallant wins 2015 British Elite Duathlon Champs

“I was a little bit disappointed about it just being a run today,” said Pallant afterwards. “I’ve been working hard out in Spain at a training camp and my bike’s the thing we’ve been focussing on a lot,  so it’s a bit of a shame about that, but with the conditions there was no way you could bike out there. I just sat in on the run as I wanted to qualify for the World Duathlon and left it down to a sprint finish – job done.” 

>>> Emma Pallant: “Triathlon has taught me I always have to fight”

Paraduathlon

In the paraduathlon races, Joe Townsend (PT1) defended his title after crossing the line first in a winning time 1:05:25.  Joe said after crossing the line: “I am really happy with today. It’s been a slow start to the season after recovering from surgery on my shoulder. Today, I just wanted to deliver a good performance and have a good indicator as to where I’m at performance wise.”

In the women’s races, Lizzie Tench won the PT1 category in a time of 01:32.09 with World Paratriathlon Champion, Lauren Steadman (PT4) adding another title to her name winning gold in the PT4 category in 01:17:37.

>>> Dates confirmed for 2015 ITU World Paratri Events

Juniors

In the British Elite Junior Duathlon Championships, the first race of the British Triathlon Youth and Junior Super Series, Ben Dijkstra – 220’s Youth Triathlete of the Year – won the junior men’s event in 59:34mins. Samuel Dickinson was second with a time of 59:59mins and Jimmy Kershaw finished third in 1:01:00.

Ben commented after his second win in successive weekends: “It’s great – I won this event last year so I knew I was coming into it knowing I was one of the stronger lads. The conditions weren’t really ideal today – a lot of wind and spray, so I had to be really careful. I knew what I had to do and I’m just over the moon with the result.” 

In the junior women’s event, Kate Waugh celebrated winning the opening title of the season crossing the line in a time of 38.02mins. Mary Hodgson was second with a time of 38:16mins and Sian Rainsley finished third in 39:41mins.

Issy Morris won the girl’s youth race, which was also the opening round of the British Youth Super Series, with a time of 31:01mins. Emma Clapton was second in 32:09mins and Caitlin Roper finished third with a time of 32:20mins. 

Tomos Nesham won the youth boy’s race with a winning time of 29:43mins. Travis Bramley was second in 29:48mins and Gregor Malcolm finished third with a time of 29:56mins. 

For full results and more reaction from the athletes, head to www.britishtriathlon.org.

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Setting the tone for the rest of the race, Swallow quickly caught up to the back end of the men’s field. She completed the swim with a time of 50:16mins, with Camilla Pedersen (DEN) and Lucie Reed (CZE) following a further two seconds back.

>>> Camilla Pedersen’s comeback continues with victory at Challenge Fuerteventura

Pedersen stayed within distance of Swallow in the early stages of the bike, while Eva Wutti (AUT) sat comfortably in third position for the majority of the first lap, but was overtaken by Germany’s Diana Riesler as they neared the 90km mark. Swallow pulled away slightly and was able to take a two-minute lead into T2. Pedersen and Riesler followed in second and third respectively.

Swallow continued to look strong and started stretching her lead. While Pedersen held her own in the first lap, she was later overtaken by both Lucy Gossage and Susie Cheetham, who moved into second and third place.

Absolute race @jodieswallow. Winners are grinners! Good to see @JamesCunnama was there 2 great u #BahrainEndurance13 pic.twitter.com/WdNUm86syI

— Chris McCormack (@MaccaNow) March 29, 2015

Gossage though, could not repeat her feat of a year ago as Swallow comfortably held out to cross the finish line in 09:26:56 to claim probably the most significant Ironman win of her career to date.

Swallow dedicated her win to friend and Italian triathlete Linda Scattolin, who was killed in a training ride accident in South Africa a few weeks ago. Gossage finished six minutes later in second with Cheetham a further two minutes back.

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>>> Susie Cheetham (née Hignett) on going from amateur to Ironman pro

When asked on her thoughts on the race, an exhausted Swallow said: “[I am] very satisfied with my victory, but my body is completely numb now. It [definitely] feels as if I have just completed an Ironman.”

Top 10 professional women’s results: 

1. Jodie Ann Swallow (GBR) – 09:26:56
2. Lucy Gossage (GBR) – 09:31:20
3. Susie Cheetham (GBR) – 09:33:02
4. Camilla Pedersen (DEN) – 09:35:25
5. Diana Riesler (GER) – 09:38:16
6. Eva Wutti (AUT) – 09:40:22
7. Britta Martin (NZL) – 09:45:33
8. Astrid Ganzow (GER) – 09:50:29
9. Caitlin Snow (USA) – 09:55:03
10. Sonja Tajsich (RSA) – 10:01:37 

Men’s race

French athlete Sylvain Sudrie made the early yards on the swim with Johann Ackermann of Germany leading the group. South Africa’s Kyle Buckingham kept pace with the leaders with Frederik Van Lierde on the shoulders of Buckingham.

Van Lierde moved into third position before Sudrie emerged first in 49:04mins. A group of 10 men all exited the water within a minute of each other with Ackermann in second, Van Lierde in third, Mike Aigroz (CHE) and Italy’s Alberto Casadei in fourth and fifth. 

Bertrand Billard (FRA) and Buckingham made headway to move into the top four with Van Lierde and Sudrie. The quartet remained close throughout the bike but Van Lierde upped his output after the first lap and opened a four minute lead by the 132km mark. The Belgian powered on into the T2 and proceeded onto the run with a massive 13min lead over Buckingham and Aernout.

With Van Lierde in complete control, it was up to Buckingham and Aernouts to stake a claim for the title or be content with second place. While Van Lierde continued to push ahead, a fierce tussle was emerging between Buckingham and Aernouts going shoulder to shoulder. Spaniard, Ivan Rana meanwhile was making headway after being fourth into T2.

Buckingham tried, but could not get away from Aernouts, and Rana managed to pass them both to move into second place as they started the second lap. Van Lierde was relentless though, despite sapping heat, to put in a masterclass performance. The 2013 World Champion finished in a time of 08:16:34, followed by Rana 14mins and 9secs later with Aernout claiming the final podium position at 08:35:58.

Scotland’s David McNamee was the top-placing British male, coming in seventh position with a time of 8:43:35 and fully justifying his decision to relinquish Rio 2016 in favour of moving up from ITU to long-course racing.

>>> David McNamee: ‘Kona is the dream I have to chase’

Ironman- its a bloody long way.Very happy to make it across the line in 7th. Quads now refuse to climb stairs so bum shuffling instead

— David McNamee (@DavidMcNameetri) March 29, 2015

1. Frederik Van Lierde (BEL) – 08:16:34
2. Ivan Rana  (ESP) – 08:30:45
3. Bart Aernouts (BEL) – 08:35:59
4. Matt Trautman (RSA) – 08:37:21
5. Eneko Llanos (ESP) – 08:37:50
6. Bas Diederen (NED) – 08:38:14
7. David McNamee (GBR) – 08:43:35
8. Cyril Viennot (FRA) – 08:45:55
9. Victor Manuel Del Corral Morales (ESP) – 08:47:10
10. James Cunnama (RSA) – 08:47:45 

For full results from the Standard Bank Ironman African Championship head here.

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Tim was diagnosed with bowel cancer at the age of 33 and subsequently had life-saving surgery and went through months of chemotherapy.

>>> Do you have a Will of Iron?

Only six months after finishing his chemotherapy, Tim was racing in the Bath Half Marathon and is now training for the 2015 London Marathon.

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In February, Chrissie – a 220 regular and four-time world Ironman champion – met with Tim to give him some advice on his training.

>>> Chrissie Wellington’s top ten lessons for triathletes

Speaking of his Special Day, Perkin said, “We had a lovely time, Chrissie was very easy to get along with and she gave me some great ideas and tips on training and getting back into shape. I am really very grateful to her for giving up her time to meet with me.”

Willow is a national charity that works with seriously ill young adults by giving them one of their Special Days. Some people take this as an opportunity to fulfil a dream while others use it as a chance to return some normality to their lives.

“I was honoured that Tim chose to meet with me for his Special Day. To have gone through what he has and to have achieved so much is awe-inspiring,” said Wellington.

“We talked about a range of different things, from bike and run training, to nutrition, to his battle with cancer and also his efforts to try to help improve treatment for cancer sufferers and survivors.”

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For more information about Willow visit www.willowfoundation.org.uk or telephone 01707 259777.

>>> Jonny Brownlee takes outstanding win at WTS Auckland

>>> Gwen Jorgensen bags her first WTS Auckland win

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It was a good weekend of international racing for the Brits, with Jodie Swallow taking an emotional win at Ironman South Africa in memory of her friend Linda Scatollin, and Lucy Gossage and Susie Cheetham also up there on the podium. In the men’s race, David McNamee took an impressive 7th place.

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…well that f**cking HURT!!

— Holly Lawrence (@Holly_Lawrence_) March 28, 2015

Jackson and men’s winner Jan Frodeno (GER) used blistering run splits to capture wins, crossing the finish line in 4:14:47 and 3:47:08 respectively.

Frodeno, Germany’s 2008 gold medallist, earned his second consecutive win in Oceanside while Heather Jackson earned her second win in three years.

>>> Jan Frodeno’s top 10 tips for stepping up to Iron distance

One of nearly 80 events in the global Ironman 70.3 Series, Ironman 70.3 California led athletes along a 1.9km swim, 90km bike and 21.1km run on a course that utilised Oceanside’s beachfront scenery.

Athletes began their day with a single-loop swim in the calm and protected waters of Oceanside Harbour. Once out of the water, participants embarked upon a single-loop bike course along the California coastline to San Clemente before dropping down into the Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton and then swinging back to Oceanside Pier.

The double-loop run course continued along the Oceanside Pier and then out to Oceanside’s flat beachfront path known as “The Strand,” where kilometres of sandy beaches provide beautiful views.

>>> Wimbleball 2015 beckons for Holly Lawrence

Men’s Race

Five-time Ironman 70.3 California champion Andy Potts (USA) led a strong men’s field out of the water with his 22:44 swim time. Following closely was last year’s winner in Oceanside, Jan Frodeno (GER), while the rest of the contenders were looking at one to two and half minute deficits as they ran into transition.

Once on the bike, a large pack consisting of Maik Twelsiek (GER), Ronnie Schildknecht (CHE), Brent McMahon (CAN), Jesse Thomas (USA) and Lionel Sanders (CAN) joined Potts and Frodeno at the front of the race.

After the lead was exchanged a number of times in the closing half of the bike, it was Sanders who dismounted his bike first, towing in Twelsiek, Frodeno, McMahon, Potts and Thomas, all within 16 seconds.

The race continued to be tight early on in the run as Sanders and Frodeno ran shoulder to shoulder, with McMahon, Potts and Thomas just 13 to 20 seconds off the pace. Frodeno edged away from Sanders after 5km and held a tentative 36-second lead at the 10km marker.

Your 2015 #IM703Cali champion (again)…Jan Frodeno! pic.twitter.com/cToq91U7hJ

— IRONMAN Triathlon (@IRONMANtri) March 28, 2015

The second half of the run was a different story as Frodeno pulled away from the pack and Potts mounted a hard push from behind to pass Sanders. On the strength of the race-best run of 1:10:48, Frodeno captured the 2015 Ironman 70.3 California title in 3:47:08.

Potts’ hard work on the run was rewarded with a second-place finish (3:48:43), while Sanders (3:49:19) hung on to grab the final podium spot.

Top 5 professional men’s results:

1.     Jan Frodeno (GER) – 03:47:08
2.     Andy Potts (USA) – 03:48:43
3.     Lionel Sanders (CAN) – 03:49:19
4.     Brent McMahon (CAN) – 03:51:07
5.     Jesse Thomas (USA) – 03:52:52

Women’s Race

Exiting the water first for the women was Jen Spieldenner (USA) followed closely by a group that included Holly Lawrence (GBR) and Alicia Kaye (USA).

Race favourites Magali Tisseyre (CAN), Wurtele (CAN) and Michelle Vesterby (DNK) were over a minute down, while Heather Jackson (USA), Rachel McBride (CAN) and Angela Naeth (CAN) found themselves over two minutes off the pace.

Lawrence put her head down on the bike and powered away from the women’s field to take an early lead that carried all the way to the completion of the 90km bike. Naeth and Jackson rode in second and third as Wurtele forged her way into fourth.

>>> Jodie Swallow leads British domination at Ironman South Africa

On the run, Lawrence’s lead held steady in the opening kilometres, but by the 5km mark it was evident that her pace was dropping. With 11km left in the run Jackson and Wurtele reduced Lawrence’s lead to 50 and 90 seconds respectfully.

Both stormed past the leader over the second half of the run, with Jackson maintaining a minute lead on Wurtele as Lawrence slipped to third.

Jackson’s gutsy run garnered the American her second Ironman 70.3 California title with a winning time of 4:14:47. Wurtele was next across the line in 4:16:07, while Lawrence rounded out the podium with her 4:16:59 finish time.

Top 5 professional women’s results:

1.     Heather Jackson (USA) – 04:14:47
2.     Heather Wurtele (CAN) – 04:16:07
3.     Holly Lawrence (GBR) – 04:16:59
4.     Alicia Kaye (USA) – 04:20:01
5.     Angela Naeth (CAN) – 04:21:33

The event offered a total professional prize purse of $60,000 and also awarded 30 coveted age-group slots to the 2015 Ironman 70.3 World Championship, taking place in Zell am See-Kaprun, SalzburgerLand, Austria on August 30, 2015.

Visit www.ironman.com/california70.3 for event information and full official results. 

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All of the events will take place at Dorney Lake in Buckinghamshire. If the winner of any event is caught wearing shoes, underwear or clothing or any type they are expected to be ‘stripped’ of their title. 

Speaking about the event, triathlon official Richard Burvill said “The rules are quite strict regarding clothing worn, but we have made a special exception for this event. I would ask though that everyone taking part is careful with where they put their limbs when performing swimming strokes.”

Plenty of helmets will be on show, as cyclists will be asked to wear them as a safety measure. Anybody who completes a ‘winning streak’ of all three events will take home their weight in nuts thanks to a generous sponsor.

For those who want to bare all, the organisers are running a 24 hour flash sale on April 1st to encourage participants to enter early. Visit www.humanrace.co.uk today to ensure you don’t get a bum deal.

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The event will comprise of a 3.8km swim, 180km cycle and a full marathon at 42km and is expected to be completed in around 9.5 hours by elite athletes or under 17.5 hours by less experienced competitors.

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It will be hosted in the heart of the Lake District in West Cumbria taking participants through stunning scenery and along the coast.

The course will provide competitors with good surfaces and fairly flat terrain on the bike and run legs while the swim will take place in the still and picturesque Derwent Water.

Event organiser Marie Whitehead, of CN Events, said: “It’s fantastic that we can finally reveal the secret we’ve been planning for so long and officially launch the Lakesman. We’re so excited to finally bring this type of event to Cumbria – and we’re in the ideal location to do it.

“We reckon this could be the most scenic, one of the fastest, and the most enticing long-distance triathlon events in the country.”

The race is expected to attract 750 endurance athletes with 50 places being sold in the opening 24 hours.

To enter the Lakesman or for more information head to www.thelakesman.com.

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