Race Review - Pontevedra World Cup

Race Review - Pontevedra World Cup

by Emma Carney (AUS) -
Number of replies: 0

Dear Athletes, 

Below is a short analysis of the Pontevedra World Cup raced last weekend.  

Understanding and reviewing race results is vital to racing well, so if there are any questions regarding the details, please comment in the forum.

 

Pontevedra 2022 Race Review and Analysis

The Swim 

Mens Fastest time 18.41 (Athlete finished 18th)

Mens Fastest time in top 10 18.43 (Athlete finished 9th)

Mens Slowest swim time in top 10 19.45 (Athlete finished 3rd)

Mens Winners swim time 19.21 (Athlete was in the last 10 out of the water)

Womens Fastest time 19.12 (Athlete finished 13th)

Womens Fastest time in top 10 19.14 (Athlete finished 10th)

Womens Slowest time in top 10 20.46 (Athlete finished 6th)

Womens Winners swim time 20.05 (Athlete close to mid field out of the water)

The Bike

Mens Fastest time 56.24 (Athlete finished 3rd)

Mens Fastest time in top 10 56.24 (Athlete finished 3rd)

Mens slowest time in top 10 57.03 (2 Athletes rode this time, finishing 7th and 9th)

Mens Winners bike time 56.26

Womens Fastest time 1.01.34 (2 Athletes rode this time, finishing in 6th and 18th)

Womens Fastest time in top 10 1.01.34

Womens slowest time in top 10 1.02.18 (2 Athletes rode this time, finishing 1st and 8th)

Winners bike time 1.02.18

The Run

Mens Fastest time 29.45 (Athlete finished 1st)

Mens Fastest time in top 10 29.45 (Athlete finished 1st)

Mens Slowest time in top 10 30.36 (Athlete finished 10th)

Mens Winners run time 29.45

Womens Fastest time 33.28 (Athlete finished 1st)

Womens Fastest time in top 10 33.28

Womens slowest time in top 10 35.44

Womens Winners run time 33.28

Race Analysis

Pre race, due to the current nature of International travel there were a number of  athletes who were missing luggage and bikes.  It is really important for athletes to plan for problems with travel.  World Triathlon has a list of items athletes should consider adding to hand luggage when travelling to events here  https://education.triathlon.org/mod/book/view.php?id=5696&chapterid=21538), in the event their equipment and bags do not arrive.  Athletes should always travel with details of the measurements and setup of their bikes too, as several athletes were racing on borrowed bikes in Pontevedra. 

The swim was typical of a world class triathlon, with swim specialists working hard to drop the main field.  This was a little more successful in the women than the men.  Several athletes were disqualified for not rounding a buoy – most likely due to the current in the river.  This is a known factor at Pontevedra and the athletes should have been aware of this.

Transition 1 had an extremely close mount line to those athletes racked in lower numbers.  Due to the line being so close to the racks, these athletes were forced to mount without any substantial momentum which hopefully will be rectified prior to the next race in Pontevedra.

The bike course was not particularly technical, although there was a tight corner athletes had to negotiate exiting the stadium.  This was the area of one crash in the men's race.  The lack of technical areas and hills contributed to the women's race to be a race of 2 packs on the bike.  For most of the race there were 5 riders in a lead bunch and everyone else in a chase bunch.  Bit by bit the lead group edged ahead to lead into T2 just over 1.30 ahead.  

The bike course did not contain any challenging climbs or descents, nor notable technical sections.  There were many speed bumps, but technically the bike course did not permit anyone with strength and/or technical skills to demonstrate their prowess.  That said anyone that was truly powerful could have bridged from the chase pack to the lead pack had they been so inclined. Particularly early in the race the gap from the chase pack was no more than about 20 seconds.  The lead group were strong and determined to stay away, and there was no organisation to catch from group 2.

The run was the defining part of the race.  Tertsch (GER) was the first to show running prowess to run down  Waugh (GBR) before she tired and was run down by Kurikova (CZE) who ran well with a split 24 seconds faster than Tertsch by 12 seconds.  Dodet (FRA) also ran through the field for 3rd and Waugh tired to run a 4th place.  The defining part of the run was a small 30 metre incline from transition to the town centre, though not severe enough during each of the 8 laps to make a difference.  The downhill from the City centre was run well by Kurikova and was significant in her fastest run split to win in 1.57.43 and record her first win in 128 race starts.

The men’s race was similar in many ways to the women’s race.  The two main differences were there was no lead pack on the bike so the whole bike was once again a large group for just about all 8 laps.  There were some early disorganised small group attacks on the bike, but these were caught and all athletes involved did not feature at the front of the race again. 

The run was also very decisive and the most aggressive athletes remained the podium athletes.  Baxter-Cabrera (ESP), Serrat-Seoane (ESP) and Studer (SUI) took control of the race by the end of lap 1 and ran away from the rest of the field. The gradient leading to the Town Centre was again the difference with Baxter-Cabrera using it to wear down the other two leaders to finish in 1.47.03.

The men's time was 93% of the women winning time, which was a fast time for the women.  The reason for the fast women’s tine, relative to the Men’s was most likely due to a lead pack pushing the pace in the Women’s race while the men all just sat in one large pack.

Conclusion

The run was once again the defining leg.  No swimmer was able to hold a lead and no bike rider made any impact on the race outcome, so, the two fastest runners in the Men’s and Women’s races were the race winners.  Both runs to win each of the races were spectacular.  The narrow course, the ascent and descent on each of the 8 laps challenged each winner and close competitors.  The top 10 in both the men’s and the women’s race was exactly the top 10 fastest runners.

I hope the above helps you develop your racing strategies.

Emma Carney

 

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