Whistler, BC (August 25, 2013) – Trevor Wurtele (CAN) and Uli Bromme (USA) both came-from-behind to capture their first-ever IRONMAN titles in the postcard beautiful setting of Subaru IRONMAN Canada. Wurtele a British Columbia native won in front of his home crowd with a finish time of 8:39:33 while Bromme–who trains in Boulder, Colo.–earned her first win with a time of 9:28:13.
In the men’s race Bryan Rhodes (AUS) was the first out of Alta Lake with Dominik Berger (AUT), Andy Russell (CAN) and Jonathan Caron (CAN) following the Kiwi into transition. A pair of race favorites, Wurtele and Matt Russell (USA) were looking at 5:42 and almost ten minutes, respectfully, to make up early into the race.
Out on the bike, Rhodes rode hard but paid for it dearly as he later cracked from the effort, but not before he won the Timex Bike Course prime. Meanwhile, Dominick Berger (AUT) was the recipient of Rhodes misfortune during the opening half of the ride and laid claim to the lead while Andy Russell worked his way into third. Lieto and Paul Amey (GBR) were just under five minutes biking in fourth and fifth, with Wurtele and Matt Russell fading back to over seven minutes out of the lead.
Over the final 50 miles, Matt Russell found his legs and hastily made his way towards the front of the race as did Wurtele and Lieto. Coming into T2, Lieto, Matt Russell and Wurtele dismounted their bikes together and headed out on the run to settle the battle.
It was apparent from the beginning of the run that the race would come down to either Matt Russell or Wurtele, as Lieto fell off the pace. The lead pair ran together for five miles when Wurtele methodically inched away from the 2012 Subaru IRONMAN Canada champion. By seven miles, the elastic had snapped as Wurtele had stretched his lead to almost a minute. He continued to extend his lead until he reached the finish line to capture the 2013 Subaru IRONMAN Canada in Whistler with a 5:42 winning margin over Matt Russell. Amey had an amazing race, considering he raced last weekend at Subaru IRONMAN North American Championship Mount-Tremblant.
Early on the bike, Anderson and Tanaka exchanged leads as Bromme was storming towards the front of the race. Bromme powered her way to the lead before the first half of the bike was completed and managed to carry a seven minute advantage over Anderson and Fletcher at the conclusion of the 112 mile ride.
Out on the run, Bromme dominated the field as she powered her way over the gorgeous two-loop run course. Bromme was never pressured over the 26 miles as she ran her way to win the Subaru IRONMAN Canada title with a time of 9:28:13. Ribes ran her way into second and recorded a 09:38:34 finish time, while Gillian Moody (USA) finished on the podium with a 9:49:09 clocking.
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One of more than 30 events in the global IRONMAN Series, Subaru IRONMAN Canada featured a two-loop, 2.4-mile swim in the clean shallow waters of Alta Lake at Rainbow Park. Athletes enjoyed a lakeside transition before starting a one-loop 112-mile bike course that traveled south on the Sea-to-Sky Highway before climbing into the Callaghan Valley, site of the Nordic skiing events during the 2010 Winter Olympics. After descending back to the highway, athletes passed through Whistler on their way north to Pemberton. An out-and-back section allowed athletes breathtakingly beautiful views of glaciated peaks, while racing on a completely flat section of road. Athletes returned to Whistler via the Sea-to-Sky Highway over rolling terrain. The two-loop run course followed the Valley Trail past Lost Lake and Green Lake allowing an enthusiastic crowd of spectators to reinvigorate athletes at Whistler Village before finishing adjacent to the Olympic Plaza. The event offered a total professional prize purse of $75,000 and 100 coveted slots to the 2013 IRONMAN World Championship, taking place on Oct. 12 in Kailua-Kona, Hawai`i.Source:IRONMAN.com
