ITU World Championship Series
USA Triathlon
June 5, 2011 (Madrid, Spain) – USA Triathlon National Team member Jarrod Shoemaker finished 20th at Saturday’s ITU World Championship Series stop in Madrid to lead a trio of U.S. men in action.
Shoemaker (Maynard, Mass.) covered the Olympic-distance course in 1 hour, 53 minutes, 52 seconds. He finished strong on the run, logging a 31:17 10-kilometer split for the 10th-fastest effort on the day. Shoemaker was just 48 seconds out of a top-10 finish.
Greg Bennett (Boulder, Colo.) placed 33rd in 1:54:38, and Manuel Huerta (Miami, Fla.) finished 39th 1:54:55.
Brothers Alistair and Jonathan Brownlee of Great Britain recorded a one-two finish with Spain’s Javier Gomez rounding out the podium.
In the women’s race on Sunday, USA Triathlon National Team members Sarah Groff and Laura Bennett recorded top-eight finishes at Madrid’s Casa de Campo Park.
Groff (Hanover, N.H.) posted a time of 2 hours, 5 minutes, 28 seconds to earn a career-best seventh-place finish on the ITU World Championship Series circuit, besting an eighth-place effort in Hamburg, Germany, in 2010.
Bennett (Boulder, Colo.) crossed the line just five seconds behind Groff in eighth place to earn a sixth consecutive top-10 WCS showing dating to last season. She covered the Olympic-distance course in 2:05:33.
Groff and Bennett earned $3,600 and $3,000, respectively, for their efforts Sunday.
Currently the top two U.S. women in WCS rankings, Bennett and Groff stand fourth and 14th, respectively, following two events.
Fellow American Jillian Petersen (Colorado Springs, Colo.) finished 39th in 2:10:39 and stands 31st in the series rankings.
Canada’s Paula Findlay won for the fourth time in her last five WCS starts in 2:03:46, edging Great Britain’s Helen Jenkins by three seconds. France’s Emmie Charayron was third.
As she was in the series opener in Sydney, Bennett was one of the first athletes out of the water with Groff and Findlay on her heels. The two packs that were established early on the bike quickly merged to form a group of 16 that would determine the podium. Findlay ran from the front for much of the 10k and pulled away over the final 400 meters to secure the win.
The seven-race WCS is a key proving ground for the United States’ top triathletes aiming for a spot on the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team. In addition to racing for WCS points, athletes also will be looking to earn points toward securing a spot for their country at the 2012 Olympic Triathlon in London.
Highlights of this year’s World Championship Series schedule include the first qualifier for the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team in London on August 6-7 and the Grand Final on the 2008 Olympic course in Beijing on September 10-11.
The series resumes June 18-19 in Kitzbuhel, Austria, with event No. 3.
Men
1. Alistair Brownlee (GBR), 1:51:06
2. Jonathan Brownlee (GBR), 1:51:09
3. Javier Gomez (ESP), 1:51:51
20. Jarrod Shoemaker (Maynard, Mass.), 1:53:52
33. Greg Bennett (Boulder, Colo.), 1:54:38
39. Manuel Huerta (Miami, Fla.), 1:54:55
Women
1. Paula Findlay (CAN), 2:03:46
2. Helen Jenkins (GBR), 2:03:49
3. Emmie Charayron (FRA), 2:03:58
7. Sarah Groff (Hanover, N.H.), 2:05:28
8. Laura Bennett (Boulder, Colo.), 2:05:33
39. Jillian Petersen (Colorado Springs, Colo.), 2:10:39
DNF Gwen Jorgensen (Milwaukee, Wis.)
