Triathlon champions Daniela Ryf and Javier Gomez opened their 2017 accounts with a win at IRONMAN 70.3 Dubai.
Swiss Ryf The 35-year-old winner Swiss came off the bike in fourth place, but made up for it and controlled the race from the bike course to defend her title. A little drama began in T2 when Kaisa Lehtonen of Finland, couldn’t find her running shoes. She continued partly barefoot and eventually managed to finish in fifth place.
Spaniard Gomez took victory with a great run by passing the strong Australian Josh Amberger and opening up a 6 minute lead. Gomez had to miss the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio after a bad crash three weeks prior to the event, and he seems to be back on a winning streak on the long course circuit. The 33-year-old is planning for the IRONMAN 70.3 World championship in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and also considering an IRONMAN debut in November.
Top 5 Pro Men
| 1 | Gomez, Javier | ESP | 0:24:11 | 2:03:52 | 1:10:44 | 3:42:21 |
| 2 | Amberger, Josh | AUS | 0:23:40 | 2:01:10 | 1:16:01 | 3:44:38 |
| 3 | Wild, Ruedi | CHE | 0:26:11 | 2:02:05 | 1:12:37 | 3:44:59 |
| 4 | Butterfield, Tyler | BMU | 0:24:31 | 2:00:14 | 1:16:13 | 3:45:10 |
| 5 | Plese, David | SVN | 0:26:44 | 2:01:35 | 1:13:49 | 3:46:04 |
Top 5 Pro Women
| 1 | Ryf, Daniela | CHE | 0:26:45 | 2:09:52 | 1:20:22 |
| 2 | Salthouse, Ellie | AUS | 0:26:42 | 2:11:04 | 1:21:19 |
| 3 | Crowley, Sarah | AUS | 0:27:13 | 2:14:28 | 1:19:54 |
| 4 | Pallant, Emma | GBR | 0:28:31 | 2:16:18 | 1:18:21 |
| 5 | Lehtonen, Kaisa | FIN | 0:28:30 | 2:13:11 | 1:20:10 |
Source: Ironman.com
