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Happenings Triathlon

Malaysian Jason Loh strikes podium at Powerman Asian Duathlon Championships 2017 in Putrajaya, Malaysia

Jason Loh (third from left), Malaysia’s Elite athlete finishes third in his category and fifth overall Elite at Powerman Asia Duathlon Championships 2017 in Malaysia.

Malaysia’s Elite triathlete, Jason Loh secured third place in the 2017 Powerman Asian Duathlon Championships male category with a total time of 02:52:19 held in Putrajaya, Malaysia. He also finished fifth in the overall Elite category which was won by Thomas Bruins from the Netherlands in 02:33:57 while Annamaria Eberhardt-Halas from Hungary topped the female elites in 02:52:05.

The highly anticipated Powerman Asia Duathlon Championships – Malaysia 2017 started with over 3,300 registered duathletes from around the world, taking on the run-bike-run course across Putrajaya. On the full course, the duathletes completed 10km of running followed by 60km of cycling and finishing with another 10km of running. In the short course, duathlete completed half the distances in all disciplines.

The ASTC Elite Men’s podium was dominated by Emmanuel Commendador and Joey Delos Reyes from the Philippines with champion and first runner-up respectively. Monica Torres (Philippines), Airi Sawada (Japan) and Mirasol Abad (Philippines) secured the top three spots of the ASTC Elite Women’s category.

“This can possibly be my fastest race among the five Powerman Malaysia edition I have participated. It was challenging due to the weather, but I was really pleased with my result,” mentioned Jason. He came in eighth in last year’s Powerman Asia Duathlon Championships – Malaysia edition.

Thomas Bruins wins the Powerman Asian Duathlon Championships 2017 in Putrajaya, Malaysia.

This was also Bruins’ third win in the Powerman series this year after securing his title in the inaugural Powerman Thailand and Powerman Indonesia.While commenting on today’s race, he added that “numerous long straights made the race highly competitive. With light rain that throughout the race that cools the environment, athletes were highly competitive.

“After today’s race, I will be taking a month break and continue with my preparations for the 2017 Zofingen ITU Powerman Long Distance Duathlon World Championships in Switzerland. I will return again to compete in this edition next year,” said Bruins.

The male category podium was followed by Matt Smith from Australia and Emmanuel Commendador from The Philippines, while the remaining spots for the female elite category were swept by Monica Torres from The Philippines and Alexandra McDougall from Australia.

Wet and gloomy start at the Powerman Malaysia 2017 in Putrajaya.

Powerman, the premier label for long-distance duathlon in the world, established its presence in Malaysia since 2002. Last year, its Malaysia edition was conferred as the ‘Largest Participation in a Duathlon Championship’ by the Malaysia Book of Records and was acknowledged as the world’s largest duathlon in a Powerman series by the International Powerman Association.

“The rapidly increasing interest in multi-sport is the primary catalysts for Powerman’s proliferation in Malaysia. We hope to expand our programme and cater to a wider audience next year. The addition of Powerkids in this year’s edition was a great success, and we will expect more to participate in 2018,” said Barbara Lam, Managing Director of E-Plus Entertainment Productions (M) Sdn Bhd.

200 children aged from 5 to 12 years old took part at the inaugural Powerkids yesterday. The grassroots programme initiated by the organiser, E-Plus Global Sdn Bhd, aim to nurture and develop more multi-sport athletes in the country.

Tony Nagamaiah, General Manager of Malaysia Major Events  added that the Malaysia race is the biggest race among global Powerman series.

“Powerman Malaysia has become an annual event for international sports enthusiasts to mark on their calendars. It has morphed into an iconic event that will not be missed by global athletes.”

The Powerman Asia Championship race will return to Putrajaya on Saturday, and Sunday, 3 and 4 March 2018.

Powerman Asia Duathlon Championships – Malaysia 2017 is organised by E-Plus Global Sdn Bhd; sanctioned by the Asian Triathlon Confederation (ASTC), International Powerman Association (IPA), and the Triathlon Association of Malaysia; supported by The Ministry of Tourism and Culture, Malaysia Major Events, Malaysia Truly Asia, Ministry of Youth and Sports, Perbadanan Putrajaya, 1 Malaysia Youth Cities, Optima Bike, Shimano and various other sponsors.

For more information, visit http://www.powermanmalaysia.com.