Heather Fuhr wins again

Heather Fuhr wins again

Heather Fuhr earned her fifth Ford Ironman USA Lake Placid title, the 14th Ironman win of her incredible career, by outrunning Kim Loeffler, Heather Gollnick and Karen Smyers to the line.

The runner-up at the Ford Ironman Championship last year, Heather Fuhr was pretty much everyone’s pick as the woman to beat at the Ford Ironman USA Lake Placid triathlon. The fact that she’s won here four times before, not to mention the nine other titles she’s won during her incredible career, only solidified the feeling during race week that this was Fuhr’s race to lose.

 

 

Fuhr was quick to point out that, as a “women’s only” championship, this race was incredibly competitive. She learned the hard way a year ago here in Lake Placid that it was possible to take a flyer on this bike course (as Kate Major did here in setting a new bike course record last year) and come off the bike so far ahead that even a 3:04 marathon wouldn’t be enough to get a win. She knew that no one would hand her the win.

 

Major wasn’t here to do her biking magic this year, but that didn’t mean the race would be any easier for Fuhr. Many women in the field were salivating over the idea that they would have a 35-minute head start on the age-group men. This was to be the women’s equivalent of the men’s only prize money race at Ford Ironman Coeur d’Alene last month. There was $50,000 in prize money to be divvied up to the first 10 professional women across the line, not to mention eight qualifying spots for the Ford Ironman World Championship in October.

 

That 35-minute lead meant that strong swim/ bike athletes like Andrea Fisher, Tereza Macel and Dede Griesbauer could blast through the first two legs of the race without the hindrance of any age-group men in the hopes of opening up a huge gap on the faster runners in the field like Fuhr and Kim Loeffler.

 

In the end, though, only Macel was able to follow through on that race plan, although she wasn’t able to open up a huge lead on the fast runners behind her. The Czech-born triathlete who has lived in Canada most of her life led through the entire bike ride after coming out of the water with Fisher, Griesbauer and Hillary Biscay.

 

Macel’s swim partners were all passed by the other contenders during the ride, and, by the end of the challenging Lake Placid bike course, Macel’s lead was just a few minutes over a group of the toughest women the sport has ever seen.

 

Loeffler was on to the run course a few minutes ahead of three-time Ironman winner Heather Gollnick, Fuhr and former Ford Ironman World Champion Karen Smyers. Within a few miles Loeffler, who has a twin sister who is one of America’s premier marathon runners, had passed Macel to take the lead.

 

A lead she would hold for a grand total of three minutes and 50 seconds. It took exactly that long for Fuhr to run past the 32-year-old Vermonter to take the lead she wouldn’t relinquish for the rest of the day. It wasn’t an easy pass, though. Loeffler stayed with the Canadian, and the two looked like they were competing in a 10km race as they pushed each other for the lead.

 

Fuhr would eventually pull away, though, and never looked back as she cruised to a 3:09:11 marathon split to win by more than four minutes.

 

Fuhr attributed the win to a great bike ride, saying that she was thrilled to see that she wasn’t behind by a “double-digit” deficit as she started the marathon.

 

“I had to be that close off the bike,” Fuhr said after the race. “Kim is such a strong runner that I was really worried.”

 

Worried or not, Fuhr proved once again why she will long be remembered as one of the best this sport has ever seen. Only Paula Newby-Fraser has won more Ironman races than Fuhr.

 

The battle for third was waged between two of the fastest Ironman moms on the planet. Heather Gollnick was met by her three children after she came across the line in third. Karen Smyers was met by her two when she came across in fourth.

Alexis Waddel managed to run her way to a great fifth finish to round out the top-five places.

 

While the day was supposed to be a showcase the women, Tony Delogne managed to get to the line ahead of the women, despite the women’s 35-minute head start.

 

Originally from Belgium, Delogne makes Dedham, Massachusetts, his home these days.

 

His nickname is “money” – that’s because, according to his friends, he always finishes in the money.

 

While his amazing sub-nine hour Ironman debut won’t net him any prize money today, he sure was “in-the-money” with his first place men’s performance.

 

Delogne felt that if he was to have any chance of beating the women across the line, and going under nine hours, he would have to beat the women off the bike.

 

His first 56-miles of biking took a grand total of 2:18. The second 56 took 2:25. It made for a 4:43 bike split, the third fastest this course has ever seen. The only two men who have biked faster than Delogne are two “no-names” in the sport – Steve Larsen and Thomas Hellriegel. (Of course those two really aren’t “no-names” … they are two of the best riders the sport has ever seen!)

 

Delogne finished that up with a solid 3:13 marathon, which got him to the line in 8:56:11. Even with a 35-minute head start the women couldn’t compete with that!

 

His wife, Marg, met the 31-year-old swim coach at the line – a great way to finish off a great Ironman debut!

 

The seventh running of the Ford Ironman USA Lake Placid Triathlon also featured some incredible fundraising efforts through the Janus Charity Challenge. Pat LaFontaine, possibly the greatest American to ever play in the NHL competed in his second Ironman triathlon here today. Today was also the first step in a $750,000 fundraising effort by Brad Henry as he raises money for Cure Autism Now.

 

For a complete rundown on the incredible day of racing at the Ford Ironman USA Lake Placid Triathlon, click on the live coverage banner on the top of the page.

 

Women’s Field

1.         Heather Fuhr, Canada, 9:45:06

2.         Kim Loeffler, Colchester, Vt., 9:49:44

3.         Heather Gollnick, Bradenton, Fla., 10:01:47

4.         Karen Smyers, Lincoln, Mass., 10:04:17

5.         Alexis Waddel, Carmel, Calif., 10:10:16

6.         Marie Danais, Canada, 10:11:43

7.         Charlene Waldner, Canada, 10:18:19

8.         Dede Griesbauer, Boston, Mass., 10:20:44

9.         Karyn Ballance, New Zealand, 10:29:26

10.       Hillary Biscay, Manhattan, Calif., 10:31:33

 

Men’s Field

1.         Tony Delogne, Dedham, Mass., 8:56:11

2.         Stefan Kramer, Germany, 9:22:52

3.         Pierre Lavoie, Canada, 9:27:22

4.         Carmen Monks, Belmont, Mass., 9:30:29

5.         Doug Clark, Morristown, N.J., 9:37:01

6.         Jody Sanderson, Canada, 9:37:41

7.         Vaughn Cooper, Dover, N.H., 9:38:17

8.         David Nerrow, Acton, Mass., 9:40:01

9.         Jefferson Hartman, Martinez, Calif., 9:41:12

10.       Jeffrey Hunt, Lake Placid, N.Y., 9:41:41