Sarah True, Jesse Thomas win Augusta 70.3
After knocking on the door all year, Sarah True won her first Ironman 70.3 race at Augusta. Six-time Wildflower winner Jesse Thomas also won his first 70.3 race of 2017.
True led the swim, finished the bike leg in third position, 5 seconds behind Cecilia Hayes-Davis, then jetted away with a women’s-fastest 1:22:34 half marathon to finish in 4:11:23 with a 4:40 margin of victory over Gurutze Frades of Spain and 5:04 over 3rd place Alissa Doehla of the U.S.
True finally made it into the top spot on a 70.3 the podium this year after a 2nd at Mont Tremblant, 3rd at Edinburgh, and 4th at the Ironman 70.3 World Championship in Chattanooga.
Thomas overcame an 8th place 1:36 deficit on the swim with a 2nd best 2:03:28 bike split that advanced him to 2nd place 6 seconds behind bike leader Kieran Roche at T2. Thomas took the lead at Mile 4 and finished with a race-best 1:12:48 run to complete the course in 3:42:14 with a 1:11 margin of victory over Andy Potts and 3:34 over 3rd place Kieran Roche of Australia.
Thomas broke through with a 2017 win after 2nd place finishes at Ironman 70.3s in Peru and Liuzhou.
Women
True led the swim with a 22:18 split that gave her a 40 seconds lead on Laura Matthews, 42 seconds on Melanie McQuaid of Canada, 43 seconds on Alycia Hill, 44 seconds on Emma-Kate Lidbury, 47 seconds on Alissa Doehla, and 2:42 and 2:46 on late race contenders Gurutze Frades and Cecilia Davis-Hayes.
Halfway through the 56-mile bike leg, McQuaid of Canada took a 3 seconds lead on True, 1:06 on Doehla, 1:55 on Davis-Hayes, 2:02 on Lidbury, and 2:05 on Frades. After a women's-fastest 2:19:31bike split, Davis-Hayes arrived first woman in T2 with a 3 seconds lead on McQuaid and 5 seconds on True, who rode a women’s 4th best 2:22:42.
At the end of the first mile of the run, True took command by 15 seconds on Davis-Hayes, 29 seconds on McQuaid, and 1:52 on Frades. After 4 miles, True widened her margin to 1:41 over Davis-Hayes, 2:01 on McQuaid, Doehla by 2:28, and Frades by 2:46.
After a women’s-best 1:22:34 run, True finished in 4:11:23 with a 4:40 margin on Frades and 5:04 on Doehla.
Men
Potts led the swim with a 20:35 split which gave him a 1 second lead on Kieran Roche, 3 seconds on Cameron Good, and 5 seconds on Eric Limkemann, with final contenders Jesse Thomas and Matthew Russell 1:36 arrears.
Halfway through the bike leg, Limkemann led a pack of 6 men – including Potts, Good, Robbie Wade, Roche, Russell, and Thomas – by a gap ranging from 2 to 13 seconds. At T2, Roche led Potts by 6 seconds, Limkemann by 8 seconds, Russell by 22 seconds, and Thomas by 1:04.
After 4 miles of the run, Thomas led by 25 seconds on Roche, 44 seconds on Potts, 59 seconds on Russell, and 2:45 on Limkemann. After 9.7 miles, Thomas led Potts by 58 seconds, Roche by 1:54 and Russell by 3:39.
After a race-best 1:12:48 run, Thomas finished in 3:42:14 with a 1:11 margin on runner-up Potts and 3:34 on 3rd place Roche.
Ironman 70.3 Augusta
Augusta, Georgia
September 24, 2017
S 1.2 mi. / B 56 mi. / R 13.1 mi.
Results
WOMEN
1. Sarah True (USA) 4:11:23 S 22:18 B 2:22:42 R 1:22:34
2. Gurutze Frades (ESP) 4:16:03 S 25:00 B 2:20:50 R 1:25:47
3. Alissa Doehla (USA) 4:16:27 S 23:05 B 2:23:50 R 1:25:33
4. Cecilia Davis-Hayes (USA) 4:18:01 S 25:03 B 2:19:31 R 1:29:13
5. Nicole Valentine (USA) 4:20:04 S 24:09 B 2:23:48 R 1:27:31
MEN
1. Jesse Thomas (USA) 3:42:14 S 22:10 B 2:03:28 R 1:12:48
2. Andy Potts (USA) 3:43:25 S 20:35 B 2:05:53 R 1:13:01
3. Kieran Roche (AUS) 3:45:48 S 20:36 B 2:05:43 R 1:15:51
4. Matthew Russell (USA) 3:47:29 S 22:11 B 2:02:46 R 1:18:44
5. Eric Limkemann (USA) 3:50:28 S 20:40 B 2:05:51 R 1:19:58
