Riveros, Ascenco win Ironman 70.3 Pucon
Barbara Riveros of Chile and Santiago Ascenco of Brazil won the pro titles at Ironman 70.3 Pucon.
Women
Chile’s greatest woman triathlete added another star to her crown with a record 5th straight victory at her home country Ironman 70.3 Pucon triathlon Sunday.
Riveros broke out of a tight duel over the swim and bike legs with fellow Chilean Macarena Salazar Ezquerra and U.S. star Alicia Kaye on the strength of a dominating 1:27:32 half marathon, to finish in 4:30:07 with a 5:55 margin of victory over Kaye and 7:06 over 3rd place finisher Ezquerra.
Riveros emerged from the water with a 4 seconds deficit to swim leader Macarena Salazar Ezquerra. After a 2:30:16 bike split which tied Alicia Kaye for the women’s best mark and was one second better than Salazar Ezquerra, Riveros led Kaye and Salazar Ezquerra by 3 seconds. Riveros then sped away from her rivals with a women’s-best run to take the victory.
Riveros’ 4:30:07 finish time was her second best at this race, coming after a 4:18:59 effort last year.
The win marks another highlight in Riveros’ acclaimed career which includes three Olympic appearances topped by a 5th place at Rio in 2016, 2nd at the 2018 ITU long distance World Championship, a win at the 2015 Pan Am Games, a win at the 2011 ITU sprint World championship, and a recent 2nd place at XTERRA Worlds. After signing with premiere triathlon coach Brett Sutton, the 31-year-old Chilean moved up to the Ironman distance and placed second at Ironman Western Australia last December.
Men
Santiago Ascenco of Brazil overcame a 1:58 deficit after the swim with a race-best 2:09:57 bike split and a race-best 1:17:55 run to finish in 3:59:33 with a 3:12 margin of victory over Andy Potts of the U.S. and 5:14 over 3rd place Felipe Barraza of Chile.
Ascenco came out of Lake Villarica with a 7th best swim split of 27:45 which left him 1:58 behind swim leader Felipe Barraza of Chile, 1:02 behind Andy Potts and Canadian Taylor Reid, and 1:05 behind Chilean Felipe Van De Wyngard. After a race-best 2:09:51 bike split, Ascenco entered T2 in second place, 18 seconds behind Van de Wyngard, 3 seconds ahead of Potts, 54 seconds behind Barraza, and 57 seconds behind Reid.
Ascenco cinched the deal with a dominating 1:17:55 half marathon – 3:03 faster than the next best run split of runner-up Potts – which brought the Brazilian to the line in 3:59:33 with a 3:12 margin of victory.
Ironman 70.3 Pucon
Pucon, Chile
January 13, 2019
S 1.2 mi. / B 56 mi. / R 13.1 mi.
Results
Women
1. Barbara Riveros (CHL) 4:30:07 S 28:13 T1 2:21 B 2:30:16 T2 1:47 R 1:27:32
2. Alicia Kaye (USA) 4:36:02 S 28:13 T1 2:21 B 2:30:16 T2 1:47 R 1:33:09
3. Macarena Salazar Ezquerra (CHL) 4:37:13 S 28:10 T1 2:25 B 2:30:17 T2 2:07 R 1:34:15
4. Elizabeth Bravo (ECU) 4:40:13 S 28:20 T1 2:40 B 2:36:19 T2 2:13 R 1:30:43
5. Romina Palacio (ARG) 4:46:40 S 29:26 T1 2:44 B 2:37:20 T2 2:30 R 1:34:42
Men
1. Santiago Ascenco (BRA) 3:59:33 S 27:45 T1 2:19 B 2:09:51 T2 1:45 R 1:17:55
2. Andy Potts (USA) 4:02:45 S 26:43 T1 2:30 B 2:10:44 T2 1:52 R 1:20:58
3. Felipe Barraza (CHL) 4:04:47 S 25:48 T1 2:11 B 2:12:49 T2 1:46 R 1:22:14
4. Felipe Van De Wyngard (CHL) 4:04:52 S 26:40 T1 2:34 B 2:10:23 T2 2:00 R 1:23:17
5. Taylor Reid (CAN) 4:07:48 S 26:44 T1 2:18 B 2:11:49 T2 2:00 R 1:24:59
