Rolli rolls, Radka runs to win Davao 70.3
Markus Rolli of Germany unleashed a dominating 2:00:50 bike split and Radka Kahlefeldt of the Czech Republic closed out her win with a 1:25:11 half marathon to win the elite titles at Ironman 70.3 Davao.
Men
Coming off a rewarding training stint in Thailand, Rolli opened with a second-best 23:22 swim split and then shut the door on his competition with a 2:00:50 bike split that was 6 minutes better than his nearest chasers. While his 4th best 1:22:18 half marathon gave back 5:05 to 3-time Ironman and 2-time Ironman 70.3 World Champion Craig Alexander (race-best 1:17:14 run), Rolli had banked enough of a lead to finish in 3:49:29 with a 2:52 margin of victory over the remarkable 45-year-old Alexander and 3:35 over 3rd-place finisher Tim Van Berkel of Australia (1:17:45 run).
Women
Radka Kahlefeldt opened with a women’s second-fastest 26:55 swim split that put her 39 seconds behind Manami Iijima of Guam, just 3 seconds ahead of chief rival Caroline Steffen of Switzerland and 14 seconds ahead of Kirralee Seidel of Australia. Kahlefeldt and Steffen took charge of the race as they posted 2:21:49 and 2:21:48 bike splits to hit T2 in close proximity, 5 minutes clear of Seidel and 6 minutes ahead of Dimity Lee Duke of Australia.
Kahlefeldt and Steffen remained locked together 6 kilometers into the run, then Kahlefeldt edged ahead by 16 seconds at the 8.4 kilometer mark. After her race-best 1:25:11 half marathon, Kahlefeldt finished in 4:16:52 with a 2:36 margin of victory over Steffen (1:27:47 run) and 11:45 over 3rd-place Seidel (1:31:23 run).
Kahlefeldt thus defended her 2018 Davao 70.3 title – which was her first win back just 11 weeks after the birth of her first child. Kahlefeldt’s win this year was even more impressive as she had to scramble to get a replacement ride after her new bike arrived in the Philippines with a cracked frame.
Alveo Ironman 70.3 Davao
Davao, Philippines
March 24, 2019
S 1.2 mi. / B 56 mi. / R 13.1 mi.
Results
Men
1. Markus Rolli (GER) 3:49:29 S 23:22 T1 1:21 B 2:00:50 T2 1:38 R 1:22:19
2. Craig Alexander (AUS) 3:52:21 S 25:19 T1 1:30 B 2:07:00 T2 1:20 R 1:17:14
3. Tim Van Berkel (AUS) 3:53:05 S 25:19 T1 1:28 B 2:06:59 T2 1:35 R 1:17:45
4. Tim Reed (AUS) 3:57:18 S 24:02 T1 1:17 B 2:08:28 T2 1:35 R 1:21:58
5. Sam Betten (AUS) 3:59:21 S 23:26 T1 1:23 B 2:08:48 T2 1:16 R 1:24:30
Women
1. Radka Kahlefeldt (CZE) 4:16:52 S 26:55 T1 1:24 B 2:21:49 T2 1:34 R 1:25:11
2. Caroline Steffen (SUI) 4:19:28 S 26:58 T1 1:24 B 2:21:48 T2 1:33 R 1:27:47
3. Kirralee Seidel (AUS) 4:28:37 S 27:07 T1 1:26 B 2:26:53 T2 1:50 R 1:31: 23
4. Dimity Lee Duke (AUS) 4:32:41 S 29:35 T1 1:32 B 2:25:39 T2 1:46 R 1:34:11
5. Lisa Tyack (AUS) 4:39:19 S 32:04 T1 1:29 B 2:32:52 T2 1:36 R 1:31:20
