By HENRY EMPEÑO

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT — Professional athlete Nick Baldwin of Seychelles made history here on Sunday, June 3, by becoming both the champion in the first full Ironman to be held in the Philippines and the first Seychellois to win the Ironman event.

The 30-year old Baldwin, who was first place in the recent 2018 Seychelles Eco Friendly Marathon and third place in the 2017 Ironman 70.3 Japan, topped the Subic race with a time of eight hours, 50 minutes and 13 seconds.

He was followed by two New Zealand athletes: Cameron Brown, a 12-time Ironman New Zealand champion, with a time of 08:56:49; and Simon Cochrane, third-placer in the 2018 ironman Taiwan, with 08:58:58.

Spain’s Eneko Elosegui was at fourth place with 09:35:38; the Philippines’ August Benedicto with 09:48:46 at fifth; and Freddy Lampret of South Africa at sixth place with 09:51:21.

Two other professional Filipino triathletes came next: Benjamin Rana, at 10:13:01, and John Philip Dueñas, at 10:27:33.

On the other hand, the Pro Women’s group was dominated by Australian triathletes led by Liz Blatchford with a time of 9:22:22.

Blatchford, who was first place in Ironman Cairns for three consecutive years in 2013, 2014 and 2015, was followed by compatriots Dimity Lee Duke, first place in the 2017 Pro Female Subic Bay 5150, with 09:40:45; and Simon Maier, first in the ITU Southland Champs in Wanaka, New Zealand in 2016, with 09:47:39.

Other members of the Aussie pack came next: Julia Grant, at 09:57:09, and Alise Selsmark, at 10:13:48, to be followed by Jana Candrova of Czech Republic, 11:19:28 for seventh place, and Filipina Alexandra Ganzon , at eighth place with 11:21:29.

Meanwhile, the leaders in Ironman top age groups were Petr Lukosz of Czech Republic with 09:33:43 for men’s division, and Maki Nishioka of japan with 10:24:47 for the women’s division.

Half Ironman

Meanwhile, in the Ironman 70.3 half-triathlon event, Indonesian Andy Wibowo and Australian Brittany Campbell topped the men’s and women’s overall top age group races, respectively.

A wet morning sun somewhat diminished the difficulty of the Ironman 70.3 event here on Sunday, catapulting Wibowo to the finish line in 4:39:39.

Campbell, meanwhile, ruled the women’s overall with a record of 5:10:48, and, like the other early finishers, thanked the rains for cooling things down.

In the men’s groupings, Indian triathlete Pankaj Ravalu topped the 18-24 age group with a time of 05:15:20, while Italian Giovanni Bella led in the 25-29 age group with 04:48:42.

Meanwhile, N.E. Mejares dominated the 30-34 grouping with 05:00:09, as Guido Klingbell checked in at 05:16:06 for the win in the 40-44 group.

The other winners were VLC Bernia (45-49 age group) at 05:20:24; Lance Watson (50-54), 05:24:46; Koji Muroya (55-59), 05:21:21; T. Kobayashi (60-64), 06:32:33, and Kevin Brewer (70-74), with a time of 07:20:42.

The women’s groupings were topped by Campbell for the 25-29 age group; British Claire Walton (30-34), with a time of five hours, 15 minutes and 22 seconds; Inge Prasetyo (35-39), 05:22:00; Carly Relf (40-44), 06:01:46; Anna Willett (45-49), 05:31:18; Janine Campbell (50-54), 06:07:41; and Laura Sophiea (60-64), 06:03:01.

Historic

The 2018 Century Tuna Ironman event in Subic, which was presented by  Sunrise Events, marked the first time for the Philippines to host a full Ironman. It was held a full 10 years since the first Ironman 70.3 race in the country took off in Camarines Sur.

The inaugural Century Tuna Ironman Subic challenged the athletes with a course that began with a two loop, 1.9km ocean swim in Triboa Bay, starting and finishing at ACEA Resort, which also served as the first of the split transition areas.

From there, the full Ironman course brought the athletes and their bikes onto the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway for a 180-km ride up to the second transition at Remy Field, followed by a 42.2-km, two-loop marathon run in the Subic Bay Freeport.

The 2018 Subic event gave away a $25,000-purse, as well as 30 age group qualifying slots for the 2018 Ironman World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.

The shorter Ironman 70.3 did not give away prize money, but yielded 25 slots to the 2018 Ironman 70.3 World Championship in Nelson Mandela Bay, South Africa.

Other prizes include the Swim bonus, Bike Bonus, Run Bonus, and Fastest Swim/Bike/Run for Age Groupers; Sunrise Award: Overall Top Age Group Male and Female, for $500 each; and Century Ironman Team Award.

The vent also showcased the “Alab ng Puso” finisher’s medals, with a design created by noted Filipino sculptor Daniel dela Cruz to embody the athletes’ passion and love for the sports. The lace for the medals were created by dream weavers from Marawi City.

 

TOP PHOTO: Andy Wibowo of Indonesia makes a wet finish to top the Century Tuna Ironman 70.3 event at the Subic Bay Freeport (JUN DUMAGUING)