week-end> Ironman San Juan 70.3

No Juan Pelota (BrasFort™ = Lance Armstrong) as secretly expected, but a pretty strong field is here and should be ready to compete. It’s an P-750 race. Only, Continental championship races offer more points (P-1500).

Et non, Juan Pelota aka BrasFort™ aka Lance Armstrong ne sera finalement pas présent à la course. Certains avaient vu une connexion entre son nom et cet événement. On pourra se consoler avec un plateau solide. Cette une course à 750 points. Seulement les championnats continental de l’univer offrent plus de points (1500).

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Headlined by Ford Ironman World Champion Chris McCormack, Ironman 70.3 San Juan promises to be one of the most exciting pro races of the 70.3 season. As I previewed the course with race organizer Arturo Diaz last week, I pointed out the point where I figured Macca would likely try to test his competition.

“If there are a bunch of pros together starting the run, Macca is going to put a little pressure on right here,” I said as we started up a slight rise that comes just a few hundred meters into the run course. “It won’t be a big move, just enough to force everyone to commit to a whole lot of pain for the next 13 miles.” I can’t even begin to imagine how fast the field will be moving once they hit the pictured stretch along the magnificent wall that once protected the oldest city in the United States.

What’s even more frightening, if you’re one of the male pros planning on competing in San Juan, is the fact that even if it’s not Macca trying to make a statement, a literal who’s who of 70.3 racing could step in to make this an interesting day. With Ironman champs like McCormack, Luke McKenzie, Oscar Galindez and Chris McDonald, world champions Paul Amey and Tim O’Donnell and Ironman 70.3 winners Richie Cunningham and Maxime Kriat in the field, the winner of Ironman 70.3 San Juan is going to earn his $7,000 share of the $50,000 prize purse.

Trimes favorites for this race > Maxim Kriat, Richie Cunningham (2nd always), Tim O’Donnell (2nd of 2nd always).

 

MALE
1)Chris McCormack
2)Luke McKenzie
3)Oscar Galindez
4)Chris McDonald
5)Ricchie Cunningham
6)Paul Amey
7)Tim O’Donnell
8)Michael Lovato
9)Maxim Kriat
10)Justin Daerr
11)Tony White
12)Patrick Evoe
13)David Khan
14)Jim Lubinski
15)Marko Albert
16)Andres Castillo
17)Trevor Delsaut
18)Jeff Paul
19)Victor Manuel del Corral
20)Will Smith
21)Joe McDaniel
22)Edgardo Velez
23)Brent Poulsen

Van Vlerken arrives as favorite
The women’s race should be every bit as exciting. Yvonne van Vlerken is no stranger to winning around the world (her dramatic sprint to take the Ironman 70.3 Austria title last year was one of the most exciting finishes of the year), but with two wins at Ironman Cozumel she seems to be especially at home in the warm Caribbean climate. She’ll have her work cut out for her, though, with the likes of multi-world champion Michellie Jones and 2004 Long Distance world champion Tamara Kozulina in the field. The world champs are hardly the only women van Vlerken will have to worry about – Angela Naeth came second in six Ironman 70.3 events last year, so you know she’s going to be very determined to move one step further up the podium. Multiple Ironman champion Nina Kraft will also be competing, too. (On a pure popularity scale, multiple Ironman champion Fernanda Keller will garner lots of attention, too.)

FEMALE
1)Yvonne Van Vlerken
2)Nina Kraft
3)Amanda McKenzie
4)Emily Cocks
5)Margaret Shapiro
6)Alessandra Carvalho
7)Heidi Jesberger
8)Eva Dollinger
9)Morgan Chaffin
10)Fernanda Keller
11)Kelly Williamson
12)Amy Kirkham
13)Angela Naeth
14)Michellie Jones
15)Erin Spitler
16)Amanda Lovato
17)Tamara Kozulina
18)Anna Cleaver

Originally from: http://ironman.com/events/ironman70.3/sanjuan70.3/kevin-mackinnon-previews-the-ironman-70.3-san-juan-pro-race#ixzz1GrhzYf3e