Taylormade Triathlon Club
Based in Melbourne's south-eastern suburbs. We are a triathlon club that caters for everyone from the seasoned triathlete to those yet to enter a race.

ITU World Championships Beijing 2011

BEIJING - ITU WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS - 9th to 11th September 2011

A great effort by Peter (report below) and Bill representing Australia in the Age Group World Championships.  Unfortunately, disappointing results from our elite men and women with no Australian finishing in the top ten.

AGE GROUP OLYMPIC (1500m Swim / 40km Bike / 10km Run)

CP  Time     Name          Cat    Swim   T1    Bike     T2    Run
26  2:25:21  Peter Rainey  M4549  23:48  2:29  1:12:12  1:55  44:58

AGE GROUP SPRINT (750m Swim / 20km Bike / 5km Run)

CP  Time     Name           Cat    Swim   T1    Bike   T2    Run
16  1:25:59  Bill Bardsley  M5559  17:25  2:45  41:58  1:53  22:00

AGE GROUP AQUATHLON (5km Run / 1km Swim / 5km Run)

CP  Time   Name         Cat   Run    T1    Swim   T2    Run
8   38:06  Peter Rainey M4549 10:22  0:37  16:07  1:06  10:54

ELITE MEN OLYMPIC (1500m Swim / 40km Bike / 10km Run)

OP  Time     Name                    Swim   T1    Bike     T2    Run
1   1:48:07  Alistair Brownlee  GBR  17:11  0:35  0:59:59  0:34  29:49
2   1:48:14  Sven Riederer      SUI  17:28  0:37  0:59:39  0:36  29:55
3   1:48:17  Jonathan Brownlee  GBR  17:11  0:37  0:59:57  0:34  29:59
31  1:50:46  Chris McCormack    AUS  18:14  0:34  1:00:07  0:32  31:20
DNF          Courtney Atkinson  AUS  17:19  0:36  0:59:54  0:32
DNF          Brad Kahlefeldt    AUS  17:28  0:35

ELITE WOMEN OLYMPIC (1500m Swim / 40km Bike / 10km Run)

OP  Time     Name                      Swim   T1    Bike     T2    Run
1   1:58:26  Andrea Hewitt        NZL  19:25  0:40  1:02:57  0:34  34:52
2   1:58:40  Helen Jenkins        GBR  19:11  0:41  1:03:12  0:41  34:57
3   1:58:58  Melanie Annaheim     SUI  19:19  0:40  1:03:06  0:37  35:18
11  2:00:42  Emma Moffatt         AUS  19:22  0:41  1:05:15  0:38  34:48
12  2:00:43  Emma Jackson         AUS  19:38  0:38  1:05:03  0:36  34:50
13  2:00:48  Felicity Abram       AUS  19:54  0:39  1:04:50  0:37  34:48
17  2:01:23  Emma Snowsill        AUS  19:41  0:40  1:05:03  0:37  35:24
DNF          Felicity Sheedy-Ryan AUS  20:30  0:40

BEIJING (2011 ITU WORLD CHAMPS) RACE REPORT from PETER RAINEY

Bill and I travelled to the Changping District in China, situated 70km North of Beijing.

I arrived in Beijing on time despite an unscheduled stop in Darwin due to a medical emergency. As expected it was warm and smoggy. On the way to the hotel the first thing that struck me was the lack of cars and people on the roads. With a population of 1.5 billion I was expecting a lot of vehicles and general chaos. The Hotel was comfortable and situated about 3.5km from transition. The food was also reasonable, much better than I expected. Communication was a challenge with hotel and event staff but in the end I always seemed to end up with a successful encounter.

The Australian team dinner was good with the elites each giving a short speech after they were presented their race uniform. The Parade of Nations and Opening ceremony was also very good.

Race Venue

I got Goosebumps once I got to the Olympic venue. It was such a delight to be on this course. The roads were perfect and the training rides safe and enjoyable. I got a little lost twice while riding the course. Another time the course was closed early which forced Bill and I to battle the traffic chaos with 20 other athletes through the local city to find our way back to the hotel.

Races

A few days before the Triathlon I did a Aquathlon (2.5km run - 1km swim - 2.5 km run). It was hot (30deg) and humid. I raced well, swimming from the back of the field to close to the front. My final run was solid and hard. The 2 hills in each run lap certainly make it extra difficult but I pushed through the pain to hold off a late charge from a fellow Aussie. I did end up with a blister and a strained calf but was very happy with my race.

Olympic Distance Race

The weather became cooler a few days before the Olympic distance race. The day before was wet all day so the Sprint race (Poor Bill) had very cold and difficult conditions. I thought we were back in Melbourne!

On race day the rain had stopped and roads were drying, which made me feel a lot better. My preparation was good with consistent training but the race itself was nothing to write home about. I expected to have a solid performance, but ended up not having my best day out.

The course was fantastic but the hardest I have encountered. The ride consisted of 3 laps. It started with a long incline and finished with some very fast technical switch backs into transition. The run had 2 hills, a long hill and a short sharp hill. The aquathlon had given me a taste of this run course and it certainly changed my mental approach to this race as I ended up being too conservative in all legs. As we know the mind is a powerful tool but when some self doubt creeps in it does make to hard to turn it around. A lesson to be learned and something to focus on in future races.

Overall a great trip. I met a great group of competitors from many countries. There was no access to Facebook, Twitter or Google. The  small part of China I experienced was very good. Photos are now on the Taylormade website.

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