Ironman 70.3 Dublin: Susie Cheetham takes resounding win

GB’s Susie Cheetham went into Ironman 70.3 Dublin on Sunday (9th August) as a pre-race favourite, and she didn’t disappoint – posting the best women’s bike split by far to cross the line more than 7mins ahead of second-placed Sam Warriner (NZL).

Cheetham – who came second at 70.3 Staffs last June – was 2:30mins behind leader Emma Bilham (GBR) who posted a fast split of 31:22mins. Bilham was the first pro woman out of the water, just five seconds ahead of Warriner.

Bilham held her lead at the start of the bike, but Warriner made an early pass to take over the top spot. She led the race for more than 50km on the bike, until Cheetham was able to close the gap.

Thanks to her 2:25:08 bike split, Cheetham went into T2 with a two-minute lead over Warriner. Behind those two, Bilham and Sonja Tajsich (GER) entered the run course close together.

Cheetham held onto first place through the run to score the final victory, followed by Warriner in second and Taisich in third. Full results here.

Chevrot crushes the competition

In the men’s race, Chevrot came out of the water in third place just 4secs behind leader Fraser Cartmell (GBR), and two seconds behind Kevin Thornton (IRL).

The tiny lead group sailed away on the bike course, but Cartmell suffered a tire puncture at an early stage of the ride, eliminating him from the champion’s group. Chevrot powered on while Thornton lost some time on the second half of the ride.

When Chevrot jumped off his bike, he had a lead of 58secs over Markus Thomschke (GER), who eventually was able to make up ground after being almost three minutes behind in the water. Thornton was in third place, exactly 3mins adrift when he finished the bike.

Thanks to the fastest half marathon, Chevrot ended the day by taking the win with a huge lead ahead of Thomschke and Thornton. Full results here.

Top five women:

1.

Cheetham, Susie

GBR

00:33:52

02:25:08

01:23:00

04:27:09

2.

Warriner, Samantha

NZL

00:31:27

02:29:31

01:27:54

04:34:39

3.

Tajsich, Sonja

DEU

00:35:44

02:31:26

01:25:31

04:38:21

4.

Bilham, Emma

CHE

00:31:22

02:35:25

01:28:15

04:40:10

5.

Bartlett, Nikki

GBR

00:35:02

02:35:12

01:25:51

04:41:58

Array

Top five men:

1.

Chevrot, Denis

FRA

00:28:05

02:13:52

01:14:48

04:01:35

2.

Thomschke, Markus

DEU

00:30:59

02:11:59

01:18:34

04:06:18

3.

Thornton, Kevin

IRL

00:28:03

02:16:45

01:18:59

04:08:34

4.

Wade, Robbie

IRL

00:31:46

02:18:48

01:17:31

04:12:21

5.

Simon, Oliver

GBR

00:30:47

02:19:07

01:19:07

04:14:09

Array

Did you race in Dublin last Sunday? Let us know in the comments below!

GB’s Susie Cheetham went into Ironman 70.3 Dublin on Sunday (9th August) as a pre-race favourite, and she didn’t disappoint – posting the best women’s bike split by far to cross the line more than 7mins ahead of second-placed Sam Warriner (NZL).

Cheetham – who came second at 70.3 Staffs last June – was 2:30mins behind leader Emma Bilham (GBR) who posted a fast split of 31:22mins. Bilham was the first pro woman out of the water, just five seconds ahead of Warriner.

Bilham held her lead at the start of the bike, but Warriner made an early pass to take over the top spot. She led the race for more than 50km on the bike, until Cheetham was able to close the gap.

Thanks to her 2:25:08 bike split, Cheetham went into T2 with a two-minute lead over Warriner. Behind those two, Bilham and Sonja Tajsich (GER) entered the run course close together.

Cheetham held onto first place through the run to score the final victory, followed by Warriner in second and Tajsich in third. Full results here.

Very happy to take the win @im703dublin & break my streak of 2nds. Finish line 500m from Guinness factory! #recovery pic.twitter.com/wvDEie116w

— Susie Cheetham (@susiecheetham) August 9, 2015

Chevrot crushes the competition

In the men’s race, Chevrot came out of the water in third place just 4secs behind leader Fraser Cartmell (GBR), and two seconds behind Kevin Thornton (IRL).

The tiny lead group sailed away on the bike course, but Cartmell suffered a tire puncture at an early stage of the ride, eliminating him from the champion’s group. Chevrot powered on while Thornton lost some time on the second half of the ride.

When Chevrot jumped off his bike, he had a lead of 58secs over Markus Thomschke (GER), who eventually was able to make up ground after being almost three minutes behind in the water. Thornton was in third place, exactly 3mins adrift when he finished the bike.

Thanks to the fastest half marathon, Chevrot ended the day by taking the win with a huge lead ahead of Thomschke and Thornton. Full results here.

Top five women:

1.

Cheetham, Susie

GBR

00:33:52

02:25:08

01:23:00

04:27:09

2.

Warriner, Samantha

NZL

00:31:27

02:29:31

01:27:54

04:34:39

3.

Tajsich, Sonja

GER

00:35:44

02:31:26

01:25:31

04:38:21

4.

Bilham, Emma

GBR

00:31:22

02:35:25

01:28:15

04:40:10

5.

Bartlett, Nikki

GBR

00:35:02

02:35:12

01:25:51

04:41:58

Array

Top five men:

1.

Chevrot, Denis

FRA

00:28:05

02:13:52

01:14:48

04:01:35

2.

Thomschke, Markus

GER

00:30:59

02:11:59

01:18:34

04:06:18

3.

Thornton, Kevin

IRL

00:28:03

02:16:45

01:18:59

04:08:34

4.

Wade, Robbie

IRL

00:31:46

02:18:48

01:17:31

04:12:21

5.

Simon, Oliver

GBR

00:30:47

02:19:07

01:19:07

04:14:09

Array

(Images: Getty)

Did you race in Dublin last Sunday? Let us know in the comments below!