Kristian Blummenfelt takes remarkable win at PTO Asian Open
Just two days after racing the Paris Olympics Test Event, Kristian Blummenfelt has put in a truly incredible performance to take the win at the PTO Asian Open
Just 48 hours after placing ninth at the Paris Olympic Test Event, Kristian Blummenfelt has won the PTO Asian Open.
The result defies rational thinking given the fact that between the two races the Norwegian had to jump on a plane halfway across the world, but this is an athlete that continues to prove remarkable.
Blummenfelt’s gold in Singapore is his first PTO Tour win, earning him a prize purse of $100,000.
What happened in the swim?
Another warm day meant a non-wetsuit swim in the waters of Marina Bay, with some opting to wear swimskins.
Early on in the two-lap swim things went largely as expected, with top swimmers Josh Amberger (AUS), Daniel Baekkegard (DEN) and Aaron Royle (AUS), who’d been unwell in the build-up, all taking to the front.
What wasn’t quite so expected is just how close the athletes would be to each other, with the majority sticking together in single file.
The Aussie exit, where athletes exit the water and then jump in once more for the next lap, didn’t do much to split the group, either.
Royle was first out of the swim, with a long trail of athletes flowing onto the pontoon behind him.
That included Sam Appleton (AUS), Amberger, Baekkegard, Ben Kanute (USA), Blummenfelt, Tom Bishop (GBR), and David McNamee (GBR), with Gustav Iden (NOR) some 31secs back from the lead.
Meanwhile, Sam Long (USA) emerged approximately four minutes down.
What happened on the bike?
Out of transition Amberger took up position at the front of the field, but by the 5km mark Mika Noodt had moved up through the field to take the lead.
The German, the youngest athlete on the course at just 22 years old, was going all-in on this race, having spent some time in Thailand to acclimatise to the hot, humid conditions of Singapore.
Sam Laidlow, who’d been unwell in the days leading up to the race, pulled out roughly 15km into the bike.
Belgium’s Pieter Heemeryck soon pulled into the lead 20km in, with a small group forming behind him which included Noodt, Blummenfelt and Royle, with Kanute an extra 20secs back.
The pace looked strong and the gap to the athletes further back continued to gradually grow larger.
Sadly, just 30km into the bike Iden came off the bike at a dead turn. The Norwegian notably had some road rash and seemed also to be feeling down to an injured hip, which marked the end of his race.
It was business as usual for the front pack, but with just 23km to go, there were a flurry of mechanicals. Royle had an issue with his rear derailleur that cost him some 30secs, while Bishop was seen walking with a likely flat rear tyre soon after.
Next, New Zealand’s Mike Phillips came through transition with a flat, causing a flurry of activity as the mechanics worked on his bike to get him back out on the road.
They eventually did, but unfortunately for Phillips, he was soon after lapped by leader Heemeryck, meaning he’d be unable to continue according to the race rules.
Heemeryck maintained a gap of just over two minutes at the front until the end of the bike and was followed into T2 by Blummenfelt, Noodt, Baekkegard and Kacper Stepniak (POL).
A swift transition saw Blummenfelt cut that gap and out of T2 the gap between the two was 1min 50secs.
What happened on the run?
In the first two kilometres Heemeryck and Blummenfelt set the pace, running roughly 30secs per kilometre faster than their competitors.
That is, all of them apart from Jason West. The American is known for his powerful run and he was moving marginally quicker than the leaders, picking off those ahead of him with ruthless efficiency.
At the front, Blummenfelt gradually caught up with Heemeryck, reducing the deficit with every kilometre. With just 8km to go, he made his way past and took the lead.
Meanwhile, West continued to move up and made it into third, with Baekkegard and Long trailing behind.
The win was never in question from this point on and Blummenfelt soaked up the fan support on the final stretch before taking the tape in style.
Keemeryck came home in second and was followed in by West a short while later.
Meanwhile, Frenchman Denis Chevrot put in a late charge to take Long and Baekkegard ahead of the finishing chute, with the trio crossing the line over eight minutes behind the winner.
Blummenfelt now turns his attention to the Ironman 70.3 World Championship in Finland next weekend.
Top 10 PTO Asian Open men’s results
1. Kristian Blummenfelt, NOR, 3:20:48
2. Pieter Heemeryck, BEL, 3:22:47
3. Jason West, USA, 3:24:03
4. Denis Chevrot, FRA, 3:29:00
5. Sam Long, USA, 3:29:11
6. Daniel Baekkegard, DEN, 3:29:38
7. Kacper Stepniak, POL, 3:31:13
8. Aaron Royle, AUS, 3:31:34
9. Sam Appleton, AUS, 3:31:42
10. David McNamee, GBR, 3:33:09
Top image credit: That Cameraman/PTO
Rob Slade
