Briton, Aussie rule XTERRA triathlon

LILOAN, CEBU, Philippines – Sam Gardner of England and Shonny Vanladingham of Australia survived the rough seas, bucked the sweltering heat and endured the hilly, tough course of the upscale Amara Subdivision to emerge the first ever champions of the XTERRA Philippine Championship Off-Road Triathlon yesterday here.

Gardner bounced back from a fifth-place finish in the 1.5km swim by dominating the bike stage and the final 10-km run to turn in an overall best time of two hours, 25 minutes, 59 seconds in the inaugural event that lured some of the world’s top pro triathletes.

“It was fantastic. This is the most enjoyable race I had in my life,” said Gardner who, with no rival in sight, joked around and exchanged high fives with the crowd as he cruised to the finish line.

He checked in first in the 30-km bike segment in one hour, 17 minutes.

“My calves were hurting even before the race could start but I carried on because of the crowd. The people are cheering for me and that kept me going,” said Gardner. “Everything was perfect despite that this is just the first time Cebu hosted such kind of event. Definitely I’ll be back next year to defend my title.”

Vanladingham, meanwhile, lived up to the pre-event hype as one of the title favorites as she lorded it over the women’s field in 2:31:39. Renata Bucher of Switzerland placed second in 2:33:35.

“It’s great. This is my first race in the Philippines and I brought in the victory. I’m super happy. The community seems to be embracing this kind of event and I’m looking forward to coming back,” said Vanladingham.

Bucher, the first woman international pro triathlete, was equally satisfied with her performance although she admitted that there was a time during the course of the race that she felt dazed and glassy-eyed.

“There was a time that I was looking things twice, like as if I’m shaking four hands when there were only two. It was then I told myself to slow down,” said Bucher. “But we’re really happy. Since this is our first time, we don’t know where we are. It’s really good to get a place and gain confidence.”

Completing the top five list were Filipino bet Neil Catiil and 2009 and 2010 South Africa champion Carina Wasle of Austria, who timed 2:42:03.

 “I’m so happy that I got here. The people are amazing. This is one of the best and friendliest races I’ve ever done,” said Wasle.

“This is the first time in history that three women – Vanladingham, Bucher and Wasle – made it to the podium. This has never happened before (in XTERRA-organized events),” said XTERRA World managing director Dave Nicholas.

Catiil, a top Filipino performer during last year’s Ironman 70.3 in Camarines Sur, duplicated that feat by placing fourth overall in the event presented by Alaska Milk Corp. president Wilfred Steven Uytengsu through Sunrise Events, Inc.

 Catiil clocked 2:39:24 followed by Wasle.

 “As a ‘Bisaya’ (Visayan), I’m very proud to make it to the top five and come out as the best Filipino finisher in this prestigious race,” said Catiil, of Cagayan de Oro.George Vilog was second best among Filipino entries followed by Noel Salvador of Davao and Cebu pride Noy Jopson.

Others who graced the event, backed by Clear Shampoo, Timex, Prudential Guarantee, Multisport, Solar TV, Oakley, Gatorade and Crimson Hotel, were Sen. Pia Cayetano, Cebu Gov. Gwen Garcia, Liloan Mayor Vincent Franc Frasco and Comelec commissioner Gregorio Larrazabal.

“It was very exciting because it was the first time I joined such kind of race. It’s quite tough but manageable,” said Cayetano, who topped her age-group bracket.

“The course was harder than I thought. For us ordinary triathletes, we we’re really challenged,” said Uytengsu.

Cash prizes amounting to $50,000 were given to the top placers in the pro division while P120,000 was awarded to the winners in Filipino category.

Age-group winners did not receive any prize money but will get the chance to race with the pros in the XTERRA World Championships slated Oct. 23 in Makena, Maui. A total of 35 slots are available, 20 for male and 15 for female participants.