It’s another Super Sunday for the Uplace-BMC Pro Triathlon Team! June 15 brought a win in the Ironman 70.3 UK for Will Clarke, a second place finish for Ronnie Schildknecht in the Challenge Kraichgau and a victory for Axel Zeebroek in the La Roche 111 tri. Six months into the season, the 10 Uplace-BMC athletes have already recorded 10 victories and 16 podium finishes.
Will Clarke wins Ironman 70.3 UK
Will Clarke started the festivities by winning the Ironman 70.3 UK. Will captured his first Ironman title in 4:18:07. Harry Springall (GB; 04:23:31) finished second; Ritchie Nicholls (GB; 4:26:32) came in third.
Will looked confident from start to finish. He came out of the water as part of a leading group of four with Halksworth, Threlfall and Ackermann. Determined to stay ahead of the title contenders, Will pushed hard from the opening climb of the bike leg. His plan worked. Halksworth and Threlfall were also dropped before T2. Will entered transition just five seconds behind Ackermann and made his move right away in the half marathon. He was 15 seconds in front after 1k, 45 seconds after 2k, and continued to build his lead from there for a comfortable winner’s welcome down the finish shute.
Will couldn’t be happier taking his very first Ironman 70.3 title in his own country after five second place finishes in the past two years. “I am really pleased to finally get that win. It’s great to have that monkey off my back. It proves that I am not just a bridesmaid; that I can race to win. I was happy with how I executed the race. There were some strong guys behind us after the swim, so we attacked the bike hard. I knew that if I left it down to the run, it probably wouldn’t end well for me. I had some good legs in the half marathon and just ran as hard as I could until I knew I was safe. The finish was great. The crowd was amazing. The age groupers and the spectators were cheering me on. What makes it extra special is that it’s father’s day here in the UK and this was the first race my son Freddy watched me. A cool touch indeed.”
Ironman 70.3 UK complete results
Ronnie Schildknecht 2nd in Challenge Kraichgau
Ronnie Schildknecht finished second amidst a stellar field in today’s Challenge Kraichgau. Sebastian Kienle (Germany) took the title in 03:53:37. Ronnie came in second with a time of 03:59:27. Timo Bracht (Germany; 03:59:39) rounded out the top-three.
It was a challenging day for Ronnie, who had just wrapped up a big training block. Still, while Sebastian Kienle made it a solo performance, Ronnie showed himself a podium contender the entire race. He came out of the water among the leading group and maintained his position in that group throughout the bike leg. While Kienle started the run with an insurmountable six-minute lead, Ronnie, Bracht and Fachbach made it an exciting battle for the podium, running together for most of the half marathon. Ronnie proved the strongest of the three, making his move in the final lap of the race.
Ronnie looked back on a hard-fought Challenge Kraichgau. “A very tough day with a very nice ending, you could say. I had to dig deep all day, especially on the bike. Then again, I expected it because I had a big block of training this week. But even though Kraichgau was a training race, you always want to perform in every race. On the bike, I had a hard time staying with the group, so I thought my day wasn’t going to end well. But then somehow I found my good running legs towards the end of the half marathon. Kienle was simply out of this world today, so second place is the best I could do. I really can’t complain. My form is progressing well, even if I was a little too tired from training today.”
Challenge Kraichgau complete results
Axel Zeebroek wins La Roche 111
Back in Belgium, Axel Zeebroek won the La Roche 111 triathlon. Axel completed the 1k swim/95k rike/10k run in 3:36:22. Timothy Van Houthem (Belgium; 3:41:41) and Sven Van Luyck (Belgium; 3:42:54) came in second and third respectively.
Axel led the race from start to finish. One week before defending his Ironman 70.3 Luxembourg title, Axel was pleased with a strong performance in his return to racing after a foot injury. “This was a super day and a good test for next week. I wasn’t sure how I would do today because I only wrapped up a tough training block on Wednesday. But I felt good all day. 1,600 meters of climbing makes this is a challenging race. Still, I was able to push hard and build a six-minute lead on the bike. In the run, my foot didn’t bother me at all. That is great news for the rest of the season. Now I just need to rest up to be race-ready for Luxembourg. I look forward to defending my title.”
Check out our compete La Roche 111 photo gallery
