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Raelert and Gajer take European Championship titles at Challenge Kraichgau
June 10, 2012 - Andreas Raelert and Julia Gajer have taken out the European
Championship titles on their home turf at this weekend’s Challenge Kraichgau, in an
exciting day’s racing that saw two new course records set.
Raelert’s successful defence of his title started with him exiting the waters of
Lake Hardtsee with the leading group in a time of 23:26. On the bike he stayed in
that same group which also included second and third place getters Frenchmen Syvain
Sudrie and Sebastian Kienle (GER).
Sudrie and German Konstantin Bachor pushed the pace on the bike and opened a gap to
a group of 10 at Tiefenbach. The chasing group was right on their heels and arrived
in T2 within seconds at Bad Schoenborn. Once on the run the stage was set for
another Raelert victory. He took the lead from Sudrie at the five-kilometre mark and
looked strong throughout completing the run 1:09:29. Kienle, who was not able to
break the group on the bike, was in second place until 19km on the run. However he
could not fight the last attack of Sudrie and was overtaken shortly before of the
finish. Raelert’s 3:48:15 was enough to not only give him the European Championship
title but also a new course record.
The women’s competition also saw exciting racing. Line Jensen from Denmark was first
out of the water and first off the bike. She maintained pole position until the
final metres of the run when Julia Gajer finally overtook her to take the European
Championship title. Olympic athlete Jensen had a four-minute lead as she set out on
the run. Behind her a group around soon-to-be-champion Gajer was formed.
Delphine Pelletier from France, last month’s Challenge Barcelona champion Camilla
Pedersen (DEN) and Challenge Wanaka champion Gina Crawford (NZL) all arrived within
minutes into T2. At the end of the day, only Gajer had the legs to push Jensen and
overtook her 1,000 metres from the finish line with a run split of 1:21.33.
Pelletier rounded out the podium in third place.
The Challenge Family global series of long distance triathlons features 11 races
throughout Europe and Australasia, including the world’s largest iron distance
event, Challenge Roth in Germany. Challenge races are known for their excellent
athlete race experience and commitment to the communities in which they take place.
For further information, visit www.challenge-family.com or
www.facebook.com/ChallengeFamily or follow us on Twitter @Challenge_Famil
For further information and full results visit ww.challenge-kraichgau.com.
Images by Getty Images are available for free editorial use at www.image.net
-ends-
For further information, please contact:
Victoria Murray-Orr, Challenge Family Marketing & Communications
victoria@challenge-family.com
Challenge Kraichgau Results
Men
1 Andreas Raelert (GER) – 23:26, 2:12:51, 1:09:29, 3:48:15
2 Sylvain Sudrie (FRA) – 23:21, 2:11:30, 1:13:26, 3:50:57
3 Sebastien Kienle (GER) – 25:14, 2:11:15, 1:12:17, 3:51:11
4 Mike Aigroz (SUI) – 23:34, 2:12:40, 1:14:28, 3:53:24
5 Dorian Wagern (GER) – 23:29, 2:12:52, 1:14:20, 3:54:13
Women
1 Julia Wagner (GER) – 26:01, 2:29:44, 1:21:33, 4:20:09
2 Line Jensen (DEN) – 23:23, 2:27:28, 1:26:48, 4:20:47
3 Delphine Pelletier (FRA) – 25:56, 2:30:06, 1:23:59, 4:22:47
4 Camilla Pedersen (DEN) – 25:07, 2:30:47, 1:25:31, 4:24:22
5 Sonja Tajsich (GER) – 29:29, 2:30:02, 1:22:40, 4:25:11
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