Posted: July 7, 2004

Triathlon: Records written at Roth - McCormack takes Al-Sultan at 35 km, both Sub-8

Leder takes Granger at 40 km, 9:13 and 9:16

NÜRNBERG/ROTH, Germany (July 4, 2004) – Promises were kept at Sunday’s Quelle Challenge Roth (3.8 km S/180 km B/42.2 km R). “I’ve said for some time that I have three things left in my career -- win Roth, go sub-8, and winning Hawaii. And I’ve done two of those things today,” said Sunday’s new champion, Quell AG athlete Chris McCormack (AUS, Maxtraining), 7:57:50. He also ran a personal best marathon, 2:40.23, the fastest of the day and Roth’s third fastest ever, in the process dropping third place finisher Timo Bracht (GER, Soprema Team) early on and running down his eventual runner-up, Opel’s Faris Al-Sultan (GER, Tri Team Witten) at 34.5 km.

In fourth place, 8:21.45, the United States’ Michael Lovato (USA, Team Timex) celebrated his nation’s Independence Day as the first North American male to hit Roth’s top five since 1996. The final 400 meters and finishers’ stadium were filled to the hilt with thousands of fans clearly adoring America’s future and his winning smile and charisma, not to mention his 2:47.53 marathon, which fell just outside of Roth’s ten fastest ever. Five-time Roth champion Lothar Leder (GER) had difficulties breathing, coughing hoarsely throughout the day, but Deutsche Post’s superstar, perhaps always the König von Roth, finished solidly in his typical world-class form at 8:25.14 to a crowd equally grateful for his fifth place performance.

Deutsche Post triathlete and 2003 winner Nicole Leder (GER, TV Tria Echterdingen) kept the family winning tradition alive, overtaking Roth newcomer and Quelle AG athlete Belinda Granger (AUS, Brat Club) at 40 km on the marathon course. Her 2:52.46 was also the fastest of the day, which bested her own title as fastest Roth runner ever by just over five minutes and was exactly what she needed. It was the same run speed that Granger and fourth-place finisher Heike Funk (GER, SG Katek Grassau) had feared.

“I was pretty good on the swim course, I came out only three minutes behind Ute (Ute Mückel, GER, SC Bayer 05 Uerdingen/Team Timex) and that’s never happened before. So I thought this is pretty good,” Nicole Leder said of her second-place swim, 52.42. Mückel’s 50:01 was good enough for Roth’s tenth fastest women’s swim of all time and she now holds seven of the top 10, but it was her 3:24.00 run that more than made up for her two-and-a-half minute deficit behind Funk off the bike.

All the while, a second heartbreaking race nearly unfolded as Viola Schäffer (HUN, Team Arndt), more 32 minutes behind Heidi Jessberger (GER, TSV Assamstadt) off the bike, ran a wonder-woman marathon – 2:54.33 – making up 30:47, but it wasn’t enough to steal fifth place.

With other world champions, iron-distance winners and national heroes among the 64 professionals from these and countries such as Argentina, Canada, Columbia, Denmark, Estonia, France, Japan, Korea, South Africa, Switzerland, and elsewhere, it not only was the fastest, but the most international, world-class ultra-distance race of the year to date. What’s more, with a total of 3677 athletes from 42 countries – including 241 French athletes, the largest group next to Germany – with some as far away as Algeria, Israel, Mexico, and Zimbabwe, Quelle Challenge Roth was by far the largest, widest-reaching iron-distance race of the year.

Quelle Challenge Roth’s sponsors include: Quelle AG, Deutsche Post AG, N-ERGIE, DB Regio, Opel AG, Newline, Nürnberger Nachrichten (Nürnberg Newspapers), Bayrische Versicherungskammer, Maxim, Phillips, Erdinger Alkoholfrei, Sparkasse Mittelfranken-Süd, ADAC, Arndt, Recaro, PowerBar, County of Roth, City of Roth, City of Hilpolstein, Coca-Cola, Frankenbrunnen, Zeus Copy, Paladin, Hofmann, Jura Kaelte, Lorenz & Partner, INKO Energy, Flor & Sohn, Spedition Heinloth, and BIESTMILCH.

For more post-race results, news and photos, visit www.ChallengeLive.com. For more information on the July 4, 2004 Quelle Challenge Roth and Triathlon Festival, Deutsche Triathlon Union (DTU) ultra-distance International German Championship and Long Distance Triathlon World Championship for Firefighters, the on-line forum and the event’s newsletter, visit www.challenge-roth.com.

From: Steve Handwerker, slhcomm@hotmail.com.