SNOWY MOUNTAINS, NSW—With the highly sought after Australian ‘Green and Gold’ stripes on the line at the Australian TreX National Championships at Lake Crackenback Resort & Spa in the Snowy Mountains on Saturday, New South Wales native Ben Allen (AUS) did what he does best – win. The 17-time Xterra champion and 2015 TreX Victorian winner soundly defeated a solid elite men’s field while fellow international superstar Renata Bucher (SUI) edged Jacqui Slack (GBR) to claim line honours over a stellar elite women’s field.
The 30-year-old Allen took the win in convincing fashion, finishing the 1.5km swim, 30km mountain bike and 10km trail run in a time of 2 hours 28 minutes, more than 10 minutes over Victorian silver medalist Brodie Gardner (QLD) and Robert Skillman (NSW) in second (2:38:56) and third (2:41:10) respectively.
“Very proud and honoured to win the national cross triathlon championship today,” explained Allen. “The course is amazing and so many people were cheering me on today, it gave me goose bumps.
“A national title is no joke and I’ll be wearing the green and gold proudly racing around Europe, USA and especially in November at the world champs on home soil.”
Bucher, who claimed second overall in the three-day, five-stage Snowies Mountain Bike Festival just two weeks prior, took the win in superior fashion (2:50:11) over Slack (2:52:27) and Victorian Catherine Sterling (2:53:51). Penny Hosken (VIC) finished fourth (2:54:09) and takes home the national title as the highest placed Australian female in the elite category.
“It was a great day, loved the bike course the most,” said Bucher. “The run was very hard, but it was perfect weather condition and the In2adventure crew did an amazing job.
“I can’t wait until the world championships here in November.”
Following the opening day victory, Allen backed up with a sprint course (400m swim / 15km mountain bike / 10km trail run) win on Sunday, with Janet Martin taking the win for the elite women.
Allen also claimed the NSW Dirt Master title, which combines times from the long course tri, sprint tri and 15km trail run, which was won by Chris Darlington (1:01:42) in the 18-to 39-year-old men’s division and Elizabeth Dornom (1:11:39) for the women.
Kim Beckinsale, from Tri Adventure in Queensland, who finished second in both the sprint (1:42:31) and the trail run (1:12:36), claimed the NSW Dirt Mistress title for 2016.
Aside from the elites and age groupers, the race also served as the only Australian qualification race for the 2016 ITU Cross Triathlon World Championships (18-20 November) for the under-23s, under-19s and paratriathletes, with Dean Cane and Laura May taking out the U19 titles.
The world championships will be held for the first time in the Southern Hemisphere and will utilise the same swim, bike and run course in and around Lake Crackenback Resort & Spa as the Australian championships.
Australian National Championship Titles (1500-30-10)
Elite Men:
Elite Women:
Australian TreX National Championships results (Top 3) (1500-30-10)
Elite Men:
Elite Women:
Sprint (400-15-5)
Men:
Women:
Junior Elite 15-19yrs – World Championship Qualifier (400-15-5)
Men:
Women:
15k Trail Run
Men:
Women:
Dirt Master Championship
Dirt Master NSW Champion – Ben Allen, NSW, 5:02:37
Dirt Mistress NSW Champion – Kim Beckinsale, QLD, 5:57:59
More Information
For more information about elite, u23, u19 & paratri world champs selection visit the website HERE
About TreX:
For seven years TreX has positioned itself as the pinnacle of the cross – or off-road – triathlon racing series in Asia-Pacific. Presented by the premier outdoor adventure event specialists In2Adventure, TreX consists of a reservoir swim, mountain bike and trail run. While each TreX event features an elite category with industry-leading prize purses, including $50,000 for the 2016 ITU World Cross Triathlon Championships, the TreX Cross Triathlon national series invites participation from all ages and skill levels. For more information, please visit TreX here.
About In2Adventure:
In2Adventure is Asia-Pacific’s premier adventure event specialists. With a full calendar of national events scheduled throughout Australia, including adventure races, cross triathlon, XC Mountain Bike, trail runs and corporate events, In2Adventure fully embraces all things ‘off road’ and ‘off the beaten track’ and offers a unique, individual experience for all ages and skill levels. For more information visit In2Adventure here.
Upcoming Events (2016):
Join the #in2adventure conversation
Photo credit: Mandy Lamont
Source | Back to News