Sam Appleton (AUS) was in a league of his own in Mexico. The Aussie recorded a race-best swim and bike to establish a seven-minute buffer to Alan Avil (MEX) and Joe Gambles (AUS) at the conclusion of the ride. On the strength of the best run on the day, Mauricio Mendez (MEX) worked his way through the field, but the nine-minute deficit to Appleton at the start of the run proved too much. Appleton cruised to the finish line to take the win with Mendez and Gambles completing the podium in second and third, respectively.
In the women’s race, it came down to who could put together the day’s best run. Ellie Salthouse (AUS) and Carrie Lester (USA) were inseparable for the entire swim and bike, and carried a +1:38 lead on Heather Wurtele (CAN) as the pair hit the dismount line and scrambled into T2. Salthouse proved to be the stronger runner on the day, taking the title in 4:17:36.
Top 5 Pro Men
1 Appleton, Sam AUS 3:48:43
2 Mendez, Mauricio MEX 3:53:29
3 Gambles. Joe AUS 3:57:42
4 Serrano, Francisco MEX 3:58:41
5 Wurtele, Trevor CAN 4:00:05
Top 5 Pro Women
1 Salthouse, Ellie AUS 4:17:36
2 Lester, Carrie USA 4:22:01
3 Wurtele, Heather CAN 4:24:28
4 Naeth, Heather CAN 4:30:33
5 Johann, Carly USA 4:37:44