The Norwegian team proved once more that they are always to be considered when confronting a tough and challenging bike course. And in Lausanne at the 2018 World Cup it was Gustav Iden surprising all the favourites to claim the victory, with Jonathan Brownlee following him in second place and another Norwegian, Kristian Blummenfelt, grabbing the bronze medal.
After winning all the podium positions in WTS Bermuda at the begining of the season, the Norwegians have had an up and down season, but arrived in Lausanne knowing that the hills and technical course in the Olympic capital looked like a perfect fit for them.
With a pretty hot and humid afternoon in Lausanne, the 1.5km swim did little to determine the race, with almost all the athletes exiting the water altogether, knowing that it was going to be the bike the leg that will define the race.
And right at the beginning of the bike course Jonny Brownlee decided to attack and test all the field, with Andrea Salvisberg (SUI) the only one following. but behind them, Blummenfelt and Casper Stornes (NOR) led the chasers, never allowing the Brit to break away.
Lap after lap, hill after hill, the group saw constant essays to break away, but all of them with no luck. First it was Blummenfetl trying to open a gap, helped by Iden. Next lap it was Leo Bergere (FRA), and in the following one Jonas Schomburg gave it a try. But on the bell lap, the huge group was still riding together, saving some legs for the 10km run under the sun.
With a group of more than 30 athletes entering the T2 together, quickly after transition Jonny Brownlee and Kristian Blummenfelt positioned themselves ahead, but were quickly followed by Iden and Bence Bicsak (HUN). And when it looked like Jonny and Kristian were going to sprint until the end, the younger Norwegian, Iden, added an extra gear to his pace and flew past them.
The distance kept increasing, while Brownlee and Blummenfelt managed to leave Bicsakc behind just in the last kilometer, knowing that the medals will be decided among them. All smiles, Iden crossed the finish line with the fastest run split of the day, to stop the clock on 1h49’48’‘, to claim his second World Cup win of his career, and the second podium of the season after his third place in WTS Bermuda.
And sprinting in the last meters, Brownlee grabbed the silver medal, with Blummenfelt crossing the finish line in third place. Bicsak claimed the fourth place and fifth was Joric Van Egdom (NED), after one of his best swims ever.
“I didn’t feel quite alright on the bike course today, but that allowed me to save some energy for the run, which I think was a good thing today”, said Iden after the race. “And then I felt so great in the run. The pace was too slow at the start, and the coach told me that the guys behind us were catching up, so I just had to put the extra gear on. And when I saw that no one else was following I thought that this was the race to win”, he explained.
Brownlee seemed delighted with his second place. “I came here to win and to enjoy racing again and I certainly enjoyed it. I felt good in the run, I thought Kristian was going to go hard but then I saw another Norwegian passing and I thought ‘oh, here we go’. but I had fun, and really enjoyed it. I made a few mistakes, I dropped all my gels, but I love racing, and I love racing to win and to enjoy it. I train very hard to then enjoy races, and this was perfect for that. Here there were attacks, tactics, tough hills… and that’s what we are here for. This is the first time I’ve been here as a senior, and Lausanne is just fantastic. It’s a beautiful city, a tough course, lots of spectators… When I heard there was a World Cup here I thought ‘I wanna race here, this is the perfect venue for triathlon’”, he said.
Blummenfelt also recognized the hard course in Lausanne, but also enjoyed it. “It was a very tough course, especially on the bike, so it feels great to be on the podium. I knew that Gustav was gonna be hard to beat on the run, he’s been running really well lately, but I was able to keep the third place. Team Norway has had some up and downs this seasons, but we have been able to get some good results”, he said.
Results: Elite Men
1. Gustav Iden NOR 01:49:48
2. Jonathan Brownlee GBR 01:50:19
3. Kristian Blummenfelt NOR 01:50:24
4. Bence Bicsák HUN 01:50:47
5. Jorik Van Egdom NED 01:51:06