First time IRONMAN wins on the both the men's and the women's side made for a memorable race in Mallorca.
The third edition of IRONMAN Mallorca attracted quite a strong pro field like Germans Horst Reichel, Markus Fachbach, and Konstantin Bachor, as well as the Spanish favorite Marcel Zamora. Carlos Lopez Diaz was the local favorite and he did not disappoint.
First out of the water was the British David Bartlett in 48:03. Benjamin Pernet (FRA) was second, third came the local Carlos Lopez Diaz (ESP). Lopez Diaz took over the lead on the bike after a few kilometers and showed his strong skills in the saddle. The strong Germans Markus Fachbach, Horst Reichel, Roman Deisenhofer, and Konstantin Bachor built the chase group together with Zamora, and Hervé Banti (MON), but Lopez Diaz increased his lead constantly and edged more than a five minute gap over the field.
On the marathon, Fachbach and Bachor stayed behind Lopez Diaz, but they weren’t able to make up any time. As Lopez Diaz increased his lead Bachor fell back and Reichel was running up to third position. He wasn’t able to keep up and Gustavo Rodriguez snuck his way slowly but surely to the lead group and nabbed the number three spot. In the meantime, a seven minute gap between Lopez Diaz and Fachbach was built and Fachbach wasn’t able to catch the leader. Carlos Lopez Diaz won his very first IRONMAN race on home soil and as the first Mallorquín ever. He finished the race in 8:26:09. Markus Fachbach came in second in 8:31:51 with Gustavio Rodriguez rounding out the podium in 8:32:32.
The women's race was just as exciting. Lauren Parker (AUS) came out of the water first (33:13), second was Emma Bilham (SUI), followed by Deborah Van Gossum (BEL). Natascha Schmitt (GER) soon made it to the top and was chased by Bilham and Jocelyn McCauley (USA).
Tineke Van den Berg (NLD) made it to the top at the end of the bike, being chased by McCauley and Schmitt. On the run, Schmitt fell back and at 10km McCauley ran up to the top. She started increasing her lead while Maja Stage Nielsen (DEN) stayed close behind in second, but she wasn’t able to catch up. From the half marathon split the top three stayed the same with McCauley in the lead, Nielsen in second position, and Van den Berg in third. McCauley increased the gap between herself and the chase group and won her first IRONMAN in 9:11:55. Maja Stage Nielsen took second in 9:23:40, third finished Tineke Van den Berg in 9:24:27.
Top 5 Pro Men
1 Lopez Diaz, Carlos ESP 8:26:09
2 Fachbach, Markus DEU 8:31:51
3 Rodríguez, Gustavo ESP 8:32:32
4 Zamora Perez, Marcel ESP 8:39:29
5 Ruenz, Michael DEU 8:39:37
Top 5 Pro Women
1 Mccauley, Jocelyn USA 9:11:55
2 Stage Nielsen, Maja DNK 9:23:40
3 Van den Berg, Tineke NLD 9:24:27
4 Svensk, Sara SWE 9:28:58
5 Luethi, Diane CHE 9:39:58