Posted: May 7, 2007

Triathlon: Hoffman, Lavelle Win USAT Long Course Triathlon Titles

LAKE SAN ANTONIO, Calif. (May 7, 2007) -- Ben Hoffman and Becky Lavelle took the male and female titles, respectively, at the USA Triathlon Elite Long Distance Triathlon National Championship on Saturday at the Wildflower Triathlon at Lake San Antonio in Monterey County, Calif. Twenty-five elite women and 29 elite men were on the start list for the 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike, 13.1 mile run event. Lavelle (Los Gatos, Calif.) was the overall female winner in 4:35:19, outdistancing Mirinda Cafrae of Australia by nearly three minutes. Coming in third was Australian Kate Major in 4:42:26. Alexis Waddel (Monterey, Calif.) was fourth overall and the second American, finishing in 4:42:52. Erin Ford (The Dalles, Ore.) was fifth overall and the third American in 4:46:47. Lavelle was second out of the water, but used a bike split of 2:37:13 - nearly five minutes faster than Cafrae, Major, and Waddel - to build a huge cushion and was able to coast to the win with a conservative run of 1:30:49. On the men's side, 2006 USAT Collegiate Short Course National Champion Hoffman (Durango, Colo.) finished third overall in 4:13:32, behind winner Bjorn Andersson of Sweden and Chris Legh of Australia. Tim Marr (Mililani, Hawaii) was fifth overall and the second American in 4:15:02, with USAT National Team member Brian Fleischmann (Colorado Springs, Colo.) coming in sixth overall and the third American in 4:15:56. Hoffman had a consistent race in all three disciplines, with the 23rd fastest swim, third-fastest bike, and 11th fastest run. Fleischmann had the day's fastest swim in 24:06. This event was the second of two qualifiying events for the 2007 ITU Long Course World Championship, on July 14 in L'orient, France. The first four athletes per gender qualified at Ralph's Half Ironman in Oceanside, Calif. in March, while the remaining two slots will be filled by athletes from this event. Full results : TriCalifornia.com. About USA Triathlon National Championships USA Triathlon supports the Sprint, Long Course Triathlon, Long Course Duathlon, Winter Triathlon and Club National Championships through existing premier events. National Championship events that are owned and produced by USAT include the Age Group National Championship, Youth Nationals, Collegiate Nationals and Short Course Duathlon Nationals. The National Championship events are USAT's premier events of the year in which we strive to offer the best possible event for all athletes. With the exception of the USAT Age Group National Championship and Long Course Triathlon, any athlete can compete in the national championships without having to meet predetermined qualification standards. About USA Triathlon USA Triathlon is the national governing body for triathlon, duathlon, aquathlon and winter triathlon in the United States. USAT sanctions 2,000 races and connects with more than 90,000 members each year, making it the largest multisport organization in the world. Website: USATriathlon.org