NEWS

Gomez fulfills drive for five World Titles

By Chelsea White | 20 Sep, 2015
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Javier Gomez Noya (ESP) became the most successful man in ITU World Championship history when he completed a drive for five world titles as the overall winner of the World Triathlon Series with a second-place finish at the ITU World Triathlon Grand Final Chicago.

Javier Gomez Noya (ESP) became the most successful man in ITU World Championship history when he completed a drive for five world titles as the overall winner of the World Triathlon Series with a second-place finish at the ITU World Triathlon Grand Final Chicago.

“I think it is great. I can’t understand it yet, I sometimes can’t comprehend doing something like that in the last few years. It is just amazing,” Gomez said on collecting his fifth title. “Today I felt good, I had a great race. I felt really good on the race, I just couldn’t beat Mario—he was just too strong. But I am really pleased on getting the title and on the podium.”

Compatriot Mario Mola gave Gomez a tough battle as the two went back and forth across the 10km run, with Mola kicking into overdrive the last 100 metres to take the win in Chicago and finish second overall in the Columbia Threadneedle Rankings. Despite trailing the majority of the race, Richard Murray (RSA) pulled himself into third with an incredible performance while Vincent Luis (FRA) finished fifth in the race for an overall third-place ranking in the Rankings.

“I think I have just done one of the best races of my life,” said Mola on his win. “The feeling is amazing. Just to be able to run with Javi at the end, I hope the people enjoyed that as much as we did. It was an unbelievable race.”

It was Aquathlon World Champ Richard Varga (SVK) that got the day started when he grinded out a two-body length lead in the swim. Jonathan Brownlee (GBR) and Aaron Royle (AUS) joined Varga as one of the first athletes out of the water, which gave them a fleeting lead over reigning champion Gomez, who was stuck in a chase pack 14 seconds back for the first lap.

But Gomez wouldn’t let anything come in the way of his fifth world title, and he shut any chance of the leaders staying away by catching them and taking his turn pulling a nearly-30 man pack along by the second lap. All of the heavy pre-race favorites pedaled away in the front including Luis and Mola.

Murray didn’t have as much luck catching the front end of the bike as quickly as Gomez, as he sat a minute back after the second of eight bike laps. While the front pack worked well together with several men taking turns dragging the large peloton along including Royle, Ben Kanute (USA), Sven Reiderer (SUI) and Joe Maloy (USA), they couldn’t keep their advantage throughout the bike.

The hungry and bike savvy South African put his head down and set about dropping the hammer each lap to chip that gap down to 27 second with three laps to go and then managed to bridge up on the sixth turn around Buckingham Fountain.

Out onto the bell lap, Reinaldo Colucci (BRA) and Andrea Salvisberg (SUI) went off the front, along with Kanute and Maro Van Der Stel (NED) for a 35-second advantage.

As the four leaders headed out onto the run, the realization of the gigantic peloton that was only seconds behind them became real way too soon. While Kanute and Salvisberg was able to hold the pack off for a couple kilometres, the unstoppable Spainards of Gomez and Mola blew past as they made their way through the transition area.

The new commanders of the armada, the compatriots strode side by side, distancing themselves from the field. There was no denying that both would end up on the podium, it now just became a matter of who would end up on top.

In the final lap of the race, both Gomez and Mola took turns accelerating up the flank, trying to leave the other, but it was an effort that went unsuccessful as both were stuck in sync. Giving one last push, Mola finally pulled the trigger in the last 100 metres and was able to sneak away from Gomez and carry himself into the finish line first with the fastest-ever 10km run split of 28:59.

Following just four seconds behind was Gomez, who happily accepted the silver medal that still guaranteed his fifth World title.

In a battle for third place, a group of five that consisted of Murray, Luis, Royle, Fernando Alarza (ESP) and Crisanto Grajales (MEX), who came up the rear, pushed onward together until the final lap, all vying for that last spot that would determine important final positions in the overall Columbia Threadneedle Rankings.

Murray ultimately was the man who seized the opportunity and catapulted himself into the bronze position as they made their way around Buckingham Fountain and onto the blue carpet.

Related Event: 2015 ITU World Triathlon Grand Final Chicago
15 - Sep, 2015 • event pageall results
Results: Elite Men
1. Mario Mola ESP 01:44:53
2. Javier Gomez Noya ESP 01:44:57
3. Richard Murray RSA 01:45:35
4. Crisanto Grajales MEX 01:45:40
5. Vincent Luis FRA 01:45:44
6. Fernando Alarza ESP 01:45:52
7. Aaron Royle AUS 01:46:03
8. Jelle Geens BEL 01:46:10
9. Joao Pereira POR 01:46:10
10. Ryan Bailie AUS 01:46:13
Results: Elite Women
1. Gwen Jorgensen USA 01:55:36
2. Non Stanford GBR 01:56:05
3. Vicky Holland GBR 01:56:20
4. Andrea Hansen NZL 01:56:44
5. Rachel Klamer NED 01:56:50
6. Jodie Stimpson GBR 01:57:08
7. Sarah True USA 01:57:19
8. Ai Ueda JPN 01:57:29
9. Aileen Reid IRL 01:57:37
10. Juri Ide JPN 01:57:39
Results: Junior Men
1. Manoel Messias BRA 00:51:50
2. Peer Sönksen GER 00:51:51
3. Léo Bergere FRA 00:52:01
4. Roberto Sanchez Mantecon ESP 00:52:08
5. Matthew Hauser AUS 00:52:10
6. Luke Willian AUS 00:52:12
7. Gustav Iden NOR 00:52:16
8. Ben Dijkstra GBR 00:52:20
9. Charles Paquet CAN 00:52:24
10. Gabriel Sandör SWE 00:52:32
Results: Junior Women
1. Laura Lindemann GER 00:57:28
2. Taylor Knibb USA 00:58:14
3. Lotte Miller NOR 00:58:39
4. Alberte Kjær Pedersen DEN 00:58:40
5. Hye Rim Jeong KOR 00:59:05
6. Lena Meißner GER 00:59:19
7. Ekaterina Matiukh RUS 00:59:20
8. Emily Wagner CAN 00:59:38
9. Tamara Gorman USA 00:59:45
10. Lisa Tertsch GER 00:59:47
Results: U23 Men
1. Jacob Birtwhistle AUS 01:40:51
2. David Castro Fajardo ESP 01:41:05
3. Nan Oliveras ESP 01:41:15
4. Kevin McDowell USA 01:41:38
5. Gordon Benson GBR 01:41:56
6. Russell Pennock CAN 01:42:04
7. Juan Jose Andrade Figueroa ECU 01:42:09
8. Alexis Lepage CAN 01:42:18
9. Christophe De Keyser BEL 01:42:27
10. Shachar Sagiv ISR 01:42:31
Results: U23 Women
1. Audrey Merle FRA 01:04:35
2. Leonie Periault FRA 01:04:35
3. Melanie Santos POR 01:04:46
4. Avery Evenson USA 01:04:52
5. Miriam Casillas García ESP 01:05:12
6. Vanesa De La Torre MEX 01:05:20
7. Natalie Van Coevorden AUS 01:05:23
8. Chloe Cook GBR 01:05:26
9. Johanna Gartman USA 01:05:29
10. Lizeth Rueda Santos MEX 01:05:41