2002 European Winter Triathlon Championships
Tyrol, Austria. March 2, 2002
8k run, 17.5k mountain bike, 7.2k cc ski

Vlasveld has to settle for second best - Ruhe doubles his gold

Pertisau/Achensee, Tyrol/AUT, March 2^nd, 2002. The women's race set off with an early lead being established by Luxembourg athlete Elisabeth May. In a closely run chase pack were the gold and silver medal winners from the World Championships, Marianne Vlasveld and Sigrid Lang. These two ran step for step and allowed May to establish a considerable lead. But this is a game in three parts and the race was far from finished.

Out onto the bike and Vlasveld soon pulled away from Lang, gaining valuable metres with every lap. The bike course was a testing one with great support from the spectators. The course took them along trails with asphalt, gravel, and in some places very soft snow. The many twists and turns meant that the weaker cyclists would find it hard going. Coming into T2 Vlasveld had established a lead of about a minute and it looked as if this Championship would be a repeat of the Worlds. Chasing the leaders were Jutta Schubert from Germany, Sabine Fhrimann from Switzerland, and Gabi Pauli, also from Germany.

The ski course was also a testing one and one worthy of a championship. There was great excitement as the lead women came into sight and it became clear that Vlasveld had been caught by Lang and once again they were locked, neck and neck, in a battle that would decide gold and silver. A breakaway took place as they disappeared out of sight and with the crowds roaring them on it was Lang who crossed the line first having taken a minute and a half out of the world champion. A strong third went to Schubert and with a fifth place going to Pauli the German team were clear winners.

In the men's race everyone's eyes were on world champion Marc Ruhe from Liechenstein and the young pretender from Germany, Benjamin Sonntag. Switzerland's Christoph Mauch was there to remind them that he had not yet finished with the sport and Frenchman Nicolas Lebrun was there to push the pace. A tremendous blast from a canon set the Elite off. In the same wave were the juniors and U 23 and the pace was furious from the start. Unlike the women's race the men stayed relatively closely packed as they ate up the 8k and Lebrun headed the field. Close behind him were Sonntag and Ruhe and as each lap was completed the cheers from the crowds got louder.

Out onto the bike and it was the expertise of Ruhe that saw a solid lead being built. Behind him were Sonntag, Lebrun and Mauch who fought the whole way round the five laps each attacking and testing the others. Ruhe was stamping his authority on the race and showing everyone just why he is the World Champion. It was on the fourth lap that Lebrun and Sonntag were able to break away from Mauch but were unable to make up any ground on Ruhe.

The transition from bike to skis went like clockwork for Ruhe and, locked together, Sonntag and Lebrun were forced to play catch up. It was also the chance now for Mauch to show his strength on the skis and he chose his moment well and he waited until the last lap to storm past Sonntag and Lebrun. Ruhe crossed the finish line to rapturous applause and then all eyes went to the second placed athlete and the battle that was going on behind him. Mauch crossed the line in a comfortable second place but there was blood, sweat and tears for third and fourth with the youngster from Germany fighting to the very end with Frenchman Lebrun. A photo finish decided their fortune with Sonntag missing out by a fraction of a second.

The organisers can congratulate themselves on having once again staged a great event. Last year saw the European Championships here and if anything this year was better. The crowds certainly saw exciting competition and the TV pictures will show the world that the sport of Winter Triathlon would be a well and worthy addition to the 2006 Olympics. The ETU Vice President, Susanne Baur gave her hearty thanks to the organisers for their hard work and was delighted with the fine performances from all athletes. We are now all looking forward to the Europa Cup Final in Malles next Sunday.

Standings in the 2002 European Winter Triathlon Cup after 4 of 5 races