US Duathlon Nationals

The USA Triathlon Duathlon National Championships were this past weekend in Richmond, Virginia. Part of an event called the National Duathlon Festival, the championships were part of a weekend of duathlon racing. With events on and off road, Richmond hosted a weekend dedicated to duathlon. All in all, it was a big success with record entries in the Age Group championships and a series of successful races. No discussion of the weekend should not mention the weather, early and often, as it was hot. Really hot. From the start of racing through the awards, tempersatures were high. Even with such tough conditions, the organizers did a good job of setting up an event where the athletes could shine. And shine many did.

The action started Saturday morning with a series of off-road events which culminated in the Off Road Championships. This event included 11K of trail running, 26K of mountain biking, and 5K of trail running. Overall winners were Pierre Martel of Virginia and Kathleen Coutinho, also of Virginia. Both Martel and Coutinho had strong races across the board, Martel had the fastest bike and 2^nd run among all off road competitors.

Complete Off Road Race Results

While the athletes may have been hoping for a break in the heat, Sunday started warm and only got hotter. With a race that filled to capacity, race organizers spread the age groups out over Sunday morning to insure that the course was not overly congested. This worked well in that the run and bike courses were not jammed up as they had been in 2008. This ensured that within age group competion was not overly shaped by interaction with those in other waves. This was a smart move as not only were age group awards were at stake, so were qualification spots for the ITU Age Group World Duathlon Championships.

The only downside to spreading the field over Sunday morning was the fact that finish times were not so simple to compare from one age group to another. This was a result of two factors. First, the weather started warm but got downright hot. When the last wave (men 18-29) started at 11:30 am, the temperatures had risen a great deal. This was a full 4 hours after the first wave started. Even more important of a factor in the overall age group race was the fact that the last 4 waves didn't race in the same course conditions as did those earlier.

After the men's 30-34 age group was on the course, a freght train came across a part of the run course and stopped. This resulted in the need for all of the athletes to completely stop and wait for the train. After a restart, the race commenced again. A few of the women in the 30-34 age group also encountered the stopped train as well. Due to the issue with the train, the last 2 waves, the men's 18-24 and 25-29 age groups and the women of the same ages, raced a modified course. This updated course may have been a bit shorter than the others.

In the end, the overall age group winners are

Men's Top Ten Overall Results
1. Nicholas Sterghos (22) 1:49:02
2. Eneas Freyre (33) 1:50:22
3. Daniel Moss (28) 1:52:19
4. Adam Otstot (27) 1:52:30
5. Lucas McCollum (29) 1:52:42
6. Todd Wiley (39) 1:52:46
7. Robert Wade (27) 1:53:10
8. Steven Rosinski (24) 1:53:13
9. Dirk Heinze (33) 1:53:37
10. Rick Fesler (28) 1:53:50

Women's Top Ten Overall Results
1. Suzanne Huelster (35) 2:06:08
2. Crystal Anthony (29) 2:06:16
3. Kelly Fillnow (26) 2:07:34
4. Ellen Hart (51) 2:08:26
5. Cheryl Hart (55) 2:09:29
6. Sarah Matchett (39) 2:10:07
7. Kristine Kuss (41) 2:10:34
8. Maureen Forsyth (36) 2:11:15
9. Kristin Villopoto (49) 2:11:32
10. Rebecca Stephenson (37) 2:11:35

Complete On Road Results

We hope that the 2009 National Championships are the start of a regrowth in duathlon. If we can continue to bring thousands of athletes to duathlons, the sport can only get bigger and better. We hope the same level of dedication and enthusiasm will surround the World Championships this September in North Carolina.