The city of St. Pölten, the capital of the State of Lower Austria has been hosting major international triathlon events for two decades now. On a busy weekend just over a week ago now, the third edition of Challenge St. Pölten took place in excellent conditions
The victories there went to Tom Hug (GER) and Lotte Wilms (NED), and you can find the full report on that HERE.
Following up on that report – and with great thanks to regular contributor José Luis Hourcade (www.joseluishourcade.com) – we can bring you the story of the race in pictures.
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Challenge St. Pölten 2023 – via the lens of José Luis Hourcade
Lotte Wilms (right) and Daniela Kleiser relax before the swim startIt would not be such a happy day for Sebastian KienleA rare middle-distance pontoon dive startThe Pro Men seeking the best line fro the gunAs he did in 2022, Hannes Butters (GER) dominated the swimThe two-lake swim saw athletes have a short run before diving back inLake two – the Ratzersdorfer SeeKienle and the chasers early in the cycle sectionAdriano Engelhardt (SUI) in aero modeSebastian Kienle – before he ‘lost it’ after receiving a penaltyHannes Butters held his swim lead for much of the bike section tooCarolin Lehrieder had a strong ride to set up a podium finishRuben Zepuntke was a class apart on two wheels, reaching T2 aloneFabian Günther (GER) on the one lap bike courseLotte Wilms was in control all day longGreat views by the riverGreat Britain’s Kit Walker, twice a winner at The Outlaw TriathlonTom Hug was the surprise package of the dayNo repeat victory for 2022 champion, Nicolas Mann, who was a DNFThe bike course is an impressive oneGermany’s Lisa Gerß en-route to fifth place10th (2021), 7th (2022) and now 4th, Gabriele Obmann is getting close to the ‘home’ podiumDaniela Kleiser on the bike – but the fastest run split would be her route to silverZepuntke leading and nobody close summed up the second half of the rideTom Hug set about chasing down RubenEnglehardt and Hollaus were running wellLotte Wilms was a gun-to-tape winner and never under threat in AustriaTom Hug makes the pass on Ruben ZepuntkeDespite his bike efforts, Zepuntke couldn’t hold his lead to the finishAnother fastest run split for the speedy Daniela KleiserA delighted Tom Hug takes the tapeA podium of Hug, Englehardt and Hollaus – though Adriano (#28) would later be DQ’d for not serving a penaltyLotte Wilms was a clear winner in St. PöltenLotte Wilms, Daniela Kleiser and Carolin Lehreider were the podium trio
TRI247's Chief Correspondent, John has been involved in triathlon for well over 30 years, 15 of those writing on these pages, whilst he can also be found commentating for events across the UK.
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