Search
shop

IRONMAN Vitoria-Gasteiz: Llanos and Jackson take victory

The debut of IRONMAN Vitoria-Gasteiz in Spain saw a hometown hero win, a U.S. athlete dominate the Europeans and three British Age-Groupers top the podium
Chief Correspondent
Last updated -
Get the ultimate guide to destination racing

Advertisement

Neil Eddy wins Age-Group race overall in Spain

Double Gold for “two British Laura’s” in Vitoria-Gasteiz too

IRONMAN – but not long distance triathlon – made its debut at IRONMAN Vitoria-Gasteiz in the Basque region of Northern Spain on Sunday.

Already a popular event, held for many years as ‘Triathlon Vitoria-Gasteiz’, the revised format under new ownership saw the elimination of the half distance race that used to run concurrently, and full focus on the IRONMAN. Almost 1,900 entries would suggest that its popularity was not dented.

Spain’s Eneko Llanos is the hometown hero, and at 42 he proved he can still perform at the highest level and used the motivation of his local support to produce an impressive 7:55:16 clocking, 11 minutes clear of swim leader Josh Amberger (AUS).

VITORIA, SPAIN - JULY 14: Athlete Eneko Llanos of Spain celebrates winning the men's race of Ironman Vitoria-Gasteiz on July 14, 2019 in Vitoria, Spain. (Photo by Pablo Blazquez Dominguez/Getty Images for IRONMAN)
Photo by Pablo Blazquez Dominguez/Getty Images for IRONMAN

The women’s champion (pictured in the header image), was Heather Jackson (USA) who produced another victory (and Sub-9 finish), to add to success last November at Arizona. Llanos travelled from Europe to North America and also won that race, so in a twist of symmetry, Jackson returned the favour!

Jackson will now be fully focussed on the IRONMAN World Championship in Kona where – so far – she has peaked at third place in 2016 in the Pro ranks, having previously one her Age-Group in Hawaii. Third out of the water in Spain, she moved to the front shortly after the halfway mark, was six minutes clear at T2 and further extended that with a 3:06:03 marathon to close the day.

IRONMAN Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain – Sunday 14th July 2019
3.8km / 180km / 42.2km

PRO MEN

1st – Eneko Llanos (ESP) – 7:55:16
2nd – Josh Amberger (AUS) – 8:06:55
3rd – Peru Alfaro (ESP) – 8:08:02
4th – Manuel Tinto (ESP) – 8:19:39
5th – Carlos Lopez Diaz (ESP) – 8:27:20

PRO WOMEN

1st – Heather Jackson (USA) – 8:52:10
2nd – Nina Derron (SUI) – 9:05:33
3rd – Judith Corachan Vaquera (ESP) – 9:13:37
4th – Joanna Soltysiak (POL) – 9;19:00
5th – Frederica De Nicola (ITA) – 9:25:18

AGE GROUP RESULTS

Great Britain’s Neil Eddy (30-34) was the fastest Age-Group athlete overall, clocking a swift 8:39:49 to finish just over three minutes quicker than the next fastest athlete. That’ll secure another Kona start for the Team Freespeed member who was the second fastest British amateur at Kona last year.

https://www.facebook.com/teamfreespeed/videos/2826863877340753/

There were more British winners in the women’s race where Laura Addie (18-24 – 10:52:04) and Laura Fidler (35-39 – 9:56:21). Like Neil, Addie is a member of Team Freespeed and that performance was actually her debut IRONMAN.

The ‘other’ Laura – Fidler – was the sixth fastest amateur overall and won her category by 33 minutes, with splits of 1:07 / 5:00:39 / 3:42:33

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bz73m4aByFN/

The women’s 40-44 division was clearly a very strong one on Spain. Great Britain’s Camille King was the fifth fastest female athlete – a couple of minutes in front of Laura Fidler – but was ‘only’ third in F40-44, with three of the top five overall all from her category.

Other British podium athletes in Spain were:

  • Tim Riding (55-59) – 3rd
  • Evan Davies (60-64) – 3rd
  • Camille King (40-44) – 3rd
  • Angela Finch (60-64) – 3rd

Nirvana Europe logo

Nirvana Europe is the Official Travel Partner to the European IRONMAN Tour. It has been providing athlete-friendly accommodation at IRONMAN events since 2005, as well as providing extra travel services to create stress-free experiences for both athletes and spectators.

There are incredible benefits of travelling with Nirvana to Kona this year, including transfers to and from the airport on the island, orientation tours of each leg of the race and a great house for events, product launches and workshops! Check out their full, customisable service offering here: https://www.nirvanaeurope.com/en/events/ironman/kona 

John Levison
Written by
John Levison
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.
Discover more
TRI247 podcast p/b Challenge Family episode 2
Go behind the scenes at Challenge Roth with the latest episode of the TRI247 podcast
Cadomotus Chronos triathlon cycling shoes
The triathlon cycling shoe that promises a 10-watt saving: Cadomotus Chronos Aero triathlon cycling shoes review
Challenge Family Roth
Five things you need to know about the Challenge Roth bike course
Challenge St. Pölten 2024 - image credit Jose Luis Hourcade / Challenge Family
Expert swim coach on the three most common swim mistakes age group triathletes make (and how to fix them!)
TRI-FIT VANGUARD tri suit review
The entry-level tri suit with a serious amount of performance for the price point – TRI-FIT VANGUARD review
latest News
ironman hamburg 2025 podium laura philipp kat matthews solveig lovseth beer
Challenge Roth 2025: Laura Philipp backed to make triathlon history by crashing through magical time barrier
Challenge Roth press conference 2025
Challenge Roth 2025: Date, start times, how to watch live and who’s racing
Georgia Taylor Brown wins supertri Toulouse 2024
British Olympic legend Georgia Taylor-Brown to make triathlon return
Gwen Jorgensen reflective World Triathlon Cup Vina del Mer 2023
‘Unbreakable’ Gwen Jorgensen ‘bruised’ after bike crash but vows to bounce back
IRONMAN CEO Scott DeRue Women For Tri 2024
IRONMAN announce new age-group qualification system for Kona and 70.3 Worlds
triathlon on your terms
Never miss out with our triathlon alerts & digest. Get a dose of adventure & inspiration with Boundless.
The 247 Group

The home of endurance sports

Share to...