Ali Brownlee and Holly Lawrence win in Beijing
GB had a great day at the 2016 Beijing International Triathlon with Olympic gold medallist Alistair Brownlee winning the men’s race and the current 70.3 World Champion, GB’s Holly Lawrence taking the women’s.
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This was the first time Ali Brownlee and Lawrence competed in this race, which saw 1,400 professional and amateur athletes from more than 39 countries participate in the fifth annual Beijing International Triathlon, held in the Fengtai District of Beijing.
“I was thrilled to return Beijing to race, this was a challenging course, something a bit different after Rio,” said Alistair Brownlee. “The field of professionals was strong with Josh Amberger setting a fast pace on the swim, followed by Cameron Dye setting the pace on the bike course.
“This was an mind-blowing race in an amazing setting with a stellar field of professional athletes,” said Lawrence. “The swim was fast, followed by a technical bike course and a run that was filled with more than 480 stairs. I knew Ashleigh Gentle, who is an amazing runner, was close to me on the run as I approached the top of the steps. I had to just go as hard as I could and I went down the steps three to five steps at a time to hold my lead.”
The race started and finished amongst the beautiful scenery of Garden Expo Park, in the Fengtai district of Beijing. The Olympic distance race featured a 1.5 km swim through Garden Expo Lake; a challenging 40 km bike race through the villages of Fengtai and up Qian Ling Mountain, the highest peak in Southwest Beijing; and a final 10 km run through the lush gardens and scenic trails of the Garden Expo Park, including a 480-step stair climb.
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