One short week after Aix en Provence 70.3, as many as 60 pro men are gathering to compete in Ironman 70.3 Mallorca. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that this race figures on many top athletes’ race schedule as Mallorca is one of the world’s training hotspots.
Andreas Dreitz of Germany will have his hands full trying to defend his title. Countryman and double 70.3 World Champion Michael Raelert will be right on his tail. The younger of the Raelert brothers has become a dominant athlete at the 70.3 distance, highlighted by his end of season win in Challenge Bahrain.
Ivan Rana, former ITU World Champion and member of an exclusive sub-8 hour Ironman will be the local favorite. Switzerland athletes Mike Aigroz and Jan Van Berkel, Aussies Joe Gambles and Sam Appleton as well as Ukraine’s Maxim Kriat will also be looking to make a statement.
We will also pay close attention to Antony Costes who was a member of the 2014 Team France LD. He has a high potential and will be looking to score big points to better his chances at qualifying for the 70.3 World Championships. It’s the first race of a double header for Costes who is also scheduled to race in Barcelona next weekend.
Cedric Lassonde, Sebastien Jouffret, Gwenael Ouilleres and Frederic Schaffner are the other Frenchmen in the pro field.
On the women’s side, Daniela Ryf of Switzerland is the clear-cut favorite. Yvonne Van Vlerken (NED) and Michelle Vesterby (DEN) are other potential winners.
Mallorca boasts a fairly difficult bike course which should allow the stronger cyclists to separate themselves from the field entering T2. With so many pros taking the start, expect to see many different groups forming on the swim. We expect Michael Raelert will attempt to make a difference on the bike course and to finish off the field on the run, but he will have his hands full trying drop Andreas Dreitz who is a force to be reckoned with on the bike.
The race takes place this Saturday.
Men
1 Andreas Dreitz GER
2 Michael Raelert GER
3 Ivan Raña ESP
4 Mike Aigroz SUI
5 David Plese SLO
6 Mathias Hecht SUI
7 Miguel Angel Fidalgo ESP
8 Sam Appleton AUS
9 Anders Christensen DNK
10 Antony Costes FRA
11 Vincent Depuiset FRA
12 Andreas Helbo Beck DNK
13 Markus Hoermann GER
14 Allan Hovda NOR
15 Mikita Hryhoryeu BEL
16 Sebastien Jouffret FRA
17 Thomas Kaiser GER
19 Matthias Knossalla GER
20 Teemu Kyllonen FIN
21 Cedric Lassonde FRA
22 Carlos Lopez ESP
23 David Mcnamee GBR
24 Petr Michovsky CZE
25 Tomas Mika CZE
26 Matic Modic SLO
27 Urs Müller SUI
28 Joan Nadal Clar ESP
29 Mathias Nagel GER
30 Ritchie Nicholls GBR
31 Daniel Niederreiter AUT
32 Patrik Nilsson SWE
33 Gwenael Ouilleres FRA
34 Fabian Rahn GER
35 Pascal Ramali GER
36 Ivan Risti ITA
37 Andreas Thissen GER
38 Hendrikjan Verhaegen BEL
39 Erik Watson BAH
40 Dirk Wijnalda NED
42 Rob Woestenborghs BEL
43 Valentin Zasypkin RUS
44 Allan Steen Olesen DNK
45 Patrick Lange GER
46 Andreas Linden SWE
47 Joe Gambles AUS
48 Maxim Kriat UKR
49 Michael Louys BEL
50 Manuel Kueng SUI
51 Evgeniy Nikitin RUS
52 Denis Sketako SLO
53 Frederic Schaffner FRA
54 Johann Ackermann GER
55 Gilian Oriet SUI
56 Alexander Schilling GER
57 Marcel Bischof GER
58 Artem Parienko RUS
59 Christian Jais GER
60 Jan Van Berkel SUI
Women
70 Daniela Ryf SUI
71 Julia Gajer GER
72 Yvonne Van Vlerken NED
74 Kristin Moeller GER
76 Mette Pettersen Moe NOR
77 Diana Riesler GER
78 Verena Walter GER
79 Maria Lemeseva RUS
80 Tine Deckers BEL
81 Vicky Gill GBR
82 Emma Graaf SWE
83 Yvette Grice GBR
84 Anne Jensen DEN
85 Anna Kusch GER
86 Georgie Rutherford GBR
87 Franziska Scheffler GER
88 Natascha Schmitt GER
89 Mirjam Weerd NLD
90 Stefanie Adam BEL
91 Elena Casiraghi ITA
94 Nicole Woysch GER
95 Kaisa Lehtonen FIN
96 Michelle Vesterby DEN