“T” for Triathlon and “100” for 100 km, i.e. 2 km swimming, 80 km cycling and 18 km walking. It is therefore on this new event, created by the association of the PTO and World Triathlon, that the 31-year-old from Antwerp became world champion in Dubai. After his successes in San Francisco and Ibiza, but also his second place in Las Vegas, Marten had to reach the podium during this final to be assured of the title and the bonus of 210,000 dollars. And he did it in style by imposing himself masterfully.
From the start of the swim, Marten Van Riel took the lead, setting a high pace which allowed him to come out in the lead after the first loop, ahead of the Australian Aaron Royle and the Briton Alistair Brownlee. Preferring to save a little for the rest, the Antwerp resident let Aaron Royle complete the 2 km swim in front, in 24.36, finishing in fifth position while the New Zealander Kyle Smith followed closely, a few seconds behind, and the Dane Magnus Ditlev from afar, more than a minute behind.
A less good swimmer, he counted on the bike to return to the front as during the last Ironman in Hawaii which he finished in second place, behind the German Patrick Lange. And it was the surprising Frenchman Mathis Margirier who started the 80 km in the lead, followed by a group of thirteen competitors in single file. Halfway through, Smith returned to the group while Ditlev came back under the minute. But the Dane then suffered a mechanical problem with the stem of his bike!
“I heard that Magnus had a technical problem and I feel sorry for him. For my part, this is not the way I want to beat my opponents. But that’s racing… The The bike ride was quite tricky with some very fast turns and some very tight ones, where we found ourselves almost at a standstill. Likewise, on foot, there were small hills like those that probably cost me my life. victory in Las Vegas for the benefit of Jelle Geens so I was on my guard until I let go of Rico Bogen, 2 km from the finish.”
Marten Van Riel: “A $210,000 title? I’m not running for the money!”
