Lambrechts credits team support in 70.3 triumph

Matrix Multisport triathlete Manfred Lambrechts believes the camaraderie of his team played a major role in pushing him to take the win at the Isuzu Ironman 70.3 Nelson Mandela Bay.

Based in De Aar, Northern Cape, Lambrechts showed the rest of the field a clean pair of heels as he claimed the overall win at the inaugural half-distance race in Gqeberha on Sunday.

“I usually train alone up in De Aar, so it is nice to have such great support when I come down here, we are not just teammates but we are like a little family,” he said after crossing the line.

Lambrechts sprinted down the finish chute to break the tape in a time of three hours, 40 minutes and 50 seconds, almost a minute ahead of Ewert Kleynhans (3:41.39) in second while Adriaan Myburgh rounded out the podium spots in a time of 3:42.03.

“I put a lot of hours and dedication into preparing for this race and at the end of the day I succeeded in my goal,” he said.

Lambrechts said the swim cancellation was disappointing but he knew that it would mean he needed to work harder in the remaining disciplines.

“The swim is actually one of my strong points, so when it was cancelled I knew we would need to push hard on the bike.

“It was not easy, it was quite windy and rainy at the start of the bike, we had a tailwind going out so it was not that bad, and the headwind did not affect me too much, I had a bit more energy on the run due to not swimming,” he said.

Meanwhile, in the women’s race, it was Marizaan Vermeulen, racing in her debut 70.3 event, who took the overall gold medal in a time of 4:22.56.

She was followed home by Gqeberha’s Antonelle Saporta (4:24.23) and Shannon Lourens (4:22.33) in third.

Saporta, who claimed gold in the 40-44 age group, said: “It was so nice to be back on an Ironman course, I did a few short course races in recent weeks, so it was nice to be back on the red carpet again.

“Having the swim cancelled was a real mind-shift for me, but my coach said I must put my head in the game as I could still bike and run.

“I wasn’t going to go too hard on the bike to save some energy for the run, as the swim and run are my stronger legs.

“I had to go very hard on the bike to try to stay with my competition, when I came into transition, I made up a bit of time there.

“I felt really great on the first 11km of the run, but from 2km I really battled, but I just put my head down, when you know that your competitors are also battling, it was just about me keeping my head to the end.” s

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