Recent races show what really matters on the middle distance. Here is how you can use the tactics of the pros for your own training and your next competition.
Planning a triathlon raises many questions: How do you pace yourself? How important is the final discipline really? A look at recent pro races provides valuable insights for your own training. Whether at the new Ironman 70.3 in Leipzig, the traditional Allgäu Triathlon or in preparation for World Championships – the right pacing and solid running strength are often the key to success.
The results of recent races clearly show that an extremely fast bike leg alone is often not enough for victory. At the Ironman 70.3 in Leipzig, where around 2,400 athletes were at the start, Rico Bogen broke away on the bike with an average speed of over 46 kilometres per hour. He started the run with a lead of almost three minutes. Nevertheless, he was still caught on the final kilometres of the half marathon by Wilhelm Hirsch, who took the victory with the fastest run time of the day of 1:08:26 hours. According to reports from tri-mag.de, this impressively shows that you must not completely exhaust yourself on the bike in order to still be able to push at the back end.
At the Allgäu Triathlon with its around 3,200 starters, the men's decision was also only made during the run. Tom Hug and Jannik Stoll reached the second transition zone at the same time before Hug won the duel with the best run time. Even absolute top athletes like the reigning European Champion Lasse Priester, who is preparing for the World Championship in Nice at the altitude training camp in St. Moritz, rely fully on their running strength as their biggest trump card.
A race rarely goes perfectly, which is why mental flexibility is crucial. Tom Hug experienced a moment of shock in the Allgäu right on the first bike kilometre when he spotted a bend too late due to a fogged-up visor and ended up on a barrier. However, he did not let this throw him off course. Another example of flexibility was provided by Lena Meißner: actually, she had only travelled to the Allgäu for gravel riding, then started spontaneously and celebrated a confident start-to-finish victory.
For recreational athletes, concrete approaches for their own training and race planning can be derived from these observations:
Your takeaway: Pace yourself wisely on the bike, because the decision about a successful finish is almost always made on the final kilometres of the run.
This article was generated automatically with AI from the sources listed above and has not been editorially reviewed.