NEWS

Great Britain’s Beth Potter crowned European Champion

By Paul Groves | 01 Jun, 2019
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With 57 women from 25 different countries, but with the defending title-holder not present this weekend in Weert, the Elite Women’s race of the 2019 Olympic Distance European Championships was more open than ever. And after a consistent performance from beginning to end, it was Great Britains excellent runner Beth Potter taking the crown for the first time of her career, with France’s Sandra Dodet crossing the finish line in second place and Belgium’s Claire Michel in third.

Coming out of the water on the first lap, it was Spain’s Sara Perez Sala who led the women out of the water after the first lap. On her heels were Russia’s Diana Isakova, Theresa Feuersinger (AUT), Sandra Dodet (FRA) and GB’s Olivia Matthias. This would be a powerful combination out on the bike course. A massive swim from Beth Potter placed her in the leading group and she held this position for the second lap, to exit the water in an incredible 9th place.

The breakaway had not taken place and once out on the bike, a strong peloton of 18 athletes started to work hard to close down any threat from the chase group. The lead grew until it was over 90 seconds and at this stage, with Potter well-placed in that group, it was more or less a certainty that she would claim the title.

No spills or crashes meant that this group of 18 would come as one into T2. Potter soon established a lead, with Dodet and Claire Michel chasing. Three laps on the run and Potter’s style was so easy. Every pace seemed to propel her forwards but Dodet dug deep and kept the Brit in her sights. Michel did her best to keep both in view on the twisting and technical course and the three were able to pull away from the next threat, Emilie Morier (FRA), who only 5 years back had qualified for the Youth Olympics on this very course.

The final lap saw the run power of Potter settle the score and with a 33:23 10k, she smiled all the way down the blue carpet, to the delighted cheers of the many British Age Group athletes and supporters who had lined the street and especially the finish area. Behind her were Dodet and Michel, with Morier finishing in fourth place and Vendula Frintoza (CZE) in 5th.

In the Women’s Junior race, disputed over a sprint distance as per usual in this category, the victory was for the race favourite, Beatrice Mallozzi (ITA), dominating from the beginning of the bike course. The technical course proved safe enough for the athletes and coming into T2, the Italian was pretty much assured of a clear run, with her supreme pace. By the end of the first lap she had made her mark on the race and behind her, the race for silver and bronze was underway. The biggest threat to her seemed to be Austria’s Magdalena Früh but her silver medal position was snatched in the final stages of the race by Switzerland’s Nora Gmür who ran so well to claim that runner-up medal.

Related Event: 2019 Weert ETU Triathlon European Championships
31 - Jun, 2019 • event pageall results
Results: Elite Men
1. Alistair Brownlee GBR 01:35:00
2. Joao Pereira POR 01:35:23
3. Jelle Geens BEL 01:35:56
4. Rostislav Pevtsov AZE 01:36:03
5. Barclay Izzard GBR 01:36:06
6. Marten Van Riel BEL 01:36:12
7. Vicente Hernandez ESP 01:36:16
8. Andreas Schilling DEN 01:36:21
9. Maximilian Schwetz GER 01:36:32
10. Shachar Sagiv ISR 01:36:38
Results: Elite Women
1. Beth Potter GBR 01:45:44
2. Sandra Dodet FRA 01:46:42
3. Claire Michel BEL 01:46:55
4. Emilie Morier FRA 01:47:49
5. Vendula Frintova CZE 01:47:59
6. Carolyn Hayes IRL 01:48:01
7. Sara Vilic AUT 01:48:12
8. Olivia Mathias GBR 01:48:20
9. Nina Eim GER 01:48:30
10. Yuliya Yelistratova UKR 01:48:33
Results: Junior Men
1. Paul Georgenthum FRA 00:49:04
2. Boris Pierre FRA 00:49:07
3. Ricardo Batista POR 00:49:07
4. Sergio Baxter Cabrera ESP 00:49:23
5. Alexandre Montez POR 00:49:31
6. Daniil Kondrashov RUS 00:49:34
7. Simon Henseleit GER 00:49:34
8. Elai Izhak Chaski ISR 00:49:39
9. Guillaume Hay FRA 00:49:43
10. Angel Sanchez Carreras ESP 00:49:45
Results: Junior Women
1. Beatrice Mallozzi ITA 00:54:46
2. Nora Gmür SUI 00:54:57
3. Magdalena Früh AUT 00:55:06
4. Cathia Schär SUI 00:55:16
5. Erin Wallace GBR 00:55:20
6. Gabriela Ribeiro POR 00:55:22
7. Pia Totschnig AUT 00:55:23
8. Franca Henseleit GER 00:55:24
9. Maria Tomé POR 00:55:26
10. Ida Burrows SWE 00:55:27
Results: Mixed Relay
1. Team I France FRA 01:11:40
2. Team I Germany GER 01:11:43
3. Team I Netherlands NED 01:11:54
4. Team I Belgium BEL 01:12:17
5. Team I Portugal POR 01:12:44
6. Team I Great Britain GBR 01:12:45
7. Team I Switzerland SUI 01:13:37
8. Team I Spain ESP 01:13:59
9. Team I Czech Republic CZE 01:14:04
10. Team I Hungary HUN 01:14:13
Results: Mixed Junior Relay
1. Team I Germany GER 01:14:45
2. Team I Great Britain GBR 01:14:54
3. Team I Hungary HUN 01:14:57
4. Team I Italy ITA 01:14:57
5. Team I Portugal POR 01:15:19
6. Team I Spain ESP 01:15:25
7. Team I Israel ISR 01:15:58
8. Team I Switzerland SUI 01:16:19
9. Team I Austria AUT 01:17:35
10. Team I Sweden SWE 01:18:01