Baker keeps world title

Press, 16 August 1988, Page 40

Baker keeps world title

PA Wellington Erin Baker retained her world triathlon sprint title with an emphatic two-minute victory in Kelowna, Canada, yesterday. Competing at a distance short of her best, Baker completed the I.skm swim, 40km cycle and 10km run in Ihr 59mins 31s. It is believed she is the first woman to break two hours for the distance.

The event, which attracted the world’s top male and female triathletes, was also a triumph for Christchurch’s John Hellemans. The part-time athlete finished eighth, less than two minutes behind the winner, Mike Pigg, in a field boasting the world’s top 60 professional exponents.

Hellemans’ time of 1:49.08 bettered his personal best by over 10 minutes.

Baker was hotly pursued in her race by the Canadian Joanne Ritchie. She passed Baker during the cycle leg but could not hold her out in the run.

Sylvianne and Patricia Puntous, expected to pose the main threats to Baker, finished third and fifth respectively.

Baker’s win was her first in major competition on the American

continent, and bodes, well for her attempt on the extremely difficult double of the Hawaiian and Nice endurance events.

Baker has won both events but not in the same year. The Hawaiian triathlon is in five weeks time, and the Nice event, in which she is defending champion, on October 22. Hellemans lagged somewhat on the swimming leg, being twentieth out of the water, but caught the main bunch of contenders during the cycle leg.

A bout of the stitch caused him to slow for a while on the run, but he came home strongly to claim eighth.

The other three New Zealanders in the men’s field, Rick Wells, Brett Marshall and Jackson Foster, pulled out during the event.