Successful fire test of the first Triathlon of La Rioja

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More than 400 athletes have opened this triathlon where the heat has been the clear protagonist.

El Triathlon of La Rioja yesterday celebrated its first edition in half distance with more than 400 participants. The high temperatures have not prevented the 14h from starting on the Ebro River a competition that has kept the city of Logroño expectant until the 21: 30 at night.

The triathlete who has won the first edition has been Joan Ruvireta. The Catalan has crossed the finish line to the 18: 10h after 4h 14 minutes of hard competition. Shortly after Mikel Elgezabal he managed to get in second place despite the pain with which he began after his double foot fracture. The athlete who has completed the podium has been Portuguese José Estrangeiro.

After the high temperatures of the last days, the water of the Ebro river was at 25º, which by regulation prevented the use of neoprene. What was presumed to be a very fast swim turned into a struggle for less experienced swimmers. In less than 25 minutes the top favorite came out of the water, Pablo Dapena. The Galician, runner-up in Spain in Triathlon this year, surpassed Joan Ruvireta by almost 3 minutes, third place in the Spanish Championship. More delayed were José Estrangeiro, Mikel Elgezal and Julen Díez. The duel was repeated by bike until at km 65 Pablo Dapena was retiring from competition by a puncture in his rear lenticular wheel.

The high temperatures did not prevent to enjoy the participants of a beautiful cycling tour that has been developed without any incidence. The previous work of the organization with all the municipalities of villages through which the test had run has allowed it to be held virtually closed traffic.

After leaving the facilities of the Adarraga, the triathletes lined the center of Logroño to leave in the direction of Laguardia. Once on the service road of the N111, with its endless line of 12 km with almost no gradient, the participants were able to fly coupled until they reached the so-called Joto climb. The overcrowding of the race, cut by the organization in 400 participants despite the long waiting list, and the width of the road has allowed to roll without falling in penalties for Drafting. With an average gradient of 5% these almost 3 km served to open differences between the participants and stretch the group a lot.

After passing Sotés, the rest of the route was continuous ups and downs and long straights, which has left precious prints for the land of wine. After a brief passage through the Rioja Alavesa, he returned to Logroño bordering the Ebro.

The race on foot has been marked by the strong temperatures. It was definitely not an ideal day to take time or references if not for the mental struggle against the body and reach the goal as the main objective.

As for women, it is Aintzane Argaiz the one that has taken the wine boot, badge that characterizes the test. The veteran Alava, absolute dominator of the test from the first bars, has surpassed the Vitoriana Arrate Mintegui. Abigail Meyers I got the third classification.