Morellato and Sevillano conquer the Artiem Half Menorca de Fornells

The Italian and the Catalan prevail in a version marked by a start with rain and wind that complicated the start. Escola and Bonilla triumph in the Short distance

The triathlon was the great winner in the sixth edition of the Artiem Half Minorca. Sport reigned above all in a day that had its initial protagonists in the wind and rain who ended up giving up the baton to the sun after noon, leaving a fantastic morning to play sports.

On a sporting level, the Italian Alessio Morellato and the Catalan based in Ibiza, Susanna Sevillano, commanded from start to finish taking the glory in the Half distance, while in the Short the victory went to Francesc Escola y Sara Bonilla

The event, which features the sponsorship of the Fundació Foment del Turisme de Menorca and the Agència d'Estrategia Turística de les Illes Balears, the collaboration of Mercadal Town Hall and company Artiem Hotels Fresh People, started with rain and wind, which caused the water to be more shaken than normal.

Half Distance

In the Half distance, The 1.900 meters of swimming were led by Morellato from start to finish, who, like Sevillano, imposed a tyrannical pace. The trend continued throughout the race, as neither the Italian nor the Catalan ever found a rival in the 90 kilometers of swimming. bike not even in the 21-kilometer run.

Alessio Morellato climbed to the top of the podium with a time of 4:32:43, accompanied by Albert Vidal (4:39:17) who came back on the foot race section to silver, beating in one of the loops Oriol Gili bronze finals with a time of 4:40:07.

Sevillano was the best and fastest, crossing the finish line with a time of 5:06:43 ahead of Ferreries resident Ana Bueno, second with 5:17:50. The podium was completed by Mercè Segura with a time of 5:37:59.

Short distance

The men's Short distance was undoubtedly the most exciting as it was decided in the final sprint, 100 meters from the finish line when Francesc Escola beat Miquel Àngel Salom in the last effort by just two seconds apart (1:45 : 52). Biel Gacias, who for a long time dominated the race, finished completing the podium with 1:46:08.

In women, brutal dominance by Sara Bonilla who took a victory without hesitation, crossing the finish line with a time of 1:53:50. Chloé Serra reached the second place with a time of 1:57:31, while the bronze went to the Menorcan Nuria Sbert who arrived with a time of 2:08:07, after overcoming at the end of the leg of the race on foot. Berta Beran.

Relays

In the men's team competition, the winners were Enric Pons, Héctor Pons and David Sintes, followed by Javier Lorente, Damià Portella and Dani Pieres, and by Migue Huguet, Toni Quero and Llorenç Torres.

In the mixed modality, victory for the team formed by Inés Canadell, Casimir Domenech and Quim Domenech, finishing ahead of Jordi Berenguer, Javi Lorente and Eli Ruiz.

Menorca, ideal destination for triathlon

Menorca has once again established itself as an ideal destination for triathlon sports, also coinciding with the final part of the summer season, adding to its tourist offer proposals such as the Artiem Half Menorca that complements the gastronomic, cultural and landscape that the Island already has.

The test, like all those organized by Elitechip, has among its shorter-term objectives, to minimize the impact on the environment as much as possible, following the Menorca Biosphere Reserve spirit, and for this it has reduced to the maximum the consumption of plastic of a I only use, betting on more sustainable materials.

In addition, to publicize the charms of the Island, it has opted to offer the participants local products in the post-race area, in which there has been no lack of cheese, sausages and pastries, in addition to other things that have made the delights of the participants.

The competition closed with the delivery of trophies in which the mayor of Es Mercadal, Francesc Ametller, the manager of the Fundació Turisme de Menorca, Elena Costa, and the councilmen of Es Mercadal, Lali Garriga, Javier Periáñez, Tobal Pons were present. and Joan Palliser.

There was also a small tribute to Alex Sánchez Palomero, a Palma-based paratriathlete who has competed in the Short distance, and who won the bronze medal at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.

Likewise, there has also been a special mention for Dani Molina, and for two blind participants who have completed the tour accompanied by a guide, Mari Carmen Soler and Manuel Saborit.