GOLD COAST, Australia -- Gwen Jorgensen raced her way to a second-place finish at the second stop of the 2016 ITU World Triathlon Series in Gold Coast on Saturday, while Joe Maloy captured a career-best sixth-place finish.
Gwen Jorgensen finished second on Saturday at WTS Gold Coast. (Delly Carr/ITU)
Jorgensen (St. Paul, Minn.) led the U.S. women on the 1,500-meter swim, 40-kilometer bike, 10-kilometer run course, finishing in 1 hour, 56 minutes, 44 seconds. She was 41 seconds behind winner Helen Jenkins of Great Britain, and finished 1 second ahead of bronze medalist Andrea Hewitt of New Zealand in a sprint to the finish. Katie Zaferes (Hampstead, Md.) was sixth and Kirsten Kasper (North Andover, Mass.) was 10th.
The U.S. women were well positioned on the swim and into the midsection of the 40k bike course, with five athletes in the lead pack. Then Jenkins, Hewitt and Bermuda's Flora Duffy broke away from the leaders to gain a gap of 90 seconds by the run transition. Though Jorgensen closed the gap to the podium in the final kilometers of the race owing to her race-best 34:17 10k run split, she was unable to completely cut into Jenkins' lead. Jorgensen edged ahead of Hewitt in the final meters of the race for silver.
"Helen was really strong today and she was the better athlete," Jorgensen told ITU media after the race. "Helen, Andrea and Flora were riding really, really strong and they had a great race. I was just trying to run as fast as I could, I think a lot goes through your head. It's great to be back racing against Helen, she was gone for a little bit, so it was good for [her] to do well."
In the men's race, the U.S. men captured two top-10 finishes, with Maloy (Wildwood Crest, N.J.) earning a career-best sixth and Greg Billington (Spokane, Wash.) grabbing 10th. Previously Maloy had finished 17th and Billington 15th for their career bests in WTS races. The pair lead the U.S. in USA Triathlon's Objective Rankings System leading up to the nation's final Olympic qualification event in May 14 in Yokohama. Spain's Mario Mola won the men's event in 1:46:28.
The ITU World Triathlon Series will resume in Cape Town, South Africa on April 24.
ITU World Triathlon Gold Coast
1,500m swim, 40k bike, 10k run
Elite Women - Complete Results
1. Helen Jenkins (GBR), 1:56:03
2. Gwen Jorgensen (St. Paul, Minn.), 1:56:44
3. Andrea Hewitt (NZL), 1:56:45
U.S. Finishers
6. Katie Zaferes (Hampstead, Md.), 1:58:14
10. Kirsten Kasper (North Andover, Mass.), 1:59:09
18. Renee Tomlin (Ocean City, N.J.), 2:00:05
23. Lindsey Jerdonek (Brecksville, Ohio), 2:00:56
25. Sarah True (Hanover, N.H.), 2:01:23
31. Taylor Spivey (Redondo Beach, Calif.), 2:02:15
34. Erin Jones (Hood River, Ore.), 2:02:40
DNF Kaitlin Shiver (Satellite Beach, Fla.)
Elite Men - Complete Results
1. Mario Mola(ESP), 1:46:28
2. Fernando Alarza (ESP), 1:46:55
3. Jonathan Brownlee (GBR), 1:47:09
U.S. Finishers
6. Joe Maloy (Wildwood Crest, N.J), 1:47:53
10. Greg Billington (Spokane, Wash.), 1:48:16
19. Kevin McDowell (Geneva, Ill.), 1:48:58
DNF Jarrod Shoemaker (Clermont, Fla.), Ben Kanute (Geneva, Ill.)
| About USA Triathlon
USA Triathlon is proud to serve as the National Governing Body for triathlon, as well as duathlon, aquathlon, aquabike, winter triathlon, off-road triathlon and paratriathlon in the United States. Founded in 1982, USA Triathlon sanctions more than 4,300 races and connects with nearly 500,000 members each year, making it the largest multisport organization in the world. In addition to its work with athletes, coaches and race directors on the grassroots level, USA Triathlon provides leadership and support to elite athletes competing at international events, including International Triathlon Union (ITU) World Championships, Pan American Games and the Olympic and Paralympic Games. USA Triathlon is a proud member of the ITU and the United States Olympic Committee (USOC).
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