TISZAUJVAROS, Hungary - New Zealand’s Samantha Warriner and Spaniard Javier Gomez have won the 2007 Tiszaujvaros BG Triathlon World Cup in Hungary today, the 11th stop of the 2007 BG Triathlon World Cup Series. Both athletes began the day wearing number one on their arm and would have nothing less then top spot on the podium. Only three weeks before the World Championships in Hamburg, Germany, the two top contenders displayed their form by running away from the field to add Tiszaujvaros gold to their extensive triathlon resumes.

In typical fashion, the entire city of Tiszaujvaros turned out to watch as the annual weeklong festival dedicated to fitness and health culminated with the 11th edition of the Hungarian world cup.

Warriner was part of an 18-woman lead group in the bike that at one point had more than a minute lead. But the chase pack that included strong runners like Debbie Tanner and Nadia Cortassa worked well together and cut the lead to just 15 seconds as the women came off the bike.

Almost the entire field of 50 women headed out onto the flat 10-kilometer run course together with Warriner immediately pushing the pace and established the lead. As the run wore on, she continued to distance herself from the field with a 28-second lead with just one lap to go. Draped in the New Zealand flag, Warriner coasted to the finish line to take the Tiszaujvaros crown.

“I got off the bike and I thought, ‘Right I’m going to take it to them’ and I went out and led from the front. I like running at the front and kept increasing my lead. The last lap I was hurting but I didn’t care, I wanted the win,” said Warriner.

In a season dominated by Portuguese star Vanessa Fernandes, Warriner becomes the only other woman to win multiple world cup title this year after having conquered Vancouver in June. She won’t catch Fernandes in the rankings but Warriner jumps to number two in the world, heading into the world championships in Hamburg in three weeks. She also becomes the first woman from New Zealand to win in the 11-history of the Tiszaujvaros event.

“It’s amazing. I wanted a good result today because I had a good one in Salford two weeks ago and I’m known to be a bit inconsistent so I wanted to show that I’m back and can back up my results,” said Warriner. “This is my fifth win and every win is better because you have to work so much harder to get it.”

With a Warriner victory looking more and more certain by the middle of the run, the real race began to take shape between Debbie Tanner and Emma Moffatt. The two young stars ran side-by-side for almost the entire ten kilometers. In the final stretch, Edmonton winner Moffatt pulled ahead and sprinted across the line for the silver while Tanner settled for bronze.

A great performance by Team BG member Yuliya Yelistratova of Ukraine who finished in fourth place, the best ever result for Team BG at a world cup. Cortassa of Italy was fifth for her best world cup placing of the season.

In the men’s event, world number one Gomez has done it again. In the last world cup before the Hamburg world championships, the Spaniard has added to his already impressive 2007 season by winning today’s world cup. New Zealand’s Kris Gemmell was Gomez’s closest competitor, finishing nine seconds back to take silver, his best world cup performance since winning bronze in Ishigaki back in April. Two-time European champion Frederic Belaubre of France raced in just his second world cup of the year but finished on the podium again, showing he’s back in top form.

“This is my third world cup win of this year,” said Gomez. “Not my best race because I am tired I am training very hard for worlds.”

Despite a non-wetsuit swim, a large group of men exited the 1,500 metre swim together to form a massive 61-man peloton at the front of the race, leaving the day to the runners.

Out on the run, Gomez began to heat up at about the 4-kilometer mar, as usual, setting a torrid pace and pulling away from Gemmell and Belaubre. The men couldn’t keep up with the Spaniard who took a 17-second lead as he set out on the bell lap. Gomez cruised in the final kilometers and broke the tape for the sixth world cup win of his burgeoning career.

“I was really fast when I broke away on the first lap,” commented Gomez. “First time Gemmell was strong and came with me. My second speed up, I broke away.”

“I wanted to see if I could go with him,” replied Gemmell, who moves into fourth place in the rankings, one behind compatriot Bevan Docherty. “I went with him the initial one but then he just kept going faster and faster. And it just got to the point that the elastic band, as they say, just snapped in half.”

In a remarkable season that includes his first European championship, Gomez now claims three world cup titles for the second straight year and cements himself as the man to beat in Hamburg. His world cup podium streak now stretches to a dozen and dates back to March 2006. With his sixth world cup win, Gomez now tied Aussies Greg Bennett and Craig Walton for 7th among all-time world cup winners.

Veteran Volodymyr Polikarpenko becomes the second Ukrainian of the day to finish one step off the podium in fourth place while Brazilian Reinaldo Colucci crossed the line in fifth, his third top-five finish this year.

2007 Tiszaujvaros BG Triathlon World Cup – Elite Women’s Results:
WARRINER, Samantha (NZL) 2:00:11
MOFFATT, Emma (AUS) 2:00:31 +:20
TANNER, Debbie (NZL) 2:00:35 +:24
YELISTRATOVA, Yuliya (UKR) 2:00:55 +:44
CORTASSA, Nadia (ITA) 2:01:04 +:53
HOOGZAAD, Wieke (NED) 2:01:26 +1:15
LORBLANCHET, Marion (FRA) 2:01:43 +1:32
MUELLER, Kathrin (GER) 2:01:51 +1:40
MURRAY, Carolyn (CAN) 2:01:55 +1:44
DEDERKO, Ewa (POL) 2:01:57 +1:46

2007 Tiszaujvaros BG Triathlon World Cup – Elite Men’s Results
GOMEZ, Javier (ESP) 1:47:44
GEMMELL, Kris (NZL) 1:47:52 +:09
BELAUBRE, Frederic (FRA) 1:48:03 +:19
POLIKARPENKO, Volodymyr (UKR) 1:48:13 +:29
COLUCCI, Reinaldo (BRA) 1:48:22 +:38
POLYANSKY, Dmitry (RUS) 1:48:30 +:46
EKSTEEN, Claude (GER) 1:48:33 +:49
TOVAR, Jose (ESP) 1:48:42 +:58
PROCHNOW, Christian (GER) 1:48:46 +1:02
SEXTON, Brendan (AUS) 1:48:52 +1:08

Full results are available here: http://www.triathlon.org/zpg/zevt-dtl-prtcpnts_v4.php?call=TVRFdw==&keep...

Up next:
World championships will take center stage as the ITU Elite Team Triathlon World Championships go tomorrow, less than three weeks before the Hamburg BG Triathlon World Championships.