Another PTO-supported event took place over the weekend with the People’s Triathlon in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
There was a home winner as James Cunnama finished first in the men’s race while Britain’s Emma Pallant led the way for the women.
Cunnama led home a South African 1-2-3, winning from compatriots Matt Trautman and Kyle Buckingham.
The 37-year-old, recently selected as a wild card for the PTO 2020 Championship, was strongest in the closing stages as he dropped fellow Daytona hopeful Trautman following a shoulder-to-shoulder battle for much of the 21k run.
Cunnama, who described the success as “awesome” but was not happy with his performance in the swim, said: “Matt just stayed on my shoulder the whole run. Only in last few hundred metres was I able to get a bit of a gap. Definitely not a relaxed, comfortable win. But a win’s a win.”
Pallant, fellow Daytona hopeful Annah Watkinson and Jade Nicole dominated the women’s race from start to finish. It was the British star though who held off the home contingent to win in a time of 4:12:35.
Nicole was fastest into T2 but the 31-year-old Pallant was the first to exit and she produced the fastest run of the day to ensure victory.
Both weekend events featured prize pools boosted by the PTO, to the tune of $15,000 each. The victorious Pallant was quick to emphasise the importance of that backing in these troubled times.
“I think without the PTO, I don’t think everyone would come here for this race. It’s just brought a really quality field together and given us a fantastic professional race opportunity. It’s massive for us and it’s keeping things going in a hard time for the sport.”
The countdown now ramps up to the eagerly-awaited PTO 2020 Championship on December 6, with warm-up events fast running out for the elite athletes preparing to take part.
The landmark event in Florida will see a star-studded field of 120 athletes competing for a record purse of $1,150,000.
MALE PRO:
1 James Cunnama 3:46:09
2 Matty Trautman +00:16
3 Kyle Buckingham +2:38
4 Keegan Cooke +9:30
5 Jamie Wriddle +16:19
FEMALE PRO:
1 Emma Pallant 4:12:35
2 Anna Watkinson +4:56
3 Jade Nicole +10:07
4 Magda Nieuwodt +19:12
5 Mariella Sawyer +21:24