Richard Allen 2nd in ETU European Cup

Monday, 15th August 2005

After the huge disappointment of puncturing at the London Triathlon last weekend, Richard made up for it by finishing 2nd in ETU European Cup in Lough Neath.

Exiting the water at the rear of the lead pack Richard stayed in contention during the bike. At the half way point, Francisco Javier Gomez Noya of Spain and a Dutch athlete broke clear and opened a 25 second lead on the main pack containing Richard.

At the start of the run Richard made his move, pulling clear of the lead group and passing the Dutch athlete. With Gomez in his sights Richard was having the best run so far this season and opened up a minutes lead on the group.

Gomez, who finished 6th at the World Championships last year, is a class athlete and Richard could not make up any more ground during the second 5km of the run. Richard came in a strong 2nd and well clear of Italian, Alessandro Bottoni, in 3rd place.

With the Chicago triathlon in 2 weeks Richard is finally finding strong run form to match the great swim and bike shape. It will be an interesting race with the Worlds best racing over the none-drafting format.

For full race results please follow the link to Triathlon Ireland.