Chinese triathletes dominate Asia Cup with four on podium in Tai Mei Tuk
- Mainland athletes take top two spots in the women’s event, and second and third place in the men’s
- Hong Kong’s Oscar Coggins finishes sixth in the men’s competition while Bailee Brown is 13th in the women’s
Chinese triathletes dominated the Asia Cup in Tai Mei Tuk on Saturday, with four on the podium in the men’s and women’s elite races, as Hong Kong head coach Andrew Wright remained upbeat on their road to the Hangzhou Asian Games.
Racing half of the Olympic distance in the 750-metre swim, 20km bike and 5km run along Bride Pool Road and the Plover Cove Reservoir Dam, Lukas Pertl of Austria won the men’s event in a time of 57 minutes and 13 seconds, followed by two mainlanders as Wang Nanhe beat teammate Ma Yunxiang for second place by half of a second. Wang finished in 57:19.2 while Ma in 57:19.8.
Oscar Coggins was the best finisher for the hosts in sixth place. The 23-year-old, who struggled to recover from a bout of food poisoning picked up at the Asian Championships in Kazakhstan last September, clocked 57:28 with teammate Jason Ng Tai-long in 10th place with a time of 57:50.
In the women’s event, Lin Xinyu, China’s leading athlete, finished first in 1:02:28, while compatriot Li Meiyi was just two seconds behind, taking silver. Therese Feuersinger of Austria came third but was a large distance behind in 1:03:04.
Bailee Brown clocked 1:04:40 to become the best local finisher in 13th while compatriot Hilda Choi Yan-yin, who won the 10km event at the recent Hong Kong Marathon, was two places behind in 1:04:56.
Wright, who was there to watch his charges, was not too disappointed with their performance despite no podium finish.
