Yvonne van Vlerken

Another duathlete doing well in the world of Ironman.
Guess we cant blame her for going where the $ is?
Check out her website at: http://www.yvonnevanvlerken.org/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1

Duathlon Nationals Course Maps Available.

Check out the new course revisions for 2009.

http://www.duathlonnationals.com/

Duathlon National Championships Course Changes

Course maps are not finalized yet, but here are some of the key changes to the DuNat courses that were decided yesterday: On-road age group championships - The bike course will have three loops instead of four. Switchbacks and sharp turns have been taken out. - The run course will be all on-road. The first 10k will be one simple fast loop. It'll have rolling hills and will still be challenging, just less repetitive than last year. The second 5k will be the most scenic part of the course along the canal and will also be the most difficult. Off-road championships - Both run courses are new with the first 7 miler over hilly very challenging terrain. - The bike course will be the same one used in previous XTERRA competitions Overall, the changes that were made (less loops, twists and turns, etc.) were done in an effort to reduce congestion and make the courses simpler for the athletes, but also still very challenging. It's noteworthy that Mike Plumb, the Duathlon Commission Chairman and a 2008 competitor said the on-road courses are now 'a night and day difference' compared to last year.

Joerie Vansteelants Website

Here is the site of the heir to the Vansteelant duathlon throne after the untimely death of King Benny.
http://www.joerievansteelant.com/

Erika Csomor's Website

Here is Erika's site. She does do tri's but we wont hate her for that, she still likes du's as well;)
http://www.csomorerika.hu/

Where does Duathlon belong? Part 1

I've been in the sport of duathlon since the mid 1980's and have seen the rise and fall of the sport from its heyday in the late 80' and early 90's to its less than stellar showing currently.
I think there are a number of factors involved in this decline in popularity, the first being the marketing giant that is Ironman Hawaii. Ironman is etched upon the populaces memory as the ultimate feat of endurance with visions of people crawling across the finish line utterly spent and all the special interest stories and sensationalism that would make a reality TV producer salivate.
The Ironman ranks are filled with a plethora of type A personalities that have grown weary of yet another marathon so for them Ironman is the natural progression for putting another notch on their things to achieve list.
Can duathlon compete with this? Should it even try?
I think one needs to look to when duathlon was popular and try and regain some of that once again. The distances were short, typically a 5k run, 30k bike and a 5k run which with some training is achievable by almost everyone. Of course there were big time sponsors involved such as Coors and Dannon and maybe we need to find another company bold enough to take a chance on duathlon. I dont think it is realistic to think that you are going to have a field of 2000 plus athletes even it the larger metropolitan areas but I think 500 or so is a real possibility and if one markets it correctly that should be achievable. I think even shorter distances such as 2 mile, 12 mile, 2 mile may even be more popular.
Currently "short course" duathlon is 10k, 40k, 5k and is quite a daunting task for a beginner. Thats almost 10 miles of running not to mention 24 miles on the bike in between. To compete in such a race will take quite a bit of training and commitment that most either don't have the time or the desire to do.
Why cant duathlon be like the 5k is to the marathon. If someone has the time and money train for an Ironman, if someone has more modest fitness goals a duathlon could be just the thing they are looking for.
Anway, I think this article can be put in the "to be continued" catagory for now but I would welcome your thoughts.

USAT Announces 2009 Duathlon Championship Sites

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (December 9, 2008) -- USA Triathlon (USAT) has announced the dates and locations for its 2009 National Championship events.

Elite Long Course Duathlon Powerman Alabama Irondale, AL April 12, 2009

Short Course Duathlon National Duathlon Festival Richmond, VA April 25, 2009

Long Course Duathlon Auburn International Duathlon Auburn, CA May 31, 2009

Duathlon Nationals Registration Open.

Registration is now open for the National Duathlon Championships in Richmond, VA on April 25-26. No qualifying is necessary to compete in any of the events. 12 people per age group will qualify for the 2009 ITU Duathlon World Championships in North Carolina in September. Lots of changes and improvements are being made to make this the largest Duathlon weekend ever in the U.S. Check out duathlonnationals.com for more details and to register.

Powerman Florida Results

The results for this past weekends Powerman Florida are in.

First Male Elite across the line was John Phillips in a time of 2:24:04.
First Female across the line was amateur Gail Kattouf in a time of 2:32:24.
First Elite Female was Heather Gollnick in a time of 2:35.

Full results can be found at: http://powermanflorida.com/pdf/p.txt

Just in case you've been living under a rock

ITU announces 2009 & 2010 World Championship locations

The 2009 ITU Duathlon World Championships returns to North Carolina ten years after Huntersville successfully staged the 1999 World Championships. The 20th edition of the championships are slated for September 2009. Concord next year will mark just the fifth time the ITU Duathlon World Championships will visit an American city since 1990. Previous American sites include Cathedral City, California (1990, 1991), Dallas, Texas (1993), Huntersville, North Carolina (1999) and Alpharetta, Georgia (2002). Duathlon consists of a 10-kilometer run, 40-kilometer bike and finishes with a 5-kilometer run.

In 2010, the world's best duathletes will travel to beautiful Edinburgh, Scotland. It will be the first time in history that a British city will host the ITU Duathlon World Championships. Last year Edinburgh staged the ETU Duathlon European Championships, which was won by local favorite Catriona Morrison. Over 850 athletes from 33 countries were in Gyor, Hungary for the 2007 ITU Duathlon World Championships.

Powerman Florida drawing near.

Last Chance To Register
You have until 5:00pm Thursday, Dec. 4th to sign up online for Powerman Florida or the Pasco County Sprint Duathlon. If you have not yet signed up, now is your chance! Registration will also be held on Friday, Dec 5th from 4:00pm-7:00pm at the San Antonio Sports Complex (event site).

2008 Powerman Rankings as of Nov. 9

Here are the top ten men and women in the 2008 Powerman series.
Women
1
Erika Csomor
HUN
1500
2
Jacober Maja
SUI
1250
3
Nyström Eva
SWE
1200
4
Lee Michelle
GBR
1000
5
Giger Michaela
SUI
900
6
Vlerken Yvonne van
NED
800
7
Parsons Michelle
GBR
700
8
Pliska Maya
SUI
700
9
Dermody Barbera
SUI
650
10
Svendsen Susanne
DEN
600


Men
1
Sutz Andy
SUI
1875
2
Pascal Schuler
FRA
1200
3
Vansteelant Joeri
BEL
1050
4
Duchene Dominique
FRA
1050
5
Ronnie Schildknecht
SUI
1000
6
Löscher Stefan
SUI
900
7
Aernouts Bart
BEL
875
8
Marc Widmer
SUI
700
9
Tanzer Alfred
AUT
650
10
Coddens Kris
BEL
600

Duathlon Survey from USAT

The USA Triathlon Duathlon Committee is investigating the possibility of a national duathlon series in 2009 or 2010. Before they develop the plan for possible activation, they would like to survey you first for feedback. Please assist the process by answering the five questions in the survey at the following link:

http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/?p=WEB228JSTB7WKR