Some sixty participants took to the waters at Mullet Bay Beach on Sunday as they started the first leg of the 2018 Powerade Aquathlon, a 1000 meter swim followed by a 5 and 10km Run.
The Friendly Island Triathlon Association (FITA), headed by Juan Pablo Piscione, hosts the event annually. They voiced their concerns earlier that morning in regards to the large swell that had rolled in the day before. “We may be forced to change the theme of the event to a Run only due to the powerful waves,” but luckily, the seas calmed enough to allow for a safe swim. “The swimmers will have to watch the big sets coming in when they exit the water,” Piscione commented just minutes before the start.
The first to finish the 1km triangle swim was 17-year old Titouan Dagoreau in 11:39:34, followed by Nicolas De Tulzo in 11:47:02. Bart Van de Meijden was 3rd to exit the water in 12:12:59.
After running to the transition area near the car park, swimmers donned their running shoes or tagged their runners if they were competing as a team and started the 5 and 10km Run which followed a route into Point Pirouette and Cupecoy.
Lightning Flash Bolt, the Junior team, that included the 17-year old swimmer who exited the water first earlier on, continued their winning spree by crossing the line first in the 5km distance. They not only won their Junior Team category in a combined time of 33:05, but also took the first overall position in the 5km distance. The second junior team, Isa-Emma, included 14 year old Isabeau Croes as the swimmer and her 12-year old sister, Emma Croes.
They finished the event in a total time of 44:29.
Nicolas De Tulzo took top honors in the male category for the 5k individual distance, finishing in 33:20, while 2nd Place Male went to Jerome Molard in 34:50. Laurent Keriel followed in 3rd in 36:50.
The short distance attracted a large number of women, some competing in a multi sport event for the very first time. The 2nd and 3rd positions went to two such “beginners” who were visiting from St. Barth’s, Chloe Cohan who finished in 41:08 and Laura Commaret who was close on her friend’s heels in 43:23. Seasoned runner, Magalie Merle, from the French Side of St. Martin won the female category in 40:19.
All of the Juniors who competed as individuals in the short distance category were under the age of 13, with 9-year old Liam Denot, being the youngest. First place in the junior category went to Sachs Gibbs who impressed many with his time of 38:48, while Andy Guibreteau and Maik Croes took second and theirs respectively.
The longer event which finished with a 10km Run attracted a good number of athletes from the French Side of the Island and included the island’s top triathlete, Gregory Pigeon, who has consistently won the multi sport series hosted by FITA. Pigeon did not disappoint, finishing in first place for the Men’s category in a time of 54:01. Newcomer to the St. Maarten sports scene, Yann Ribeyre, followed just seconds later in 2nd position while Morgan Ordner topped it off in third place in 58:25.
The top three women all hailed from the Northern Side of the Island, headed by Celine Verdonck in 1:06:12, Kathy Guerard in 1:10:46 and Corine Alimelie on her first multi sport event, in 1:11:53.
Les Nageurs du Dimanche took top honors in the long distance team category and also won a prize for the fastest runner of the day. Alain Boucaud ran the hilly 10km course in 39:10 and earned his team the top spot of the day. Team Pregnant Warriors earned some second looks when their almost 7-months pregnant swimmer, Roxanne Boquet, competed her 1km swim in a fantastic time of 13:31 while the runner, Jeannot Govin, earned the team their second position.
The Powerade Aquathlon rounds of another successful year of events for FITA who organize triathlons, bicycle races and runs throughout the year. “Great sponsors like CC1, who support the Powerade Aquathlon, make these events possible and we are so grateful to them for believing in sports in St. Maarten.” capped off Piscione. Their next event will be the Lagoon Half Marathon on February 24.
