Haskins, Reed take Miami International Triathlon
By Brad Culp
March 16, 2008 -- A stacked field of professional triathletes got an early start to the 2008 season at the inaugural Miami International Triathlon on Sunday. American Olympic hopefuls Sarah Haskins and Matty Reed proved they’re on track to make a run at Beijing, as the pair won their respective races over a very deep field.
Haskins is considered by many to be the favorite the take the second spot on the women’s Olympic team (Laura Bennett has already qualified), after finishing the 2007 World Cup season with an 11th-place finish in Beijing and a 3rd-place finish at Cancun. In Miami, Haskins was dominant from start to finish, posting the fastest split in all three disciplines. Haskins exited the swim with a narrow margin over Aussie Pip Taylor, American Joanna Zeiger and up-and-coming American star Jasmine Oeinck.
Onto the bike, Haskins proved she doesn’t need to ride in a pack to really hammer, as she began to pull away from the field with a 1:05:12 40km split. That ride put two minutes into the rest of the contenders and by the time Haskins flew out of T2 it was clear that she would not be caught. Taylor was able to equal Haskins run split of 37:42, but she needed more to bridge the gap and the Aussie was forced to settle for second. Farther back, Oeinck held off a hard-charging Nina Craft to secure the final spot on the podium.
After the swim in the men’s race it seemed as though spectators were watching a World Cup race, as Reed led out a small pack, which included ITU-standouts Brian Fleischmann, Timothy O’Donnell and Fraser Cartmell. Also in the mix was Ironman-specialist Chris Lieto, who was no doubt anxious to get on the bike, his signature discipline.
Lieto demonstrated that, no matter the distance, he is one of the best cyclists in the sport and the Californian rocketed through the bike leg in 55:41, opening up a very narrow gap on Reed as they pair made their second transition. Also looking strong on the bike was 2007 Ford Ironman World Championship 70.3 runner-up Oscar Galindez, who was only 22 seconds slower than Lieto for 40km.
During the early miles of the run it appeared Reed would pull away with the win, as he easily gapped Lieto, whose legs are more accustomed to long, slow distance. However, as Reed and his 6’5” frame strode toward the line, Galindez was closing hard – very hard. Reed was barley able to hold off the flying Argentine, as he finished in 1:45:31, just eight seconds ahead of Galindez, who closed with a 33:11 10km split.
Miami International TriathlonMiami, FLMarch 16, 20081-km swim, 40-km bike, 10-km run
Men1. Matt Reed (USA) 1:45:31
2. Oscar Galindez (ARG) 1:45:39
3. Chris Lieto (USA) 1:46:08.8
4. Brian Fleischmann (USA) 1:48:33.6
5. Timothy O'Donnell (USA) 1:48:59.2
Women1. Sarah Haskins (USA) 1:58:12.4
2. Pip Taylor (AUS) 2:00:10.1
3. Jasmine Oeinck (USA) 2:02:19.7
4. Nina Kraft (GER) 2:03:14.5
5. Joanna Zeiger (USA) 2:04:03.8
Amateur Men1. Richard Swor (USA) 1:56:49
Amateur Women1. Kassianna Rosso (USA) 2:18:45