Cayman’s annual half iron distance triathlon, the Generali Mercuryman, took place on Sunday and those gaining the top accolades were local triathletes as well as professionals competing from overseas. The overall winner for the professional triathletes section in this fast paced, unique event was American triathlete and trainer Emily Cocks, who managed to complete the 1.2 mile swim in just 29:01:00, the 56 mile bike race in 2:27:36 and the 13.1 mile run in 1:34:07 for an overall time of 4:31:59. Marius Acker took first overall in the men’s age group division, a local who also had incredibly impressive times of 31:47:00 (swim), 2:38:05 (bike) and 1:35:13 (run) with an overall time of 4:47:40. International athlete Ashley Naelon, from North Carolina, took first overall in the women’s division with an overall time of 5:25:39.
Local competitor Stuart Bray was the winner in the men’s grueling Aquabike competition with a total finishing time of 3:11:48 while another local, Tina Marie Nonato, finished first in the female Aquabike race with a strong time of 5:29:49 .
Local relay teams enjoyed the competition with top finishes earned by Chafing the Dream (mixed), Tritons (male) and Mercury Maidens (female).
Karen Ebanks, Marketing Coordinator at Generali Worldwide, said Generali Worldwide was proud to be a part of such an exciting event.
“It has been an honour for Generali to be a part of such a challenging world-class event. By their very nature, triathlons are designed to test the limits of our physical abilities. The 80 triathletes, many among the best in the world, have pushed their limits and put this event in the Cayman Islands on the map,” she said.
Race Directors Trevor Murphy, Justine Plenkiewicz, Claire Griffin and Johan Heath were keen to thank all the volunteers, the event sponsors and timing experts Race Caribbean, for all the input that helped make General Mercuryman such a fantastic success.
“We knew the day would be successful from the outset as the weather was definitely on our side, with sunny and hot conditions that were perfectly suited to the event,” Mr Murphy confirmed. “We were able to start promptly at 7.15am at the Reef Resort in East End and the entire race went smoothly and without a hitch. Children from East End Primary School did their bit to cheer on athletes and offer water at the various water stations. Everyone was committed to doing their part to ensure the success of the day.”
Ms Griffin added: “Everyone who participated put in a tremendous amount of hard work to ensure we had a fantastic race and we would like to thank them sincerely for all that they accomplished, making Generali Mercuryman a huge success for all.”
As well as Generali Worldwide’s generous sponsorship of Mercuryman 2015, organisers would also like to thank Tower, CUC, Health City Cayman Islands, National, KRyS Global, Regenexx, Cayman National Bank and Caledonian for their kind support of this exciting event.
View full race results by visiting: www.mercurymantri.com
Loopcayman.com- January 21, 2015
Bahamaslocal.com– January 22, 2015
