WEIHAI, China, September 14, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- According to CRI Online, 2016 Weihai ITU Long Distance Triathlon Series Event ended on Sept. 11th, with Russia and New Zealand respectively victorious in the men's and women's Elite competitions, and China coming in second at both events. This has been the best performance for Chinese athletes to date at the annual triathlon.
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As a major component of the triathlon, the long distance Elite group competition took place on the morning of September 11th. Athletes are required to complete a 3-km swim, an 80-km bike ride, and a 20-km run, in total 103 km, twice the standard distance, without stopping.
Russian athlete Nikolay Yaroshenko won the long distance men's Elite championship at last year's event and this year he successfully defended his title, clocking in at 4 hours 6 minutes and 8 seconds. This is the fourth time that he has attended the event in Weihai. Jiang Zhihang from the Chinese military Bayi triathlon team came in second while Russian athlete Denis Vasiliev following behind in third place.
In the women's category, Amelia Watkinson from New Zealand won the first place, at 4 hours 31 minutes and 29 seconds. Zhong Mengying, also from the Chinese military Bayi team, was the runner-up and Swiss athlete Nina Derron came in third.
Since 2008, the city of Weihai in Shandong province has been hosting the triathlon events, including the ITU Triathlon World Cup, the Long Distance Triathlon World Championship, among other sports competitions. Weihai is scheduled to host the ITU Triathlon World Cup from 2017 to 2019.
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