Wednesday, December 31, 2008

TOP STORIES 2008

1. Wellington confirms her status as the one to beat. She successfully challenged and defended her World Championship title and won races in Australia, Europe and the US with relative ease. She has reset the standard for a second year in a row.

2. Yvonne Van Vlerken sets a new long-distance triathlon record, and takes second in her Kona debut. It's unlikely the new mark will remain for the 14-year period as Paula Newby-Fraser's did.

3. The Sub Nine field expanded at such a fast rate that it was almost hard to keep the stats up to date. It's another sign of the depth of the women's field.

4. Racing long and a lot proved to be a successful strategy for a range of top athletes both in and out of Team TBB. The particular success of TBB also showed the value of training with other top athletes.

5. Natascha Badmann's long and dominating reign appears to be over. The now 42-year-old athlete dropped out during the run in Kona in October, and wasn't able to train at the level to which she was accustomed for most of the year because of the injury suffered after crashing into a road pylon in Kona in 2007.

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