Kyle Jones and Paula Findlay both take fifth at ITU Clermont

Canada’s Kyle Jones completed a strong tune-up before the start of the World Triathlon Series kicks off next month with a fourth-place finish at the ITU Pan America Cup sprint race in Clermont, Florida on Saturday.

The 28-year-old Jones, who is the new leader of the Canadian men’s triathlon squad, tested his off-season training by completing the 750-metre swim, 20-kilometre bike and five-kilometre run course in a time of 54 minutes, 32 seconds.

“The first race of the year is always a toss up. Coming off a winter of solid training it is always hard to tell how the body will respond,” said Jones. “For the most part I was pleased with how I raced. I had a great swim placing myself in the top-10 out of the water, worked well with a small group on the bike, but unfortunately I didn’t have the legs on the run that I needed to compete for the win.”

Jones, of Oakville, Ont., is looking to take a major step forward in getting into the medal mix regularly with the world’s best after winning his first World Cup race last summer on Canadian soil in Edmonton – just weeks before making his Olympic debut in London where he finished as the top Canuck.

“In these sprint races there is little room for error so you have to be ready to really it for the five kilometres on the run.” added Jones. “With a bit more rest and recovery, I fell like I’ll be ready to roll come (the start of the World Triathlon Series) Auckland.”

Jones’ 24-year-old teammate, Andrew Yorke of Caledon, Ont., also had a solid debut for the 2013 season by finishing in fifth spot at 54:40.

Spain’s Mario Mola won the men’s race with a time of 53:56. Richard Murray, of South Africa, ran to the silver medal with a time of 54:12, while Jarrod Shoemaker, of the United States, locked up the bronze medal after clocking-in at 54:19.

Earlier in the day, Edmonton’s Paula Findlay officially brought her continued journey back into elite racing form onto the competitive start line for the first time. The 23-year-old Findlay, who has been training in Florida throughout the winter, got off to a solid start with a fifth-place finish after posting a time of 1:00.51.

“The most important thing is it felt great to be back, and racing healthy,” said Findlay. “I have been working with an incredible group of girls, and we have been doing some hard training so I knew I was injury free. I’m not in race fitness yet, but that wasn’t the point today. I was pretty relaxed, but was a little nervous. It was really nice to go in a race with an open mind against the girls I’ve been training with.”

Findlay’s last two seasons have been marred by a nagging hip injury. Her last competitive start was a heart-breaking struggle to the finish at the London Olympics.

“This is the beginning of a long rebuild both physically and mentally for me and it is really important for me to feel like I can be a racer again,” said Findlay, who will start a Continental Cup race in Sarasota, Florida next weekend. “This is my first sprint race since 2008, then I’ll do my first Olympic distance race, and then I’m going to have to do my first World Triathlon Series race. Everything is new again. It will be a slow rebuild, but I’m happy and feeling good right now.”

Olympian, Sarah Groff of the United States, won the women’s race with a time of 1:00.17. Denmark’s Helle Frederiksen ran her way to the silver-medal position on the podium with a time of 1:00.23, while Kaitlin Donner, of the United States, placed third at 1:00.44.

Canada sent 23 athletes to the start line in Florida. For a complete list of results, please visit www.triathlon.org.

The World Triathlon Series gets underway in Auckland, New Zealand, April 6-7, 2013.

Triathlon Canada is the governing body for triathlon in the country. Recognized as an Olympic medal sport since 2000, Triathlon Canada’s mandate is to promote, foster, organize and develop the sport of triathlon, and its related disciplines, in Canada. For more information on Triathlon Canada, please visit us at www.triathloncanada.com on the Internet.

Complete ITU World Cup Results (750 metre swim, 20 kilometre bike, 5 kilometre run): www.triathlon.org

Top-Five Men

1. Mario Mola, ESP, 53:56

2. Richard Murray, ESP, 54:12

3. Jarrod Shoemaker, USA, 54:19

4. Joao Pereira, POR, 54:29

5. Kyle Jones, Oakville, Ont., CAN, 54:33

6. Andrew Yorke, Caledon, Ont., CAN, 54:40

9 Andrew Mccartney CAN 00:55:22

18 Xavier Grenier-talavera CAN 00:56:48

22 Gabriel Legault CAN 00:57:09

23 Taylor Reid CAN 00:57:33

25 John Rasmussen CAN 00:57:52

27 Austen Forbes CAN 00:57:57

32 Antoine Jolicoeur-desroches CAN 00:58:40

33 Francis Lefebvre CAN 00:58:49

36 Alexis Lepage CAN 00:59:29

38 Philippe Bédard CAN 00:59:42

41 Philippe Vezina CAN 01:01:32

42 Alexander Vanderlinden CAN 01:01:35

DNF Andrew Taylor CAN

DNF Matt Vierula CAN

Top-Five Women

1. Sarah Groff, USA, 1:00.17

2 Helle Frederiksen, DEN, 1:00.23

3. Kaitlin Donner, USA, 1:00.31

4. Alicia Kaye, USA, 1:00.44

5. Paula Findlay, Edmonton, CAN, 1:00.51

13 Manon Letourneau CAN 1:05:15

15 Dominika Jamnicky CAN 1:05:59

17 Emy Legault CAN 1:06:21

19 Karol-ann Roy CAN 1:07:25

22 Madi Serpico CAN 1:10:26

DNF Catherine Desmarais CAN