Nielsen and Jerzyk win Junior and U23 World Championship

The star of tomorrow shone amidst a cold and rainy day in Beijing at the 2011 ITU Triathlon Junior and Under23 World Championships, part of the Dextro Energy Triathlon ITU World Championship Grand Final Beijing. Wrapped around the elite men’s championship race, the junior women and under23 women took centre stage on the 2008 Olympic Games course with London 2012 dreams in sight.

The day began with the Junior women and Mikayla Nielsen surged to the lead on the closing 5km run to claim her the biggest victory of her career and become the 2011 ITU Triathlon Junior World Champion.  Australian Ashlee Bailie took the silver while Germany’s Hanna Philippin came across the line for bronze.

Top 10 Junior Women

1. Mikayla Nielsen NZL 1:03:40

2. Ashlee Bailie AUS 1:03:42

3. Hanna Philippin GER 1:03:47

4. Eszter Pap HUN 1:04:02

5. Kelly Whitley USA 1:04:12

6. Joanna Brown CAN 1:04:16

7. Adriana Barraza MEX 1:04:22

8. Allison Hooper CAN 1:04:27

9. Christine Ridenour CAN 1:04:38

10. Sara Vilic            CRO 1:04:49

15. Ellen Pennock CAN 1:05:53

After the elite men’s competition, the Under23 women closed out a full day of racing in the Changping District of Beijing.  The skies opened up and the temperature dropped, making it a challenging course even more demanding as the women battled the elements.

But that didn’t stop Agnieszka Jerzyk from making history as she became Poland’s first Triathlon World Champion in ITU history.  She came from behind in the final stages of the 10km run to out-sprint Hungary’s Zsofia Kovacs for the title.  Kovacs settled for silver while an elated Rebecca Robisch of Germany finished strong to secure the bronze.

Top 10 U23 Women

1. Agnieszka Jerzyk POL 2:07:07

2. Zsofia Kovacs HUN 2:07:08

3. Rebecca Robisch GER 2:07:14

4. Kaitlin Shiver USA 2:07:18

5. Yuliya Yelistratova UKR 2:07:30

6. Non Stanford GBR 2:07:44

7. Anja Knapp GER 2:07:48

8. Charlotte Morel FRA 2:07:51

9. Lauren Goldstein-Kral USA 2:07:54

10. Alexandra Coates CAN 2:08:08

12 Kyla Coates CAN 2:08:16