Australians Dominate Largest Field Ever at Laguna Phuket Triathlon

A record breaking field of 628 athletes entered the new look 2004 Thai Airways International Laguna Phuket Triathlon presented by the Tourism Authority of Thailand on 20 November. In its eleventh year, this premier event attracted 100 more athletes than ever before, more than doubling its previous total of 3-man relay teams.

This year’s event took on a whole new look with different swim and run courses designed so that most legs of the race started and ended at the same venue - a purpose built lakeside arena - where spectators could conveniently stay in one location to enjoy the entire event.

The spectacular mass start at 8:00 a.m. from the beach at the Sheraton Grande Laguna Phuket saw hundreds of struggling swimmers vying for position in a torrent of humanity. The unique I.8 kilometre swim leg crossed two bodies of water. From the crystal clear Andaman Sea athletes sprinted over the beach to swim the last 620 metres in a beachside lagoon. First out of the water was German pro Christoph Fuerleger in 24:51, followed by the fastest female swimmer, American Barb Lindquist in 25:02.

The first athlete to complete the gruelling 55 kilometre bike course through Phuket’s charming countryside was Australian Ritchie Cunningham with a time of 1:23:38 ahead of fellow Australians Miles Stewart, Simon Thompson and Craig Alexander. All along the bike course, spectators crowded the roadside to cheer on the colourful pack of cyclists.

First to cross the finish line of the 12-kilometre run with a total time of 2:33:07, scoring US$3,000 in prize money, was Australian pro Craig Alexander who previously tasted victory at this event in 2002. Followed just 53 seconds later by the 2003 defending champion Simon Thompson and Ritchie Cunningham came in third place.

25-year old Australian Nicole Hackett, mother of 13-month old Joel, won the women’s championship title in 2:53:06. An amazing athlete, Hackett has been named International Triathlon Union World Champion already three times.

The first overall amateur finisher was Bryan Hoare from the UK with a time of 2:58:36. The fastest Thai finisher was Khun Chadarak Chaiamjorn with a very respectable time of 3:09:36. Khun Wuttipat Bunjang was the second Thai finisher with a time of 3:15.59 and Santiti Untabat was third in 3:18.14. The first Thai woman to finish was 16 year-old Nuansiree Romphet with a time of 4:10.35.