| Age
group athletes arrived at the transition area well before dawn
wearing warm ups as shielding against a cool Lausanne morning.
The over-50 women were scheduled as the first wave start at
7:00 a.m. That time was pushed back until 7:10 and all the
over-40 women launched the age group race together.
20-24
age groupers make last-minute preparations. |
 |
|
 |
The
bike was the most talked about aspect of the world's course.
Although none of the climbs were punishingly long, the narrow
streets and 17-percent grade that awaited in downtown Lausanne
had to be completed four times.
Age
groupers climb away from the transition area and head for
downtown Lausanne. |
|
| Like
barrel riding in a rodeo, runners had to loop past the
finish-area chute twice before completing the race. Spectators
and racers alike had the opportunity to keep tabs on the field
and watch the competition reach its climax.
Hynek
Oklestek, 40-44, anchors himself as he whips around the run
turnaround. |
 |
|
  |
Worlds
was to be a family affair for Karen Meader-Starets, 35-39, but
tragedy struck just days before the race when her father in
law passed away in Lausanne. With husband Tim still on the
course, ninth-place Meader- Starets crossed the finish line
and confronted the emotions of a race dedicated to Dad.
Karen
Meader-Starets, competing for the emotions of life. |
|
| Karen
Chequer-Pfeiffer, 40-44, and Jo Garuccio, 45-49, earned a
bronze and a gold between them. Chequer-Pfeiffer, starting in
the first wave, was the first person out of Lac Leman for the
day with a 21:24 swim split.
Karen
Chequer-Pfeiffer and Jo Garuccio, all smiles after their
races. |
 |
|
 |
It's
the worst. Walking into the transition in the dark and
discovering that your tire is flat. That's where J. B.
Betzold, Team USA's bike mechanic and part-time psychologist
shines. No problem, relax, it'll be okay. And it is.
J. B.
Betzold glues together the pre-race anxieties of Team USA. |
|
| Tim
Yount, deputy director of USA Triathlon and one of the most
well-liked administrators in the triathlon world, can call
virtually every amateur athlete on Team USA by name.
Tim
Yount takes a break in front of Team USA juniors during a
photo session. |
 |
|
 |
Bells,
bells and more bells can be found throughout Switzerland.
These traditionally clad bell ringers helped ring in the
opening ceremony for worlds.
Ringing
in the race in Lausanne |
|
| World's
is more than just another race for the nearly one thousand age
groupers who attend the event each year. It is an opportunity
to build world-wide friendships and see how individual amateur
athletics can thrive in environments not dominated by the NBA
and NFL.
Canadians
flaunt their national pride during pre-race ceremonies. |
 |
|
 |
New
Zealand's Cindy Taylor, 40-44, had an easy master's win last
year in Perth, leading from the start and never looking back.
This year it was different. One minute behind Karen
Chequer-Pfeiffer after the swim, Taylor and Canadian
Edie Fisher used faster transitions and barely faster bikes to
make it a three-woman race into the run. Taylor pulled away
from both and crossed the line 0:58 ahead of last year's
second-place finisher Fisher and 1:57 in front of
Chequer-Pfeiffer.
Cindy
Taylor, top master two years running. |
|
|
