Luke Bell wins Ironman Australia 2013
Luke Bell made it a wire to wire win today when he took out the 2013 Ironman Australia title. Whilst Bell had a relaxed approached to this race and looked like he was enjoying himself during the entire race he never took it for granted that he was going to win. "This was my race […]
Luke Bell made it a wire to wire win today when he took out the 2013 Ironman Australia title. Whilst Bell had a relaxed approached to this race and looked like he was enjoying himself during the entire race he never took it for granted that he was going to win. “This was my race to lose. I have raced Patrick many times over the years and in the back of my mind I knew that if I made a mistake or the wheels feel off he would be there. He is a strong, consistent guy and doesn’t slow down.”
Bell didn’t go in to today’s race to set the world on fire. He always wanted to remain in control and make sure nothing went wrong. “Patrick made a surge on the 3rd lap of the run and I put in a couple 3:50-3:55 kms to try to show him that I still had some gas left in the tank. It was nice to get on to the last lap of the run and somewhat enjoy it.”
It all started for Luke Bell here at Ironman Australia. “It is fitting in a way that this is my first Ironman win. I wanted to really enjoy the win and took my time in the finish shute. You never know when the next one will be or if there will be another one.”
“After the disappointment of Ironman Melbourne it was hard to bounce back. I spoke to Crowie and he gave me a really honest opinion of where he thought I was at. I feel a huge monkey has been lifted off my back. I have had some roller coaster Ironman events, not 70.3 but definitely Ironman.”
For Bell winning at home is special. “You win races overseas and there is no one there that you know. Here I can enjoy it with my family and friends. It makes it that much more special.”
Second placed Patrick Evoe had a strong, consistent race. “This is one of the best Ironman experiences I have had. It was always going to be tough racing Luke Bell. I couldn’t believe the support that was around the entire race course.”
Evoe could have raced Ironman Texas in a few weeks which would have been a local race for him. “I was lacking motivation and decided to come and race in Australia. It gave me the push I needed to get in to a good training frame of mind.”
Evoe lost some time to Bell on the bike and was surprised with the toughness of this course. “The is a strong man’s Ironman. I underestimated how tough the bike would be. I would have done more hills! I know have a firm idea of what I need to do over the next few weeks before I do my next 70.3.”
The honesty of the race really impressed Evoe. “Both Luke and I raced the entire race on our own. I had a bit early on but for about 90% I had no one around me.”
Evoe is moving to Boulder permanently in just over a week and then will possibly race Mont-Tremblant before maybe Munice.
Third place Luke Whitmore had a brilliant sub 3hr run. “I knew I had a great run in me but the bike was tough. I fell in to a hole at one stage on my bike and but came out of it. I have been working full time and with the addition of two kids under 5 I haven’t been able to train full time anymore.”
More to come…
Ironman.com for full details
| Name | Country | Swim | Bike | Run | Finish | Div. Rank | Overall |
| BELL, Luke | Australia | 0:47:25 | 4:46:02 | 2:53:48 | 8:30:23 | 1 | 1 |
| EVOE, Patrick | United States | 0:53:20 | 4:51:16 | 2:54:58 | 8:42:58 | 2 | 2 |
| WHITMORE, Luke | Australia | 0:52:49 | 5:08:23 | 2:58:37 | 9:03:30 | 3 | 3 |
| FRANKISH, Monty | Australia | 0:51:04 | 4:59:50 | 3:13:45 | 9:08:58 | 4 | 4 |
| MEADE, David | Australia | 0:54:43 | 5:00:17 | 3:10:26 | 9:09:24 | 1 | 5 |
| MARTIN, Levi | Australia | 0:52:41 | 5:08:43 | 3:06:45 | 9:12:31 | 1 | 6 |
| CHAPMAN, Corey | Australia | 0:52:33 | 5:12:28 | 3:06:45 | 9:16:45 | 1 | 7 |
| O’BRIEN, Paul | Australia | 0:48:59 | 5:12:18 | 3:13:11 | 9:19:24 | 2 | 8 |
| RICHARDSON, Aaron | Australia | 0:55:32 | 5:07:32 | 3:12:54 | 9:19:52 | 2 | 9 |
| CUTJAR, Kevin | Canada | 0:57:03 | 5:20:21 | 3:04:54 | 9:25:42 | 1 | 10 |
| BURT, Nick | Australia | 0:55:24 | 5:16:39 | 3:11:08 | 9:27:28 | 3 | 11 |
| WATERHOUSE, Chris | Australia | 0:53:16 | 5:12:37 | 3:17:28 | 9:27:54 | 3 | 12 |
| RAWLINGS, Marc | Australia | 1:03:20 | 5:07:52 | 3:12:54 | 9:28:54 | 4 | 13 |
| SEWELL, Richard | Australia | 0:56:50 | 5:09:23 | 3:17:17 | 9:29:18 | 4 | 14 |
| MCDONALD, Deiter | Australia | 0:56:24 | 5:10:07 | 3:20:38 | 9:32:00 | 5 | 15 |
| HARRIS, Matthew | Australia | 0:51:23 | 5:13:54 | 3:22:17 | 9:32:23 | 6 | 16 |
| CURRIE, Brett | Australia | 1:06:35 | 5:16:46 | 3:03:35 | 9:33:03 | 5 | 17 |
| HOBSON, Scott | Australia | 0:49:04 | 5:06:00 | 3:36:13 | 9:35:43 | 2 | 19 |
| COWAN, Brandon | Australia | 0:56:41 | 5:22:41 | 3:11:51 | 9:36:04 | 1 | 20 |
| RICHARDSON, Ben | Australia | 0:47:18 | 5:25:03 | 3:18:34 | 9:36:26 | 6 | 21 |
| WOODS, Jon | New Zealand | 0:55:45 | 5:10:00 | 3:29:09 | 9:38:21 | 6 | 22 |
| ECCLESTON, Steve | Australia | 0:57:08 | 5:08:42 | 3:27:51 | 9:39:35 | 7 | 23 |
| JOHNSTON, Bede | Australia | 0:59:03 | 5:16:41 | 3:19:21 | 9:40:36 | 2 | 24 |
| SUNDE, Matthew | Australia | 0:56:48 | 5:14:18 | 3:25:16 | 9:40:44 | 8 | 25 |
| OLIPHANT, Mark | Australia | 0:55:37 | 5:12:49 | 3:26:43 | 9:41:07 | 3 | 26 |
| MATTHEWS, Owain | Australia | 1:00:59 | 5:28:51 | 3:09:25 | 9:43:01 | 4 | 28 |
| FOREMAN, Scott | Australia | 1:03:17 | 5:23:07 | 3:13:54 | 9:44:40 | 7 | 29 |
| BARNES, Martin | Australia | 0:59:42 | 5:13:46 | 3:27:50 | 9:45:11 | 3 | 30 |
