TRIATHLON - Winning double act from North duo

By Peter Thorley and NZPA
Whangarei triathletes Nicky Samuels and Katherine Anton took out the two top places in the second round of the national triathlon series in Takapuna on Sunday.
Showing the class that delivered her first World Cup podium finish this season, Samuels blitzed the field, clearing away on the bike leg despite a chasing pack of five trying to hunt her down.
It was her first triathlon for well over a month but you wouldn't have guessed it, her time of 52 minutes 18 seconds was almost two minutes clear of Anton, whose second placing saw her maintain the series lead.
Anton, who won the first round of the event in Rotorua recently, wasn't too far off the pace on the swim, just 40 seconds down on Samuels. She was able to catch and then maintain touch with the bunch on the cycle leg, until her reaching her forte on the run leg. The run was all Samuels but Anton kicked away from the other women to finish a clear second.
"I've just getting back into it all after a month off and so this was a good event to blow the cobwebs out, I guess," Samuels said.
Samuels' main focus this season is trying to gain the third New Zealand spot to the 2008 Olympics and all events she competes in this season will relate to the qualifying race.
"My long term focus is on Mooloolaba at the end March and qualifying for the Beijing Olympics," Samuels said.
"The competition to earn that third spot is so tough, though. It's a hard target - I'll have to be the first Kiwi home and finish in the top five, but that's the goal at the moment."
She applauded Anton's performance during Sunday's race.
"It was a good effort to beat Carmel (Hanley), because she's very strong on the run," she said.
Tristan Calwell charged home on the run to win a tight men's elite race in 47min:35sec, finishing ahead of Martin van Barneveld and Tony Dodds. Whangarei's Lee Greer was out of the water with the leaders but the pace on the bike was just too hot. He fell back to the next pack which worked well together and finished his race with a strong run to take a satisfying 10th place.
Northland athletes were to the fore in the four age-group races that preceded the elite races.
Nicola Gray was second out of the water to a New Zealand water polo representative and went on to finish a creditable fourth in the combined women's race.
Second race of the day was the men's 50-plus race which saw Chris Seeley and Johan Ackerman emerge from the water just behind the first swimmer, TriNZ president Gary Boon. Mike Gowing was a little behind after the swim leg but pulled the leaders back on the bike to be in third place going into the run. He moved into the lead on the second run lap and went on to win the race.
Mike Hardiman landed a 15sec time penalty for not following the rack-to-rack drafting rule in the men's under-49 age group but still enjoyed the triathlon.
The third round of the national series is in Whangamata on January 12.