Young guns Bailey Tuddenham, 18, and Madi Toovey, 21, take out Cairns Ironman 70.3
A pair of Aussie young guns have won the 70.3 half Cairns Ironman, as they praised the course for being among the best in the country.
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A pair of Aussie young guns have won the 70.3 half Cairns Ironman, as they praised the course for being among the best in the country.
Bailey Tuddenham, 18, from Noosa and Madi Toovey, 21, took out the men’s and women's races, respectively.
Tuddenham crossed the line in four hours and three minutes — less than a minute ahead of his closest competitor Tommy Franks from Tasmania.
The teenager said this result was a big improvement from his finish in the event last year where he placed about 20th.
“It was good to see some improvements on the run so it was a good day.”
Fresh from a training block in Hawaii, he said he enjoyed the warm conditions but not so much the headwind on the return leg of the bike.
He said the strong south-easterly breeze made conditions tough on the swim.
“It was very choppy so you couldn’t see much and the headwind was up by the time we were heading back on the bike,” Tuddenham said.
Madi Toovey smashed the women's field finishing in just under four and a half hours in what was her third time racing the distance and first time in Cairns.
“You couldn’t see anything on the swim but the bike course was great,” she said.
“Found a nice group to work with on the bike and it was just head down on the run — go hard or go home.”
Toovey has been a standout talent racing for Australia placing highly at world championship level across multiple distances, but said she enjoyed the longer course racing more.
Toovey will be making the step up to the professional ranks when she completes her university degree.
“One more year in age group racing then I’ll go pro,” she said.
The leaders were full of praise for the much hyped course.
“It's a great course, definitely the best bike course in Australia,” Tuddenham said.
Toovey said it was one of the best races she has done.
Franks said he enjoyed most of the race until the last kilometres of the run.
“It’s such an amazing atmosphere here, out of all the events in Australia — it’s right up there,” he said.
“It was a pretty choppy swim but that's my best leg so I didn’t mind that,” he said.
“Windy on the bike, then I enjoyed the first 10km of the run, then I was just holding on.”
Franks said he was planning on making the step up to the Ironman distance in the next year with eyes on World Championships in Kona, Hawaii.
The men’s podium was rounded out by Thales Silva representing Brazil with Aussie Calypso Sheridan and French woman Olivia Ghisoni rounding out the podium for the women.
Originally published as Young guns Bailey Tuddenham, 18, and Madi Toovey, 21, take out Cairns Ironman 70.3
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