Line in the sand

Before Oceania Cup Wānaka, pundits politely ducked and weaved, unable or unwilling to pick favourites in a race with far too many early season variables.

Even the athletes themselves were coy, happy to allow the season-opening sprint be the initial judge of how their New Year training stacked up against rivals with similar Paris or more distant Olympic Games ambitions.

So, what did we learn after that "line in the sand" was drawn on the shores of Lake Wānaka, quite literally with a piece of drift wood given the rope used in the women's race was too short to accommodate all 46 men's starters?

For starters, this was no gentle, ease yourself into the season hit-out under the shadow of majestic Treble Cone. The pace was furious from the get-go as comeback kid Kyle Smith acknowledged.

“The swim wasn’t so good, they just went off so hard, I forgot how furious that first couple of hundred metres is,” said Smith who used his pedal power and a slick 14:55 5km split to eventually snare second place. We also remembered those pesky Aussies, as if it was ever in doubt, will be a huge factor in Taupō and at races beyond. That much was obvious after Callum McClusky out kicked Smith and de facto top seed Tayler Reid (with Hayden Wilde training in Belgium for WTCS Abu Dhabi) for the men's title and with Emma Jeffcoat playing such a pivotal role in the women's race en route to third.

The ante will be upped further at the Oceania Sprint Distance Championship in Devonport, Tasmania on March 18 and for the continental Standard Distance title in Port Douglas on May 27. Count on Australia flying in high calibre reinforcements for the biggie too although Wilde's muchanticipated return for World Cup New Plymouth on March 26 will likely tilt that particular ledger in New Zealand's favour.

Back To Start List

24

Kyle Smith is the Joker in the Paris pack after his Wanaka return

Back to Wānaka, it appears women's winner Nicole van der Kaay has the wheels to haul in seemingly unsurmountable deficits off the bike. Can anyone catch the Kiwi No.1? And what happens if the Taupō 27-year-old can stay attached in the swim, especially in home waters, leaving less to do on the bike and run?

How will Ainsley Thorpe, who started in the No.1 bib, respond in Taupō after withdrawing following the swim in Lake Wānaka? Can Brea Roderick back up her eye-catching silver and hold off Olivia Thornbury who will covet the bottom step of the podium in Taupō at the very least? Is Smith the real deal for Paris? Some privately questioned if the Taupō bricklayer turned PTO star had the top-end speed to keep pace on the run, especially over the quickfire sprint distance. His kick to edge Reid answered that question, albeit with an obvious early season caveat, and will undoubtedly spur a response from the Gisborne Super Leaguer in Taupō.

Sam Parry, the Palmerston North 19-yearold, was the bolter in Wānaka. The lad runs

CHALLENGE WĀ NAKA

Silver linings & tips for Taupo?

CHALLENGE WĀNAKA once again lived up to its billing as the most picturesque mid-distance race in the world, a sparkling Otago day adding more than a little heat to its tough reputation too. But as an informal form guide to the final, key long-distance event of the Kiwi summer, the Integrity Homes-sponsored classic raised as many questions as it provided answers

We know champions Jack Moody and Grace Thek won’t kick on to race Ironman NZ on March 4 and thereafter