India Lee scored a wire-to-wire win at IRONMAN Les Sables D’Olonne on Sunday, stopping the clock in 8:24:37.
Not only did the Bahrain Victorious 13 Team athlete break her personal best, but she also set the bar high in the first-ever full IRONMAN edition of the race on the Côte de Lumière. The victory also secures her qualification for the IRONMAN World Championship in Kona, Hawaii set for October 11 later this year.
After choosing not to start last week at T100 Vancouver to prioritise recovery from a minor illness, Lee bounced back to outclass the field in France in what was only her third-ever finish over the IRONMAN distance.
First out of the 3.9-kilometre swim into the Vendée Globe Channel with a 54:08 split just two seconds ahead of the next swimmer, she then began establishing the dominance she would hold for the rest of the race.
She hopped off her bike in a race-best 4:23:23, having ridden the 178-kilometre rolling course at an average speed of 40.59 kilometres per hour to build a buffer of over 17 minutes to her chasers.
While remaining unchallenged out front Lee still continued to turn the screws to clinch the title, running the day’s fastest marathon in 3:00:35 and finishing with daylight behind her – 19 minutes, to be precise.
Bahrain Victorious 13 will once again see action next week in as Marten Van Riel toes the start line for IRONMAN 70.3 Nice, and in Germany with Kacper Stepniak racing IRONMAN Frankfurt.
