Raelert and Steffen Take Ironman Switzerland

Athletes enjoy sunny and warm conditions for 2010 PowerBar Ironman 70.3 Switzerland

Michael Raelert (GER) and Caroline Steffen continue their winning streak at the PowerBar Ironman 70.3 Switzerland, while defending champion Ronnie Schildknecht follows in second. Steffen holds off challenge from Nicole Hofer in women's race.

German Michael Raelert won the the PowerBar Ironman 70.3 Switzerland over Swiss athletes Ronnie Schildknecht and Olivier Marceau. Leading after the swim, Raelert pushed through the rolling bike course to stretch his winning margin. Two minutes ahead of Schildnecht and Marceau starting the run, Raelert continuously picked up the pace. Although the Swiss athletes battled hard, they couldn’t catch the German, who won in 3:47.47. Second across the line was Schildknecht (3:54.29) and third was the former Olympic distance world champion Marceau (3:55.16).

In the women’s field Caroline Steffen and Nicole Hofer battled through the bike course. Steffen was first out of the water and pushed on the bike right from the start. However, since Hofer is in excellent shape, Steffen wasn’t able to break away. Leaving T2 Steffen led only by 12 seconds, but out on the run course she picked up the pace and won the race in 4:19.29. Second was Hofer (4:25.25) and third went to Karin Thürig (4:29:09).

The weather was sunny and warm, ideal conditions for the race. 45,000 spectators cheered the athletes along the race course, which was a great highlight for the organizers and spectators alike.

Top Five Men
1. Michael Raelert (GER) 3:47.47,2
2. Ronnie Schildknecht (SUI) 3:54.29,2
3. Olivier Marceau (SUI) 3:55.16,6
4. Romain Guillaume (FRA) 3:59.06,2
5. Masimo Cigana (ITA) 4:01.52,8

Top Five Women
1. Caroline Steffen (SUI) 4:19.29,5
2. Nicole Hofer (SUI) 4:25.25,4
3. Karin Thürig (SUI) 4:29.09,1
4. Simone Benz (SUI) 4:34.12,6
5. Eva Janssen (NED) 4:41.55,7