Henri Rjappo wins Ironman 70.3 Tallinn for second consecutive year
Estonian triathlete Henri Rjappo won the men's race at the Ironman 70.3 Tallinn event, while Italy's Marta Bernardi topped the women's field.
At the shortened-distance Ironman 70.3 triathlon held in Tallinn, 28-year-old Estonian athlete Henri Rjappo crossed the finish line first, claiming victory on home soil for the second year running. He completed the 1,900-metre swim, 90-kilometre bike leg and half-marathon run in a combined time of 3 hours, 38 minutes and 32 seconds.
German athlete Hannes Butters finished second, one minute and seven seconds behind the winner. Italy's Enzo Burdon took third place, trailing Rjappo by nearly three minutes.
Women's race
In the women's competition, Italy's Marta Bernardi took the win with a time of 4:12.03. Estonia's Liis Kapten entered the finishing straight in second place but had pushed herself so hard during the race that she fell, losing the silver medal to France's Sandra Uon, who finished 1:05 behind the leader. Despite the fall, the 20-year-old Estonian managed to get back up and cross the line just four seconds after Uon, ultimately taking third place at 1:09 behind the winner.
The Ironman 70.3 format is half the distance of a full Ironman, requiring competitors to swim 1.9 kilometres, cycle 90.1 kilometres and run 21.1 kilometres.
On Saturday, the full-distance Ironman Tallinn was won by French triathlete Remi Conte, while Finland's Laura Jalasto was the fastest among women.
