Emma Wynne and Alicia Marriott have turned heads on the national stage, finishing third and fourth respectively in Sunday's final of the Kellogg's NutriGrain Ironman Series at Coogee Beach in Sydney.
For Emma it was a step up from her fifth placing in last year's series, while for Alicia it was her first time in the event, having come through the qualifying rounds earlier this month.
The final took the format of three races. The ten finalists started in the first, with only six making it through to the second race, and only three to the last.
In the opening race, Alicia got into the lead pack in the board leg with Emma near the back of the pack. But both put in outstanding efforts in the swim leg, Alicia taking the lead and Emma joining the front pack. Alicia slipped back in the changeover to the ski leg, then regained first position in the final run to the line to take out the race. Emma also swam through the field to join the lead group and qualify comfortably for round two.
With six competitors chasing three places in the final, the pace in race two was hot from the start. Kirsty Munroe (Alexandra Headlands) and Kristy Cameron (Northcliffe) pulled out to a substantial lead on the opening ski and board legs, leaving four competitors swimming for one spot. As the best two swimmers in the field, Alicia and Emma quickly pulled away from Hayley Bateup (Northcliffe) and Gemma Newbiggin (Metropolitan Caloundra). Emma then led Alicia back to the beach to claim the final spot in race three, Alicia finishing fourth overall in the series.
The effort of qualifying for the last race took it's toll on Emma. She stayed with Munroe and Cameron in the opening swim leg of the final, but lost touch and fell away on the ski. Cameron took out the race and series for the third time, with Munroe in second place and Emma third.
As the only finalists not to come from Queensland the girls served as a reminder that not all the superstars come from the east coast and after last year's Australian Titles results and Alicia's second place in the Coolangatta Gold, plenty of people will be watching for more when we get to Kurrawa in March.
