Shaw shows promise, Shaw features in the break of the day Irelands Ben Shaw showed promise after a creditable 33rd in the elite men’s ITU Auckland World Cup last weekend. Shaw who is just 20 had a superb swim exciting in 5th in a time of 18:50 for 1500 meters.
Onto the bike Shaw formed a breakaway pack of 7 including eventual winner Kris Gemmell. The group biked well over a tough 40km course to build up a lead of over 3 minutes on the main bunch.
The run started at a furious pace with Gemmell, having gained a small advantage towards the end of the bike, pulling clear for a fifth World Cup victory of his career.
Shaw faded on the run leg and was swallowed up by the chase pack to finish in 33rd out of 57 starters. An awesome swim – biker, if Shaw can improve his running he is a genuine contender at the top of the field.
Shaw will now enjoy a short winter break before preparing for the 2012 season where he will look to improve his ranking and earn start positions is more high profile World Cup races.
