On Saturday, September 10th, 2016, Mamaia resort hosted the TriChallenge international event, the biggest triathlon competition in Eastern Europe and the Balkans. Cheered on by thousands of spectators and aided by wonderful weather, the over 1,500 participants from more than 10 countries created one of the greatest sports shows ever to have taken place at the Romanian seaside.
The sports event, now at its 8th edition, was also a novel way of promoting Mamaia internationally, as the Romanian resort already holds a consecrated place on the international map of important sports competitions. Under the applause of the audience, the first person to cross the finish line at the end of the three stages (swim, cycle and run) of the toughest race (Olympic) was Zsombor Deak (2 hours, 4 minutes and 14 seconds), while Ştefania Ion won the same race for females – 2 hours, 27 minutes and 12 seconds.
The TriChallenge Mamaia 2016 was a particularly remarkable edition, especially as the swim stage took place in the Black Sea. Participants had to swim 400m, 750m or 1500m, depending on the race they had opted for. The challenge continued with a 450m run, which took competitors along the walkway over Mamaia Boulevard and over to the transition area. This is where the cycling stage began – 10km for the super-sprint race, 20km for the sprint and 40km for the Olympic race. The race ended with a 2.5km, 5km, or 10km run respectively.
The results of the individual and relay races
Super-sprint
Erick Rogoz won the male race, which he completed in 39 minutes and 52 seconds. Lucian Valle was the runner-up (41 minutes and 35 seconds), while third place went to Tamas Botond Zoldi (43 minutes and 1 second). Andreea Diana Iordache finished the female race just a few fractions of a second ahead of Mădălina Franţ, as they both timed at 46 minutes and 23 seconds. Maria Ramona Turlică won third place (48 minutes and 21 seconds).
Sprint
The winner of the male race was Mircea Balica (1 hour, 3 minutes and 30 seconds), followed by Vlad Hasegan (1 hour, 3 minutes and 45 seconds) and Cristian Tranulea (1 hour, 5 minutes and 21 seconds). The female winner was Antoanela Manac (1 hour, 4 minutes and 42 seconds), in 2nd place came Andreea Bălan (1 hour, 10 minutes and 41 seconds) and in 3rd place – Kinga Simon (1 hour, 14 minutes and 43 seconds).
Olympic
Zsombor Deak is the grand winner of the toughest race of the TriChallenge Mamaia competition for the male category, as he completed the race in 2 hours, 4 minutes and 14 seconds. Second came Attila Daniel (2 hours, 5 minutes and 24 seconds) and third Ciprian Bălănescu (2 hours, 9 minutes and 20 seconds). The female winner was Ştefania Ion (2 hours, 27 minutes and 12 seconds), followed by Ana Mega (2 hours, 30 minutes and 46 seconds) and Hajnalka Jakab-Benke (2 hours, 34 minutes and 19 seconds).
Sprint Relay
For the male Sprint Relay race, the winners were the members of the Happy Tri Friends team (1 hour, 8 minutes and 58 seconds), followed by Bestsoft (1 hour, 11 minutes and 57 seconds) and Cambridge School of Bucharest (1 hour, 16 minutes and 25 seconds).
For females, Lacu Rezii (1 hour, 21 minutes and 1 second) finished in first place, Oxigen (1 hour, 44 minutes and 30 seconds) came in second and Albinuţele Electronice (the Electronic Bees) (1 hour, 48 minutes and 4 seconds) came in third. The mixed ranking is as follows: 1st place – Bucharest Sport Club (1 hour, 8 minutes and 59 seconds), 2nd place – Mcm Team Galaţi (1 hour, 13 minutes and 22 seconds) and 3rd place – Internaţionalii (the Internationals) (1 hour, 16 minutes and 16 seconds). The overall ranking is: 1. Happy Tri Friends, 2. Bucharest Sport Club and 3. Bestsoft.
Olympic Relay
The winners of this race were the TYR Romania Team, who timed at 2 hours, 8 minutes and 44 seconds, followed by Aqua Vita Delta Tulcea V2 (2 hours, 12 minutes and 48 seconds) and the Bobo Racing Team (2 hours, 16 minutes and 49 seconds).
Moreover, all the participants who were at their first triathlon received a prize.
All the results are available on the official international competition website: http://www.trichallenge.ro/rezultate/.
The TriChallenge Mamaia sports festival continued into the afternoon with the TriKids Challenge, a competition dedicated to children who love swimming, cycling and running.
The little ones competed in two races: the aquathlon (swim and run) and the duathlon (run and cycle).
The event concluded with the Beach Cross-Country Run, during which participants had to run 4km along the Mamaia beach and promenade. The race started in front of the Rex Hotel and the runners set off under the applause of the spectators on the sides.
Supporters and partners
The 8th edition of the TriChallenge Mamaia competition was supported by the Constanța City Municipality. The event was organised by the Smart Atletic Association, with the support of the Romanian Triathlon Federation.
Event partners: Skoda, Intersport, Ciuc, Felt, PowerBar, TYR, TriSport, Spokes, Dorna, Gral Medical, Regina Maria and 140 Beats per Minute.
Media partners: Dolce Sport, Gazeta Sporturilor, Europa FM and Radio 21.