Matt Hanson Leads Pro Series After Win at IRONMAN 70.3 Chattanooga
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (May 19, 2024) – Clocking the fastest time of the day with a new course record time of 3 hours 41 minutes 21 seconds, Matt Hanson claimed the win and took the lead in the IRONMAN Pro Series. Hanson overcame a four-minute deficit to chase down the field and record the fastest run split of the day at 1:09:48. Pallant-Browne (GBR) clocked the fastest run in the women’s race with a time of 1:18:43.
“It’s always tough to race in the heat like this, because the back half (of the race) tends to slow down a lot,” said Matt Hanson. “I cut the lead just about in half right at the beginning of the second lap. I knew that I had a chance if I was able to even split, and I think I negative split (on the run portion). I pushed pretty hard and made a move right before the hill onto the bridge and that is where I could see first and second and gave it a little boost to catch them.”
In the women’s professional race Emma Pallant-Browne (GBR) earned back-to-back wins following her victory last weekend at the Zafiro IRONMAN 70.3 Alcúdia-Mallorca, also earning her maximum points and moving up to second place in the overall IRONMAN Pro Series standings.
“It was a tough race, and really tactical, which is quite unusual in women’s racing. It was quite fun! The field is so deep and tough, at the moment,” said Pallant-Browne. Speaking of her second consecutive IRONMAN Pro Series victory, she said “Obviously that was always the goal, but I knew it would be really tough. I definitely had to dig deep to finish it off today.
Nicholas Quenet (ZAF) and Jodie Stimpson (GBR) recorded the fastest swim times of 22:43 and 24:56, respectively.
Trevor Foley (USA) recorded the fastest bike time in the men’s pro field with a time of 1:58:00 setting a new bike course best surpassing Jackson Laundry’s bike split of 2:00:29 set in 2022.
Lisa Becharas (USA) narrowly edged out Jackie Hering (USA) at the dismount line to record the fastest bike for the women with a time of 2:17:04.
Top-5 Pro Men
| Place | Name (Country) | Swim | Bike | Run | Total Time | Pro Series Points | Event Prize Money |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Matt Hanson (USA) | 24:39 | 2:04:06 | 1:09:48 | 3:41:21 | 2,500 | $7,500 |
| 2 | Jackson Laundry (CAN) | 24:38 | 1:59:31 | 1:14:48 | 3:42:02 | 2,459 | $5,000 |
| 3 | Trevor Foley (USA) | 26:00 | 1:58:00 | 1:14:59 | 3:42:16 | 2,445 | $3,750 |
| 4 | Antony Costes (FRA) | 24:11 | 1:59:51 | 1:16:09 | 3:43:13 | 2,388 | $3.000 |
| 5 | Colin Szuch (USA) | 25:19 | 2:01:27 | 1:15:10 | 3:45:15 | 2,266 | $2,000 |
Top-5 Pro Women
| Place | Name (Country) | Swim | Bike | Run | Total Time | Pro Series Points | Event Prize Money |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Emma Pallant-Browne (GBR) | 27:07 | 2:17:10 | 1:18:43 | 4:06:27 | 2,500 | $7,500 |
| 2 | Jackie Hering (USA) | 27:00 | 2:17:10 | 1:19:27 | 4:07:05 | 2,246 | $5,000 |
| 3 | Sarah True (USA) | 25:04 | 2:19:10 | 1:22:08 | 4:10:13 | 2,274 | $3,750 |
| 4 | Danielle Lewis (USA) | 29:04 | 2:15:58 | 1:28:54 | 4:12:06 | 2,161 | $3.000 |
| 5 | Grace Alexander (USA) | 24:58 | 2:19:16 | 1:27:21 | 4:15:04 | 1,983 | $2,000 |
