AUGUSTA — No triathlon is going to be short on elite athletes, but a new twist to the Ironman 70.3 Maine this year beefed up the competition on July’s penultimate day.

The designation of Sunday’s race as an Ironman Pro event brought an even more competitive race to Augusta than last year’s inaugural event. The result was a diverse field, as top competitors — some known nationally or internationally — brought peak athleticism to Maine’s capital area.

“When you have a Pro race, the goal is to bring more age group racers to the sport and to bring these racers,” Pro competitor Nicole Falcaro said. “Here, up in the corner of the U.S., it’s not very convenient. It’s great when you have an event like this that draws attention and brings people to the area.”

While open to all competitors, last year’s age group award-only half Ironman had a distinctly regional feel to it. Those participating largely came from Maine, elsewhere in northern New England or Atlantic Canada and Quebec, with athletes from the latter owning the podium and taking over the region en masse.

Those athletes were still plentiful this year, but the new arrivals of top athletes given Pro status as the best of the best in their national federations threw the field into flux. Competing on a largely similar course, the top 10 runners in the men’s and women’s races outpaced last year’s top 10 by about 30 minutes each.

Topping the podium on the men’s side was Trevor Foley of Gainesville, Florida. Finishing in 3 hours, 33 minutes, 58 seconds, the ex-University of Florida and high school track and field star beat runner-up Gregory Barnaby of Italy (3:39:17) and outpaced last year’s top overall runner, Simon Leblanc of Canada, by 27:26.

“The bike course was super hilly, and I think that broke things up,” said Foley, who won his second half Ironman after previously doing so in Waco, Texas, last year. “You don’t get much of a draft when you’re going up the hills, which is nice. I’m a pretty strong biker, so when I get on those hills, I can really break away.”

A participant receives an extra push Sunday near the finish line as spectators cheer and reach out during the Ironman 70.3 Maine in Augusta. The event includes 70.3 miles of swimming, then biking and finally running. Ashley Allen/Kennebec Journal

Indeed, the 56.3-mile biking portion of the event was the difference-maker for Foley, who was 16th following the 1.2-mile swim along the Kennebec River early in the morning. He overtook Barnaby just before the halfway point of the biking section and held the lead the rest of the way.

Justin Metzler (Longmont, Colorado) rounded out the podium with a time of 3:45.12, after Canadian Matthew Sharpe, who had crossed the finish line third, received a disqualification. The winner of a previous Ironman 70.3 held last year, Metzler said the central Maine course had a number of similarities to that one in Oregon.

“That rapid was insane,” Metzler said. “That race in Oregon had a very similar river current, and this river was as strong if not stronger than that. … (The biking section) was a little bit hillier than I expected, but you’ve got to just roll with the punches and do your best. It’s a beautiful course and a beautiful town.”

On the women’s side, one of the top endurance competitors in the world ran away with the race. Finishing in 4:11:24, Giorgia Priarone of Italy beat out Amy Cymerman (Pittsford, New York; 4:16.51) to the finish line, outpacing 2022 winner Meghan Fillnow (Charlotte, North Carolina) by 27:09.

Priarone’s résumé is the perfect example of the kind of athletes Ironman Pro events bring to their host communities. The 2022 European duathlon champion and No. 4 women’s long-distance triathlete in the world said the course was fast, reminding her of her home 4,000 miles away.

“It is very similar to my home because I live in the countryside in a very small city that has a lot of green around like this,” Priarone said. “The swim was really good because of the current — you can feel it a little bit, but not too much — and the water was the perfect temperature. I enjoyed it a lot.”

Participants transition Sunday from the swimming to biking portion of the Ironman 70.3 Maine in Augusta. Event volunteers stand at the water’s edge to offer a hand to participants. Ashley Allen/Kennebec Journal

Third place in the women’s competition went to Falcaro, who had a much shorter trek to the Augusta area as a Portsmouth, New Hampshire, native. Like Foley on the men’s side, Falcaro had a remarkable late race as she battled her way to the podium after entering the 13.2-mile run in eighth place.

Even entering the final few miles of the race, Falcaro was fifth behind Samantha Snukis (Reading, Pennsylvania) and Pamela Ann Bachelder Saint-Pierre (Quebec City). Yet she would pass Snukis to take over fourth at the turnaround at mile 10.5 before eclipsing Bachelder Saint-Pierre just before mile 11.5.

“(Pamela) gave me a pat on the back as I passed her, and I was like: ‘OK, I can’t get emotional yet. I’ve got 10 minutes of running left, and I can’t get too teary,'” Falcaro said. “I kept pushing that whole last bit, and then I saw my friends and all the people who came up from Portsmouth at 12 and 12.5, and it was the best feeling.”

The mild weather added to a terrific race day environment. With a temperature of 67 degrees at the finish line, it was a significant improvement after a week of hot weather and high humidity — especially for a runner who does his training in Arizona.

“Coming from Tucson, it’s hot as hell out there. It’s like 110 (in Tucson), so I enjoyed that today,” Foley said. “I was honestly kind of cold coming down the hills. The whole thing was great. I really couldn’t ask for more.”

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