Hursey, Kanute Win USAT Super Sprint Series Finale

Katie Hursey and Ben Kanute ended their 2013 seasons on a high note at Mission Bay’s Rose Marie Starns South Shores Park, running their way to the top of the podium at the Fearless Pro Super Sprint Triathlon, the season finale of the USA Triathlon Super Sprint Series.

Read the race recap from USA Triathlon below:

Contested in a double super-sprint format, professional athletes completed two continuous, non-stop circuits of the same course, each comprised of a 300-meter swim, 8-kilometer bike and 2.5-kilometer run. The finishers of Saturday’s race earned prize money, with the winners each collecting $2,500.

Hursey (Hampstead, Md.) logged a time of 49 minutes, 39 seconds to earn the win, just ahead of Sara McLarty (Clermont, Fla.), who took second in 49:47. Jennifer Spieldenner (Findlay, Ohio) rounded out the podium, finishing third in 50:56.

After earning third place at the Super Sprint Series event in Las Vegas last month, Kanute (Tucson, Ariz.) bested the field in a sprint to the finish and a time of 45:39.3, less than a second ahead of Tommy Zaferes (Soquel, Calif.), who was second in 45:39.9. Eric Lagerstrom (Gresham, Ore.) was third in 45:46.

When the women began their first swim, it was clear McLarty and Hursey were going to push the pace throughout the six-segment course for the top position. McLarty led out of the swim with Hursey close on her heels, and racked up a 20-second lead on the first bike leg. Hursey then reeled McLarty on the first run, and the pair kept close throughout the rest of the race.

“It was really fast and really hard,” Hursey said after the race. “I was happy with my swim; I tried to stay on Sara’s feet, she made it pretty hard for the first time around. With the bike, I couldn’t stick with her but I tried to stay as close as I could going into the run.”

The men’s race was immediately led by Zaferes, Lagerstrom and Kanute, who all came out of the water together on the first swim. Throughout the rest of the race, the trio worked together to maintain a solid lead over the rest of the field. Kanute made his final move in the last lap of the run, overtaking Zaferes by just a few steps at the finish line.

“My plan is always the same – to go off on the swim and bike, and then hold out for the run,” Kanute said. “It just so happened that Eric and Tommy were there and a gap formed on the first lap, and we tried to hold it as long as possible.”

The USA Triathlon Super Sprint Series was launched this year to showcase an exciting new format for the sport in the United States. A 60-minute broadcast of the Fearless Pro Super Sprint Triathlon will air on Nov. 11 at 8 p.m. ET. Re-air times for the broadcast include (all times Eastern): Nov. 11 at 11 p.m., Nov. 12 at 5 a.m. and noon, Nov. 14 at 5 p.m. and Nov. 15 at 1:30 a.m.

USA Triathlon Super Sprint Series
Fearless Pro Super Sprint Triathlon
300m swim, 8k bike, 2.5k run x2

Women
1. Katie Hursey (Hampstead, Md.), 49:39.4
2. Sara McLarty (Clermont, Fla.), 49:47.9
3. Jennifer Spieldenner (Findlay, Ohio), 50:56.3

Men
1. Ben Kanute (Tucson, Ariz.), 45:39.3
2. Tommy Zaferes (Soquel, Calif.), 45:39.9
3. Eric Lagerstrom (Gresham, Ore.), 45:46.4
4. Joe Maloy (Wildwood Crest, N.J.), 46:31.1
5. Derek Oskutis (San Diego, Calif.), 46:42.7
6. Jason Pedersen (Simi Valley, Calif.), 46:52.0
7. John Dahlz (South San Francisco, Calif.), 47:07.3