Griffioen crowned Fedhealth XTERRA Buffelspoort Champion

Nicolette Griffioen claimed gold at the first XTERRA race of the season, the Fedhealth XTERRA Buffelspoort in the North West Province on Saturday, 21 January 2017. 

The Fedhealth XTERRA Buffelspoort pitted athletes against a 1.5km swim, followed by a 26km mountain bike course before finishing off with a 12km trail run.

Although plagued by bike mechanicals on the day, Griffioen managed to regain composure and successfully defend her Fedhealth XTERRA Buffelspoort title.  “I’m not the fastest swimmer.  So going into the race I just wanted to be consistent in the swim.  I started to catch the leaders on the mountain bike discipline, but then my bike punctured at approximately 15km in.  I first bombed the tyre and later plugged it, followed by another bomb.  After that I decided to be more cautious.  Going into the run I was in survival mode.  I am very surprised that I managed to catch all the runners ahead of me.  I am really happy with the win.”  Griffioen completed the 2017 Fedhealth XTERRA Buffelspoort in a deserving time of 03 hours 21 minutes 43 seconds.  Johandri Leicester came in second, while  Adrienne Moolman finished third.

“The Fedhealth XTERRA takes place early in the year, and as such, it is great preparation for serious triathletes training for events like Ironman or the Cape Epic, or the triathlete just looking to step up his or her game. It also means you can bring the family along for the Kids or Lite events and spend some quality time together!” says Jeremy Yatt, Principal Officer of Fedhealth.

Next Up in Buffelspoort:

Date:
Event:

Sunday, 22 January 2017
07:00 / Fedhealth XTERRA Trail Run:  12km and 6km

Sunday, 22 January 2017
09:00 / Fedhealth XTERRA Lite:  400m swim, 19km MTB, 6km trail run

Next on the Fedhealth XTERRA SA Calendar:

Event:
Dates:

Fedhealth XTERRA Nelson Mandela Bay / Eastern Cape
10 – 12 February 2017

Fedhealth XTERRA Grabouw / Western Cape
24 – 26 February 2017

Follow us on Twitter:  @XTERRASA / @Fedhealthmed

Like our FaceBook page:  XTERRA South Africa / Fedhealth Medical Aid

For further information or to the Fedhealth XTERRA Buffelspoort, Nelson Mandela Bay or Grabouw contact 082 991 0045 or email [email protected]

ENDS

Issued by:                           NEWSPORT MEDIA

On behalf of:                     STILLWATER SPORTS