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Saturday, 06 June 2015 06:10

ED. Here are results links for BUFFALO OLYMPIC, BUFFALO SPRINT and TRINONA. Words and pics coming soon.

By Usatriathlon.org

ST. PAUL, Minnesota — Amateur duathletes Matthew Payne and Kevin O’Connor earned overall standard and sprint-distance titles, respectively, while Kirsten Sass raced her way to overall wins in both distances at the 2015 USA Triathlon Duathlon National Championships, held Saturday at Harriet Island Regional Park. Patrick Parish and Ruth Brennan Morrey clinched overall wins in the elite field.....

Payne (Minneapolis, Minn.) clocked in at 1 hour, 24 minutes, 10 seconds on the 5-kilometer run, 34.5-kilometer bike, 5-kilometer run to claim the overall victory as well as the male 35-39 age-group title. Bennett Isabella (Burnsville, Minn.) was second overall, clocking in at 1:25:58 and taking the 30-34 national title, and Nathan Hoffman (South Haven, Minn.) raced to third overall in 1:26:07.

“The competition was awesome. We’re as strong here as anywhere. Even with just the local guys it’s going to be a tough race. And when you get the guys coming from all over the place, it’s even better," said Payne, who defended his overall title from 2014. “This course sets up very well for me. It bikes longer than the distance would indicate because of the hills, and my strength is the bike, so that really helps me out.”

Sass (McKenzie, Tenn.) did the double and bested the women’s field in both the standard- and sprint-distance championship events, finishing in 1:32:04 and 59:45.

“It was just amazing. It was tough, but I’ve been doing a lot of bike racing and training. It’s a strong group of women out there, so I’m honored to be here,” Sass said.

Parish (Minneapolis, Minn.) led the elite wave, finishing in 1:26:06, and Brennan Morrey (Rochester, Minn.) led the women, finishing in 1:33:06 with more than a two-minute lead. READ MORE