Nova Masters Swimming (Orange County, CA)

QUEENSTOWN, NEW ZEALAND - Nova Masters & Triathlon coach Michael Collins placed 20th in the 35-39 division 3rd at the ITU World Triathlon Championships held December 6, 2003. Collins emerged from the water 5th but was caught on the bike by a large pack of riders near the end of the ride in the extremely windy conditions. "I was happy with my race." Collins said. "I gave it my very best on the day, and did much better than last year at the World's in Cancun, but the course was very tough. The bike really took a lot out of me with the wind and hills, and I just didn't have enough gas left to really motor on the run." The run was a 4 lap circuit on a course that had two steep hills each lap. "I held the pace consistent for the first two laps but began to fade over the final two laps and lost several places in the last 2.5k. I was definitely cooked. My timer seems to go off right at the 2 hour mark and this race took 2:13 for me. I was definitely seeing stars at the end. Still, I finished as the 6th American which was much higher than the 14th place finish at the USA Team Qualifier in Coeur d' Alene." Dan Neyenhuis also competed in the race but had to drop out on the run due to a freak accident on the way to the race which resulted in a huge gash in his shin. He swam and biked well but the pounding on the hills in the run was too much. Full Results can be found at: http://www.poprunresults.co.nz/