Brauer Power!

For Aussie athletes, the road to Kona is hardly a cruise down the highway. Before they can even have a crack at the 100 Kona slots on offer at Ironman Australia in Forster-Tuncurry they must first run the gauntlet of the Ironman Qualifier Challenge. This is an 11-race national series which determines 850 of the 1200 or so start berths in Forster. At the latter end of the Qualifier Challenge, 560 of these 850 spots are decided on a final four events. All of these races are half ironman distance and the first one, the Minolta Half Ironman, offers the aditional incentive of an up-close-and-personal look at the Ironman as it is run over exactly one half of the championship course.

The Minolta Half Ironman has developed a proud record of showcasing young talent. The race winner has been a new face each year, since the inaugural event was taken by veteran Ironman Bruce Thomas, sadly at present gravely ill. This year was no exception, as first year pro triathlete, Jarrod Brauer captured the race with a stunning display of swim bike and run action.

Brauer trains in Queensland under coach Col Stewart, but is actually a local boy from Wingham, just north of Forster-Tuncurry. He smashed the Minolta Half Ironman Triathlon course record in winning his first major race, lowering the course time to 4:02:36. Fast in all three disciplines, Jarrod swam 26:18 before riding an awesome 2:15:10 over the 90k and then running the half marathon in 1:21:96.

Brauer’s powerful performance on the bike set up a great first victory for the 25-year-old youngster, whose previous best was a third place in the JAL Half Ironman in Cairns last June and a fourth in this race last year.

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