Puerto Princesa City: The Ironman 70.3 triathlon in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan, witnessed exceptional performances from Satar Salem and Leyann Ramo, who dominated their respective divisions on Sunday. Salem, hailing from Lanao del Norte, clocked an impressive overall time of four hours, 22 minutes, and 25 seconds, narrowly outpacing Chinese competitor Junyu Cao.
According to Philippines News Agency, his victory was a result of intense training and a focused strategy, especially in the running segment, which proved to be the most challenging.
Cao finished with a time of 4:23:13, closely followed by Dutch athlete Eric van der Linden, who placed third. Mervin Santiago and defending champion John Alcala also featured among the top finishers.
In the women's division, Leyann Ramo secured the top spot with a time of 5:02:56, leading ahead of Grace Banzon and American Catherine Wood. The event, organized by the Ironman Group and Sunrise Events, Inc., was a first-time host to the TriClub Championship Series and saw participation from athletes representing 38 countries. They competed in a 1.9km swim, a 90km bike ride, and a 21.1km run.