‘Surprised’ Wild banks on strong finish to rule Subic Ironman 70.3

Ruedi Wild looks forward on returning to the country after topping one of the toughest Ironman fields. Photo by Randolph B. Leongson/INQUIRER.net

SUBIC — Facing world class competition, Ruedi Wild couldn’t be more proud after ruling the 2017 Century Tuna Ironman 70.3 Subic Bay on Sunday here.

“I think it makes the experience even more worth it,” he said. “I wasn’t expecting such a deep field when I signed up for this race. When I saw the start list, I couldn’t believe it, actually. I was surprised because it’s like a championship race.”

Wild showed why he is a two-time Olympian as he made a huge push in the run course, clocking a race-best 1:14:08 as he fought back after lagging in the first two legs to finish the race in 3:48:24.

READ: Wild finish as Ruedi Wild captures Subic Ironman 70.3 crown

The Swiss triathlete even bared that he anticipated this scenario to transpire, acknowledging his knack for slow starts while banking on his huge finishing kick to get things done on the course.

“I’m not known as a fast starter, so I was quite confident and I knew if I had an even run with the pace, it’s going to be ok,” he said.

“It took me a little while to get ready for the run and these guys started really fast. But I knew it’s not about the first two kilometers. It’s about the second half of the run. In this heat, you have to be deliberate, you have to be conservative, and pretty much know how to start. After the third or fourth kilometer, I was able to catch up with the lead group with my countryman (Sven) Reiderer leading the group.”

That was when he pounced on the opportunity and took the baton from favorites Craig “Crowie” Alexander and Tim Reed.

“It took about the turnaround where I caught them. At the end of the airport, I got away from Tim Reed, I attacked, kept pushing without looking back, and stayed as strong as possible. And when I turned around, I had a gap of 100 meters from him and it was then when I felt quite confident and I knew that if I keep the pace, then it looks very good,” he said. “Luckily, I was able to keep that pace and was able to celebrate a victory against this strong field so I’m very happy about it.”

Wild hoped that this won’t be his first and last visit to the country as he looks forward in joining more triathlon races in the Philippines.

“Hopefully, I’ll be able to come back and have some other races. I like it very much here, one of the nicest courses I’ve ever done. It’s amazing. What else can you ask for? It’s just amazing,” he said.