A SURVIVAL of the fittest race mourns one casualty.
IRONMAN 70.3 confirmed the death of one of its triathletes on Sunday in its Davao event.
In a media statement, organizers identified the casualty as Jerry Kasim, a swim coach who it said succumbed to a heart attack during the swim course. He was 49.
READ: Azevedo, Crowley rule Davao Ironman 70.3 race
"Our condolences go out to the athlete's family and friends, whom we will continue to support," the organizers said in the statement.
The triathlon event said the participant needed medical attention during the swim part of the race, prompting organizers to take the person to a nearby hospital.
The 1.9-kilometer swim course started at Azuela Cove in Lanang, with participants swimming through the Pakiputan straight, following a singular rectangular clockwise swim heading north.
Each participant had 70 minutes to finish the swim course based on a rolling start that kicked the triathlon event off at 6:10 a.m.
Kasim's younger sister Sanita Kasim Soreny, a former national dragon boat team member now based in the United Kingdom, said the family was stunned by his untimely passing since they were not aware of any heart-related disease he might have had.
Meanwhile, Portugal’s Filipe Azevedo and Aussie Sarah Crowley topped the premier pro division.
The other top finishers were (35-39) China’s Chen Li (3:45:18), Filipino Reagan Nabua (3:56:41) and Kuwaiti Abdullah Alrefae (4:05:18); (40-44) Thai Dane Cantwell (3:50:50), Czech Petr Lukosz (3:54:26) and Hong Kong’s Chun Kit Tsang (3:55:22); (45-49) Luxembourg’s Olivier Godart (3:34:25), Siu Yuen Wong of Hong Kong (4:10:57) and American Stephen Quance (4:21:08);
(50-54) Mark Jansen of Australia (4:13:13), Claudio Fabbri of Monaco (4:23:18), Filipino Edward Luna (4:38:50), (55-59) Craig Weymouth of Guam (4:35:13), Andreas Goros of Greece (4:45:01) and American Joseph Kelleher (4:45:40); (60-64) Koji Muroya of Japan (4:46:19), Eric Battisti of France (4:50:51) and American Robert Shannon (6:01:41); (65-69) Singapore’s Dale Mcallister (6:08:22), Hong Kong’s Lawrence Webb (6:25:10) and Martin Buchholz of the US (6:31:06); and (70-74) Japanese Kiko Hashikawa (6:16:52), Filipino Edgardo Villar (6:52:02) and Masashi Watanabe of Japan (7:06:26).
The relay winners were Alveo ALI Tri (4:18:44), which toppled Sante Barley Tri Team (5:09:16) and KCSS 2Jo of Hong Kong (5:30:42) in the female division; Go4Less, which timed 3:37:30 to beat Happy Life Tri Team (3:43:02) and Go for Gold (3:45:53) for the men’s trophy; and TRI SND Mixed I, which clocked 3:43:28 to edge TRI SND Barracuda (3:53:13) and AMAI Manibalang Triathlon (4:15:46) for the mixed crown.
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