IRONMAN 70.3 Davao 2023 results: Crowley and Azevedo crowned

Sarah Crowley (AUS) and Filipe Azevedo (POR) were the winners of IRONMAN 70.3 Davao in the Philippines on Sunday.

PRO Women – Crowley wins again

Sarah Crowley winning GWM IRONMAN Western Australia - Photo Korupt Vision — Sarah Crowley winning IRONMAN WA [Photo credit: Korupt Vision]

Crowley put a tough 2021 behind her in style last year with no fewer than four wins, rounded off at IRONMAN Western Australia in December.

And she carried on where she left off here, though not surprisingly she had ground to make on the PTO’s #4 ranked swimmer Lauren Brandon early on.

The American was out of the water first nearly two minutes up on Julie Iemmolo (FRA), with Crowley back at +2:31.

And it took Crowley until the latter stages of the bike to move into the lead but she asserted on the run.

She was over two-and-a-half minutes up at halfway but to her credit Brandon kept the gap fairly constant after that as she claimed second, with Lottie Lucas (UAE) in third.

PRO Men – Azevedo has the answers

In the men’s race it was altogether closer in the swim with nothing between the front group coming out of the water which included Azevedo, Ognjen Stojanovic (SRB) and Tuan Chun Chang (TWN).

But on the bike was when Azevedo took charge and he was nearly four minutes up on Chang by T2.

Stojanovic was the big mover on the run with a best-of-the-day 1:18:03 and that was enough to take him up to second, with Chang rounding out the podium.