LAPU-LAPU CITY — Nicole Rojo announced her arrival as a rising force in Philippine triathlon, emerging as the first Filipina finisher in the IRONMAN 70.3 Lapu-Lapu while multi-titled Irienold Reig Jr. continued his remarkable run of form with another age-group victory in Cebu here last Sunday.

Rojo, who has built her credentials through a string of victories in smaller endurance races, finally delivered a breakthrough performance on a major stage, clocking five hours, 15 minutes and 27 seconds over the grueling 1.9-km swim, 90-km bike and 21-km run course.

She got off to a strong start in the swim and sustained her charge through the bike and run legs, posting split times of 19:16 in the swim, 2:59:38 on the bike and 1:49:37 in the run.

The performance enabled the South Cotabato native to pull away from Melona Yucot, who finished in 6:06:54, and Rachel Wong (7:38:52) to dominate the women’s 18-24 age-group division in the 12th staging of the premier endurance race presented by Megaworld and organized by Sunrise Events Inc.

Reig, meanwhile, further cemented his status as one of the country’s most promising young triathletes, ruling the men’s 18-24 division in 4:23:03 on splits of 18:24, 2:26:00 and 1:32:49.

He beat Dutchman Rik Beugel, who clocked 4:34:28, while fellow Filipino Eryk Omandam placed third in 4:45:41.

The victory came months after Reig also topped the IRONMAN 70.3 Davao, giving further weight to the Quezon City standout’s emergence as a potential next big name in Philippine triathlon. His back-to-back victories also underscored the consistency of his form against strong fields.

Jewin Ochea provided another local highlight, capturing the Elite Category title put up by the Philippine Sports Commission in 4:26:10. He registered splits of 20:09 in the swim, 2:27:55 on the bike and 1:32:38 in the run.

The specialized Elite Category featured top-tier athletes, including members of the national pool and teams as well as high-performing local elites, placing them in a separate division from the standard age-group competition while running parallel to the international professional fields.

The race drew more than 1,400 triathletes from 48 countries, with South Africa’s Henri Schoeman and Natalie Van Coevorden of Australia taking the professional men’s and women’s titles, respectively. Schoeman captured his second title in the event, while Van Coevorden won for the first time.

Beyond Rojo and Reig, however, foreign athletes stamped their class across the other age-group divisions, underscoring the depth of international competition in this year’s race.

Strong currents forced organizers to shorten the swim leg for the age-group divisions from the scheduled 1.9 kilometers to one kilometer.

Japan’s Kazuhiro Oishi topped the men’s 25-29 division in 4:03:39, beating Frenchmen Fabien Celeste (4:10:07) and Sebastien Refane (4:19:12). Multi-titled Bea Quiambao ruled the women’s side in 5:22:12, ahead of Aira Lopez (5:37:02) and Cynthia Ras (5:39:54).

Another Japanese standout, Maeda Ryosuke, topped the men’s 30-34 division in 3:56:26, beating Julian Teves (4:26:36) and Mervin Santiago (4:29:48). Canada’s Casey Logan claimed the women’s crown in 5:20:59, ahead of Nicole Andaya (5:30:34) and Pauline Fornea (5:34:35).

Hong Kong’s Ho Tin Kwok ruled the men’s 35-39 division in 4:34:40, beating Britain’s Matthew Gibson (4:40:06) and Junrey Cabarrubias (5:55:20). Malaysia’s Eva Wong took the women’s title in 5:21:25, edging Japan’s Yui Matsumoto (5:23:30) and ultra-woman Jennifer Uy (5:50:15).

Other age-group winners were Japan’s Ryosute Ohata (4:12:51) and Yuko Takahashi (5:16:35) in the 40-44 divisions; Germany’s Andreas Wuestenberg (4:57:03) and Ines Santiago (5:20:54) in the 45-49 categories; Singapore-based Australian Assad Attamimi (4:19:07) and Japan’s Masami Suzuki (5:46:15) in the 50-54 divisions; Dutchman Marnix Beugel (4:40:13) and Australia’s Michelle Boyes (5:37:11) in the 55-59 categories; and Britain’s David Boyes (5:33:20) and Celma Hitalia (5:59:19) in the 60-64 divisions.

Japan’s Yoshihisa Takase topped the men’s 65-69 division in 5:36:40, while compatriot Toshikazu Kobayashi won the 70-74 category in 6:41:21.