Luiz Francisco Ferreira, known as Chicão, is the champion of Fodaxman Extreme Triathlon 2021. On Saturday, december 11th, the triathlete was the first to reach the finish line at the top of Morro da Igreja in Urubici, 1.818 meters above sea level. He broke the race record by completing it in 10 hours and 56 minutes the 4 km of swimming, 173 km of cycling passing through Serra do Rio do Rastro and 42 km of running.
Lívia Bustamante was the winner among women and is now the three-time champion in the competition. 86 athletes started the race trying to overcome the difficulties of the extreme triathlon held in Santa Catarina.
A professional triathlete, Chicão ruled from the beginning of cycling, even before the ascent of Serra do Rio do Rastro and and did not leave the lead. Along the way he increased the advantage until he reached the highest point in Santa Catarina and set the new Fodaxman record: 10h56.
“Swimming was different for me since it was at night, without seeing anything, and I had problems at the beginning of the bike course, which I managed to solve. Riding the hills, which I like, allowed me to get an edge. In the race there was a stretch of dirty road, which for me is unusual and then the climb which seemed to go on forever. It was a physical and mental fight, I wanted to walk, and my head wanted to run. It was a great experience. To end up climbing that much (16 km) is an experience that I will take for life. The race was sensational, and I enjoyed it a lot”, said Luiz Francisco Ferreira.
FIRST PLACED
Champion in 2018, Jonathan da Silva, known as Zinho, was in second place after arriving 40 minutes after the winner (11:36). Asterio Stolf finished third (11:50) after completing the route between the São Bento River Dam, in Siderópolis, to Urubici.
Among the participating women, Lívia Bustamante was the winner with a time of 13:44. Therefore, she won the third championship in the female category, since she was also the winner in the 2017 and 2019 editions. The second best among the women was Viviane Campos, who arrived at Morro da Igreja after 15h21 of racing.
57 athletes finished Fodaxman as top finishers, those who completed the course at the top of Morro da Igreja. The base finishers of the 2021 edition, those who reached km 26 of the race after 5pm and completed the distance without the climb, totalled 18. Also 11 triathletes were unable to finish the race.
“As in other editions, it was moving to see the overcoming of each athlete to complete a race as hard and challenging as Fodaxman. However, this edition was even more touching because of all uncertainties that we've been through recently, which led to the cancellation of the race in 2020. In addition, each year it gets better in many aspects and it fills us with pride to deliver an event from athlete to athlete, recognized by all participants”, comments Rafael Pina, one of the organizers of Fodaxman.
XTRI WORLD TOUR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
The first placed are classified for the Norseman, the World Championship of XTri World Tour, which takes place in Norway in August 2022.
The 2022 edition will be held in Santa Catarina, december 10th.
THE RACE
The Fodaxman Extreme Triathlon 2021 started in the dark, before sunrise on Saturday (11). At 4 am, the athletes started the 4 km swimming in the waters of the São Bento River Dam. The first to come out of the water was Thiago Menuci, the last edition champion, and Bruno Matheus, one of the professional triathletes who competed in the race. At the start of kilometre 173 of cycling, Menuci led with Matheus right behind him.
However, another professional appeared in the dispute. Before kilometre 25 of the bike course, Luiz Francisco Ferreira, known as Chicão, took the lead. In the tough climb of Serra do Rio do Rastro, the 39-year-old triathlete used all his experience open up advantage and reach the top at the Mirante de Bom Jardim da Serra, with an 8-minute advantage over the Gaucho and Paulista.
After the hardest part of cycling, the athletes practically maintained their positions throughout the second half of the modality. Chicao took the opportunity to get an edge until reaching the center of Urubici for transition 2 and the start of the 42 km race, with almost seven hours since the start - and chance of breaking the race record. As in previous years, the running was decisive for defining the first places.
Winner in 2018, Jonathan da Silva, who was chasing the first ones, came in second before km 26 of the race, when he started to climb Morro da Igreja. He was 38 minutes behind Chicao and with Asterio Stolf on his tail. Menuci, who spent much of the race in second place, had problems in the first half of the race and had to strive even more to recover.
Up front and confident, Chicao kept the lead at a strong pace not only to be the champion but also to be the first triathlete in history to complete the Fodaxman in less than 11 hours. Luiz Francisco Ferreira clocked 10h56 and is the new record holder of the event. Next was Jonathan da Silva and Asterio Stolf. The top 5 was completed with Bruno Matheus and Thiago Menuci. The last athlete to reach the top was Volnei Alves Galvani, 57 years old, with 15h22 of race.
FODAXMAN EXTREME TRIATHLON 2021 RESULTS
Top finishers
1st - Luiz Francisco Ferreira - 10:56
2nd - Jonathan da Silva - 11:36
3rd - Asterio Stolf - 11:50
4th - Bruno Matheus - 11:58
5th - Thiago Menuci - 12:00
20th - Lívia Bustamante - 13:44
Base finishers
1st: Fábio Miranda (15:10) / 2nd: Rodrigo Ferrão (15:17) / 3rd: Júlio César Cunha Marques (15:24)
All Fodaxman Extreme Triathlon Champions
2021 (5th edition - December) - Luiz Francisco Ferreira - 10:56 (event record) - and Lívia Bustamante - 13:44.
2019 (4th edition - December) - Thiago Menuci - 11:12 and Lívia Bustamante - 2:23
2018 (3rd edition - December) - Jonathan da Silva - 12:09 and Luiza Tobar - 12:58 (evidence record)
2017 (2nd edition - December) - Felipe Dayrell – 12:58 and Lívia Bustamante – 2:23
2017 (1st edition - January) - Luiz Inácio Silva – 12:46
More information about Fodaxman: https://www.fodaxman.com.br/.