Athletes Competed in Triathlon and Duathlon Mixed Relay National Championships, Triathlon Individual Medley on Final Day of 2024 Multisport National Championships Festival Presented by Mutual of Omaha

Omaha, Neb. – The final day of the 2024 USA Triathlon Multisport National Championships Festival presented by Mutual of Omaha concluded on Sunday, June 9 with the Triathlon Mixed Relay, Duathlon Mixed Relay National Championships, and the Triathlon Individual Medley.

In the Mixed Relay, teams of four (in the order of man-woman-man-woman) compete, with each team member completing a 250-meter swim, 5k bike, 1.2k run triathlon before tagging their teammate. On Sunday, spectators and teammates lined the race’s tag zone, cheering as athletes finished their leg to tag their teammate who ran toward the shore of Lake Cunningham.

On Sunday, the ensemble of Jackson Harrell (Novi, Mich.), Jenna Haufler (Mill Valley, Calif.), Andrew Vanlandingham (Nashville, Tenn.) and Alex Leandri (Nashville, Tenn.) from USA Triathlon Club Working Triathlete crossed the tape in a time of 1 hour, 11 minutes and 39 seconds, giving Working Triathlete its third Triathlon Mixed Relay National Championship in a row. Leandri and Haufler have been a part of all three mixed relays the past three years.

“I just didn’t want to let the team down. It was fun out there. There’s just so much energy during the mixed relay, hearing your teammates yelling for you, it’s just so much fun. We have the most fun ever,” Leandri said. 

“We’re all racing on really tired legs right now, but there’s something magical about a mixed relay and how that brings an extra little bit out of you that you didn’t know you had,” Haufler said. 

Team Multisport Triathlon Masters finished second overall in the Triathlon Mixed Relay National Championship, as team members Scott Green (Florence, Mass.), Michelle Christine (Leesburg, Va.), Stephen Eles (Boulder, Colo.) and Kimberly Wikel (Milan, Ohio) combined for a time of 1:18:01. 

Carl Newton (Mesa, Ariz.), Megan Newton (Mesa, Ariz.), Adam Rosen (Cleveland, Ohio) and Joanna Coker (La Jolla, Calif.) of T.J. Racing placed third overall with a time of 1:19:22. 

In addition to the overall Mixed Relay podium, age group national titles were awarded to teams, broken down into different age brackets based on teams' combined ages of each member’s four athletes. 

In the Duathlon Mixed Relay National Championships, each athlete on the four-person team raced a 1.2k run, 5k bike and 1.2k run. 

Taking home another team gold, Working Triathlete, comprised of Derek Stone (Westlake, Ohio), Evanthia Shook (Chicago, Ill.), Christopher Hague (Nashville, Tenn.) and Elizabeth Ordeman (San Francisco, Calif.), secured first place in the Duathlon Mixed Relay in a time of 1:09:02, just edging out Team Multisport Duathlon Speedy Masters (Eles, Christine, Green and Wikel), who finished second in 1:10:02.

Team Blewbye You!, composed of Scott Croner (Papillion, Neb.), Rachel Crunk (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.), Bill Bender (Wichita, Kan.) and Barbara Wiggins (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.) finished third in a time of 1:16:01.

In an inspiring moment, triathletes Caleb Prewitt, Lisa Thomas, Trent Fielder and Samantha Rothberg completed the inaugural mixed adaptive duathlon relay. The first of its kind, the team had two able-bodied triathletes and two paratriathletes, who all completed each of the three legs of the race. Prewitt, at only 15 years old, also made history by becoming the first athlete with Down syndrome to earn the title of Multisport Master, by completing five races. 

“This is the day I was waiting for. The spirit of the adaptive community combined with the able-bodied community is absolutely fantastic,” said Fielder, who was diagnosed in 2011 with Guillain-Barre syndrome, a condition in which the body’s immune system attacks parts of the nervous system and destroys nerves that allow the brain to communicate with muscles.

“I was inspired by this idea when this group came to me and now that I’ve seen it in action I can’t wait to watch this event grow…this group was the perfect four to kick it off,” said USA Triathlon Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Access Manager, Megan Zablock. “There were people watching the adaptive mixed relay asking ‘how do I sign up to be a part of this?’ and it’s great to hear other people are interested and eager to continue this race! We had a decent amount of adaptive athletes turn up this year, it would be cool to have more of them in a mixed relay so next year let’s get them all, right?”

At the 2023 Multisport National Championships Festival, USA Triathlon added the Individual Triathlon Medley - the first of its kind - in which athletes complete all four legs of the relay race on their own. Now in its second year, the format surpassed the expected growth for 2024. More than 40 individuals competed in the Individual Triathlon Medley on Sunday in Omaha. 

Alex Ranum (Boulder, Colo.) won the overall title in a time of 59 minutes flat. Ranum had a successful week in Omaha, placing first overall for the 30-34 age group in both the Super Sprint Triathlon and Draft-Legal Sprint Triathlon National Championships. Ranum was followed closely by Matt Nadel (Denver, Colo., 1:00:43) and Tavish Quinn (Spring, Texas, 1:01:58).

Notably, 17-year-old Joshua Blanchard (Tulsa, Okla.) and 17-year-old Gavin Atkins (Haverhill, Mass.), two rising junior athletes, placed fourth and fifth, respectively, in the 17-39 age group category.

Leading the pack, the overall women’s title was won by Julia Larese (Southampton, N.Y.) in a time of 1:18:42, who also won the 55-59 age group title.

Along with Larese, 55-59 age group racer, Debra Robenhymer (Pompano Beach, Fla.), came in second place in a time of 1:22:11 and Valeria Healy (New York, N.Y.) came in third in a time of 1:22:54, winning her 50-54 age group.

The Individual Mixed Relay Clydesdale winner was Lance Fargo (Ocean Beach, Del.) in a time of 1:11:04 and the Athena winner was Erin Byrge (Surf City, N.C.)  in a time of 1:15:46.

The event ended with Sunday afternoon’s awards ceremony, with athletes awarded their Natioanl Championship medals. In addition, more than 100 athletes were honored for achieving Multisport Master status by completing more than five races during the course of the event. Multisport athletes earned a commemorative belt buckle.