Lao athlete Sayavong “Py” Vongviseth participated in the 18th Powerman Malaysia 2023 duathlon competition in Putrajaya on Sunday, where he won gold in the Powerman Short – Male 40-49 category with a record time of 1:38:14.
Powerman Malaysia is the world’s biggest duathlon competition, which saw 2,282 athletes join this year. Powerman Elite, Powerman Classic, and Powerman Short were the three participating categories in the competition.
Py achieved a ranking of 20th among all athletes across different categories and secured the 19th position out of a total of 1,892 male athletes.
The duathlon which Py competed in had a 5-30-5 format, 5 km run, 30 km cycling followed by another 5 km run. Py ran the first 5 km in 18 minutes and 34 seconds. After arriving at the first transition, Py took 5 minutes and 45 seconds to change into his biking gear and began his 30 km journey.
Py then went on to cycle a 10 km distance in 14 minutes and 49 seconds, he took 17 minutes 54 seconds to reach the 21 km mark and 11 minutes 28 seconds to cross the 28 km mark, bringing his total time up to 01:08:08.
He reached the second transition point after 01:10:36, changed back to his running gear, and began the last leg of the competition with a time of 01:16:10.
Py ran the last 5 km leg in about 24 minutes, finally crossing the finish line at 1:38:14, making him the winner in his category.
In a Facebook post, Py said that this was his first ever time participating in the Powerman Malaysia competition, and expressed gratitude for being able to represent Laos.
Lao Athletes are gradually starting to make their mark in the world of sports, standing out as a force to be reckoned with, and even managing to win 88 medals at the recently held 2023 SEA Games in Cambodia.
