PROVIDENCE, RI – Ben Collins and Amy Marsh emerged as the winners of the 2010 Amica
19.7 Phoenix sprint triathlon this morning under picture perfect skies at Lake Pleasant Park,
Arizona.

Collins, 27, finished the half-mile swim, 16.1-mile bike and 3.1-mile run in a winning time of 1:07:36 to pick up his third professional win of the season.

“This was a great way to end the season,” said Collins, who also won the San Francisco Pan-America Cup in July and a month later captured the San Francisco Alcatraz Triathlon.

Collins and close friend Cameron Dye, 26, were neck and neck throughout the race until Collins was able to pull ahead with one mile remaining in the run. Collins was focused on the finish, but
runner-up Dye (1:08:14) may have had other things on his mind. Just moments after he crossed the finish line, he proposed to his girlfriend, Natalie Cables.

“With a half mile left I was just thinking that I was going to have to turn myself inside out to beat him and he was probably thinking how he was going to propose to his girlfriend,” said Collins.

“A race is a race and I really wanted to win, but I was going to do this anyway,” said Dye, referring to his proposal. “Talking to her parents earlier this week and trying to keep this all a secret from her made me more nervous than competing in this race for sure. This was a great race. Ben and I rode side by side. He hit transition harder and got me in the run.” Amy Marsh, a three-time Ironman champion, was the first female to cross the finish line at Lake Pleasant Park this morning. She took the title with her winning time of 1:19:32.

Marsh, who won both Ironman China and Ironman Lake Placid in 2010, entered the shorter distance race after finishing 11th at the 2010 Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii a few weeks ago. The finish was disappointing to Marsh, who had hoped to place in the top 10 at Kona.

“I really wanted to finish in the top 10 and was disappointed, so my coach told me to go out and do a shorter distance race, have some fun and see what I could do with a sprint distance,” said Marsh.

Marsh proved she is just as strong on the short distance as she is on the long distances by taking the title today.

“I had a lot of fun,” said Marsh. “ It was a really good way to end my season. This was a great event. I hope to do more of these (Amica 19.7) races.”

Tenille Hoogland was the runner-up in the women’s pro division. She finished in 1:20:57.

A mix of professionals, amateurs and first-time competitors were among the hundreds of triathletes who competed at the Amica 19.7 Phoenix. The sprint distance was one of two triathlons was held at Lake Pleasant Park this morning. Today’s event also featured an international distance triathlon.

Chris Braden, 19, was the victor, finishing the 1.5K swim, a 34K bike ride and the 10K run in 1:53:03. A member of the Colorado University triathlon team, he owned the race finishing far ahead of runner-up Darren Young (2:05:01).

“This was the hardest 10K I have ever ran, but the race was smooth sailing for me,” said Braden. “I felt really good out there.”

The top female in the international distance was Adrienne Leblanc. She took the title in 2:24:54.

The Amica 19.7 Phoenix was part of the 2010 Amica 19.7 Triathlon Series, a sprint distance series of events held throughout the country. The Amica 19.7 Phoenix was the final event in the 10-race series. The schedule for the 2011 Amica 19.7 Triathlon Series will be released shortly.

For additional information, visit www.amicatriseries.com.

About Amica Mutual Insurance
Amica Mutual Insurance Company, the nation’s oldest mutual insurer of automobiles, was founded in 1907.  The company, with corporate headquarters in Lincoln, RI, is a national writer of automobile, homeowners, marine and personal umbrella liability insurance. Life coverage is available through Amica Life Insurance Company, a wholly owned subsidiary. Amica employs more than 3,200 people in 40 offices across the country. Visit Amica.com. 

 About Eident Sports Marketing
Eident Sports is a full-service event management and sports marketing company based in Providence, RI. Eident has several properties, ranging from turn-key sporting events to sponsorship sales alliances with key partners. For more information on Eident’s events and offerings, please visit www.eidentsports.com.