JOSH Ferris and Amelia Rose Watkinson braved Cebu’s scorching heat and came out victorious in the 2025 Ironman 70.3 Lapu-Lapu on Sunday, Aug. 10, at Mactan Newtown in Lapu-Lapu City.
Ferris finished first in the Pro Men’s division with a time of 3:49:11.
“I’ve raced all over the world and yet this was amazing. The experience was second to none. That crowd was insane. The course flying over CCLEX and seeing everyone on the course cheering on you was really good — it was really amazing,” said the Australian triathlete.
Knowing that the run was his weakness, Ferris built a sizeable lead in the swim and bike parts of the race. He was the first to get out of the water with a swim time of 21:38 and also finished first in the bike leg with a 2:02:16 clocking.
“About halfway through the block I knew that if I just stuck to it that I had a very good chance,” said Ferris. “But I just kept telling myself to stay in the moment. It’s so easy to get ahead of yourself in these races. It’s just a real race of your own ability out there.”
“I just had to stay super conservative on that block. I rode really well but I really stayed within myself because I’m still coming back from running and I knew that the back end of that run would really hurt me — and it did. So, I hung on and I’m really happy,” he added.
Despite a strong run, world No. 65 Mike Phillips of New Zealand trailed Ferris by three minutes and 30 seconds, taking second place in 3:52:41. Fellow Kiwi Sam Osborne, last year’s runner-up, wound up third with a time of 4:04:06.
Watkinson, on the other hand, dominated the Pro Women’s division by crossing the finish line in 4:14:22.
Watkinson, who won the Ironman Cebu race in 2017, said the heat was expected to be a major factor, and staying cool throughout the race was key to her strategy.
“I knew that obviously the heat was going to be a challenge, a challenge for all of us,” said Watkinson, who is also from New Zealand. “I guess keeping cool was the key, trying not to miss the aide stations. I was aware that some of the younger girls would have a good run leg. So the goal was really to push the bike and come up with a big lead. So that I could turn around the first two thirds solid and back off a little bit and conserve the heat stress. I was able to do that to the point that I just wanted to get to the finish line.”
“That was an amazing atmosphere out there. The kids have so much enthusiasm. It’s actually quite a unique atmosphere and a special element of racing in the Philippines,” the Kiwi lady’s champion further stated.
Watkinson had a slow start and was the fourth woman pro to finish the swim leg with a 26:24 time. She, however, made up for it with a dominant bike performance.
She was 10 minutes ahead of her closest competitor, Australian Sophie Malowiecki, who finished in 4:24:42.
Another Kiwi, Samantha Kingsford settled for third with a time of 4:27:45.