Maddie Durkin and Dustin Luck secured spots at the Ironman 70.3 World Championship after impressive performances in Benton Harbor, Michigan.

The Bermudian duo headed Stateside to compete in the 70.3 Steelhead event, consisting of a 1.2-mile swim in Lake Michigan, followed by a 56-mile cycle through the rural and scenic roads of northern Berrien and western Van Buren counties, and half-marathon through Jean Klock Park.

Competing in the 40-44 age group, Durkin completed the swim in 32min 55sec, the bike discipline in 2hr 31min 58sec and finished off with 1:35:38 half-marathon for a total elapsed time of 4:47:08 and second place, just two minutes adrift of winner Susan Fanning.

Durkin’s performance also saw her finish fourth out of the total 365 females competing at the event and 74th out the 1,339 overall athletes.

She is now relishing a second appearance at the 70.3 World Championships, scheduled to take place in St George, Utah, on October 28.

“Overall very pleased with the result, second in my age group and fourth woman overall,” she said. “My goal was to race comfortably and not get hit with stomach and/or leg cramps, which I have battled with over the last few endurance races.

“I missed out on first place by a short margin, which could have easily been made up in transitions and the swim. With that said, one never knows in these long-haul events. I think every triathlete feels the ‘would have, could have, should have’ post-race.

“I’m excited to go to Worlds again in the [autumn]. Last year was my first experience at Worlds, also in Utah, and I struggled with severe stomach cramping.

“I’ve started dialling in on my nutrition and better understanding of my body’s individual needs, and am looking forward to some redemption.”

There was also a strong display from Luck in the 30-34 age group. He clocked 36:57 on the swim, 2:33:24 on the bike and finished the run in 1:35:36 for eleventh place in a total time of 4:51:40. Jacob Capin, of the US, won the division in 4:08:57 — good enough for third behind overall winner Bryan Mooney (4:03:02) and Eric Engel (4:07:52).

Luck’s efforts also saw him finish 88th out of the combined 925 male competitors and 96th overall.

“The race went really well,” he said. “My aim going into it was to push under five hours and I ended up beating that by a good margin.

“I was happy with the race. Eleventh in my age group and 98th overall was both within my goals, especially considering the level of competition in my age group.

“Getting the qualifying spot for Utah was very exciting and can’t wait to race at Worlds.”