Tyler Butterfield claimed a debut victory as a professional triathlete with a surprise win in the ITU La Paz PATCO Pan American Championships in Argentina at the weekend.The Bermudian finished on top of the podium, clocking in a golden time of one hour, 53 minutes and 36 seconds.Out of the water, Butterfield’s 19:43 swim was 46-48 seconds slower than Canada’s Brent McMahon and around 30 seconds behind a large pack that included Kyle Jones, also of Canada, Jason Wilson of Barbados, Ben Collins of the USA and Crisanto Grajales of Mexico.Onto the bike, Butterfield rolled through the field and off the front of the race, riding a race-best 57:52 bike split that was between 90 seconds and two minutes faster than his toughest competitors and 24 seconds faster than super-cyclist and legendary South American competitor Oscar Galindez.Into T2 transition, Butterfield had a 1:08 advantage on the closest chase group and 1:16 on McMahon, the most dangerous runner in the field.Butterfield held on to the race lead crossing the finish line ahead of McMahon (1:54.07) and his compatriot Jones (1:54.30).Bermuda’s Flora Duffy was also in the field, and finished a strong 12th in the Women’s Elite Race in an overall time of (2:13.35).She completed the swim course in 19:37, finished the 1:06:25 and then clocked 45:23 in the run.Sarah-Anne Brault, the reigning Canadian National champion, blitzed the women’s field for her first elite Pan American title, having previously won the junior crown in 2008.Butterfield’s push for a place in this summer’s London Olympics was boosted last month by a large increase in sponsor support.He and his wife, Nikki, a top cyclist and triathlete, signed new deals with Tokio Millennium Reinsurance and Philadelphia Insurance Companies, worth more than they received this year.