There have been eight races in the ITU World Cup Triathlon circuit.

And, after yesterday's stop here, eight different winners.

Overcoming oppressive mid-day heat, Phillipe Fattori became the latest winner -- and the third different one in the three years Bermuda have hosted an event -- by outsprinting Greg Welch on the final lap to pick up the $10,000 first prize.

In contrast to Emma Carney's almost laughable domination of the women's side, the men, like a stable full of thoroughbreds, are simply too close to call.

Yesterday's race was won by a 30-year-old Frenchman ranked 15th in the world; a guy who's been limping around with an Achilles injury for the past month and whose last win came almost exactly one year ago, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

How does he explain it? "The season's so long,'' Fattori said in halting English. "Athletes peak at different times. Sometimes you're strong, other times you're not so strong.'' No need to say which category Fattori fell into yesterday.

Never mind that his winning time of one hour, 55 minutes and 25 seconds came over a field that was lacking six of the world's top ten-ranked triathletes.

That was offset by the presence of Welch, like Carney one of the sport's genuine superstars.

Welch is the only person to capture triathlon's Grand Slam (wins in all four distances at the world championships -- triathlon, duathlon, long distance and Ironman) and whose low ITU ranking (30th) is due to the fact he's only appeared in three races this year.

The decision to come to Bermuda came down to one thing: "Heat,'' he said.

Besides, Welch quickly added: "Who wouldn't want to come here?'' Welch, a former Hawaii Ironman champion, is Australian, which only figures.

World numbers one (Chris McCormack) and two (Greg Bennett) are also from Down Under and together, the three of them embarked on the 10K run, quickly chasing down Switzerland's Peter Alder.

Fattori wins with last lap surge From Page 23 Fattori? He was fifth, more concerned about his wonky ankle than he was with the three Aussies.

"I was very worried,'' he said of the Achilles that had limited him to just five training sessions -- and no sprint work -- since last month's French championships. "I just decided to go at my own pace.'' Fortunately the pace was conservative, thanks to humid conditions that left the 42 remaining competitors with little alternative. "Go out too fast in this heat and you're just going to blow,'' Welch would say later.

With two laps left, Fattori had slipped between Welch and McCormack and when Welch picked it up a bit, McCormack slid back into third -- where he stayed.

Fattori, though, remained stuck on Welch's right shoulder as if on a string, each plotting their move and trying to anticipate the other's.

Welch knew where he was going to make his attack -- a slight rise on Front Street, about 700 metres from the finish line -- and was getting ready to set it up when Fattori suddenly sprinted past him a half-kilometre sooner.

"At that stage, I wasn't prepared to go,'' said Welch, who finished ten seconds back in 1:55:35. "One burst is all it was . .. I knew I didn't have enough to catch him.'' Fattori had been planning the move for the previous two laps and when he came to the slight descent, didn't hesitate.

"I wanted to make my break once, just once,'' he said. "because I knew if I missed it would be very terrible for me.

"This is sport. You have to try something if you want to win; you can't always sit and wait.'' Alder made his move considerably earlier but enjoyed poorer results. Unranked on the ITU circuit, Alder was only 15th out of the water -- Welch was third and Fattori 17th -- but with a clocking of 1:01:28 on the bike roared into the lead by 20 seconds. No matter; he was 15th at the end.

Defending champion Dimitry Gaag was a no show, stuck in Europe because he couldn't get a visa in time from the Kazakhstan Triathlon Federation, ITU managing director Mike Gilmore said.

"It's not easy coming out of the former Soviet Union even in these times,'' said Gilmore.

Last year, Gaag snuck into the race at the last second, despite arriving on the Island without a return ticket.

The only Bermuda triathlete entered was Dave Cash. A strong swimmer, he was 42nd out of the water and was yanked out of the race after being passed on the third cycle lap.

CELEBRATION -- Frenchman Philippe Fattori shares his victory in yesterday's World Cup triathlon by spraying the Front Street crowd with champagne.

ROUNDING THE BEND -- Australia's Greg Bennett heads a pack of cyclists, including countrymen Greg Welch (71) and Chris McCormack (9). Welch finished second, McCormack third and Bennett fifth.