The spa town
of Karlovy Vary in the Bohemia region of Czech Republic represents a tough
standard-distance challenge. A technical 1.5km swim in Rolava Lake then a
two-part bike, from there into the town centre and 7 x 6.5km testing laps over
cobbles, tarmac, hills and fast turns, before culminating in a 4-lap run to
round off the action.
Last year it
was Vendula Frintova (CZE) and Samuel Dickinson (GBR) who reigned supreme. This
year, the Czech number one returns to defend her title, but with the World
Triathlon blue carpet only rolled out a week ago for the first time in 6
months, competition for the starting spots has rarely been fiercer. Brand new
and past World Champions, multiple WTS and World Cup winners and some of the
brightest young talents will line up on Sunday, and you can watch all the
action only on TriathlonLIVE.tv.
Men’s Race
10AM Local
Time (CEST)
The Elite
Men are first out onto the course on Sunday, and newly crowned World Champion
Vincent Luis will again be sporting the number one cap after another imperious
display in Hamburg saw the Frenchman defend his 2019 title in fine style.
Luis barely
put a foot wrong, while the man he held off for the win, Portugal’s Vasco
Vilaça, was also a revelation, producing a magnificent 5km run to secure silver
that marked the 20-year-old’s card as a name to watch.
Richard
Murray was never far from the mix a week ago either, and the South African
might find themselves at home on the kind of course that will demand every
ounce of trademark grit that he has to spare.
Equally,
Kristian Blummenfelt’s trademark bike power was very much on display across the
Hamburg weekend and he will relish the Karlovy Vary hills and descents. Norway
teammate Gustav Iden looked in great form as he put together an excellent run,
while Casper Stornes will want to bounce back from the disappointment of an
early finish after wetsuit issues in T1.
Belgium’s Jelle
Geens gave everything he had to try and haul in Luis over the 5km, delivering
the third fastest run split of the day to underline his medal potential if he
can exit T2 in touch with the leaders. Morgan Pearson (USA) was second fastest
over 5km and, along with Matthew McElroy, could be among those in contention
for the medals.
Jan Volar
will be looking to finally put in a top 20 performance on home turf, while the
bike skills of Israel’s Shachar Sagiv could make a big difference on the race
outcome. Hungary’s Bence Bicsak and Csongor Lehmann are likely to feature after
a string of good form and results, and Jorik van Egdom (NED) had a superb
seventh place here last year that will see him going in full of confidence.
For the full
men’s start list click here.
https://www.triathlon.org/events/start_list/2020_karlovy_vary_itu_triathlon_world_cup/353180
Women’s Race
3PM Local
Time (CEST)
Adding to
the pre-race intrigue is the fact that, out of a glittering selection of top 10
women starters, only Frintova and Japan’s Ai Ueda have previous experience of
this Karlovy course.
Imperious
over 5km a week ago in Hamburg, the new World Champion Georgia Taylor-Brown
will be ready for the next chance to show she has what it takes to maintain her
place on top of the world. Arriving by road with teammate Jessica Learmonth
from Germany, the British duo will have had plenty of time to check out the
terrain and prepare for their next assault on an international podium.
Second in
Hamburg and ready to conquer the challenging bike segment, Flora Duffy (BER)
has looked in excellent form since returning to racing from injury at last
year’s Tokyo Test Event. She may have been unable to close the gap after
Taylor-Brown pulled away on a flat 5km in Germany, but the Karlovy course is a
very different proposition.
The
demanding standard-distance set up could be just the sort of stage for Katie
Zaferes to shine on after the 2019 World Champion missed out on a podium in
Germany with transition troubles leaving her unable to catch the front-runners
out of T2. A bronze medallist in Hamburg, Laura Lindemann (GER) may not have the
experience of some of the names in the top 10, but certainly has the results to
prove she can once again be among the challengers.
Netherlands’
Rachel Klamer and Brazil swim-specialist Vittoria Lopes complete a
talent-filled top 10, while further down the start list there is no shortage of
podium potential. Spain’s Miriam Casillas Garcia, Belgian Valerie Barthelemy
and Lisa Tertsch of Germany all have recent World Cup medals to their name,
Natalie van Coevorden (AUS), Yuliya Yelistratova (UKR) and Lotte Miller (NOR)
all make the journey from Germany to the Czech Republic.
Check the full women’s start list here.
World
Triatlon Online Media Centre
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