Last year, the first-ever World
Triathlon elimination format event saw three Frenchmen power to the WTCS
Montreal podium. Dorian Coninx spearheaded the tricolor 1-2-3 along with
Vincent Luis and Leo Bergere in a sprint showdown that really put their mettle
to the test, their Grand Prix training ground clearly paying dividends to the
short-sharp style of racing. But a lot has happened since then, and it is
exactly in the unpredictability of this kind of racing that the magic lies.
This year the super-sprint action -
300m swim, 3-lap/7.2km bike and 2-lap/2km run - again crosses two days,
Friday’s two qualifier and repechage races ultimately seeing thirty athletes
confirmed for Saturday’s final. That final will be split into three
super-sprints, the last 10 across the line being cut at each finish until just
10 athletes remain for one last swim-bike-run for the medals.
Tactics will be key, conserving
energy without risking elimination. Recovery time between those final races is
short, approximately 7 minutes from the first across the line to the next start
horn. It’s going to be fast and furious and all on TriathlonLive.tv.
Race one
The opening qualifier sees 30 men hit
the start line, two of the top three last year included – Bergere and Coninx
joined by Pierre Le Corre in the chase to avoid the extra effort of the
repechage.
Bergere still seeks his first WTCS
gold but has been knocking at the door time and again, with bronze in Yokohama
and silver in Leeds so far this year. He leads the Maurice Lacroix rankings,
his form is undeniable, is Montreal going to be his race?
Along with those three, Alex Yee
(GBR) and Jelle Geens will be hoping that qualification is a formality but
taking nothing for granted. Yee was involved in a nasty collision that ended
his Leeds race two weeks ago and keeps Jonathan Brownlee from this weekend’s
start, and the Olympic double medallist will want to put that behind him with
his first taste of the Montreal format.
Marten Van Riel finished in fourth
last year and has proven his versatility across most distances in the past 12
months. That ability to adapt and push the limits could be key to his success
here, despite being just outside the top ten in both Yokohama and Leeds so far
in 2022.
Takumi Hojo and Kenji Nener lead the
line for Japan in a qualifier that is thick with talent and could throw up some
headaches for the higher-ranked athletes. Tayler Reid (NZL) and Richard Varga
(SVK) will be sure to press hard in the swim, Shachar Sagiv (ISR) and Samuel
Dickinson (GBR) on the bike and Jawad Abdelmoula (MAR) and Jacob Birtwhistle
(AUS) on the run. It’s going to get heated.
Race two
The three men involved in the sprint
for the World Cup medals in Huatulco just the weekend before line up in the
second qualifier – Genis Grau (ESP), Tyler Mislawchuk (CAN) and Miguel Hidalgo
(BRA). That effort and subsequent travel will be tested here, Mislawchuk still
testing the achilles he injured at Tokyo 2020, Hidalgo in the painful position
of finishing 11th in the penultimate race of last year’s finals to just miss
out on the chance to go for the medals.
New Zealand’s in-form Hayden Wilde
picked up his first WTCS gold in Leeds and, like Vincent Luis (FRA), is sure to
enjoy the intensity of super-sprint racing that could bring out the very best
in them both.
The Spanish pair of Antonio Serrat
Seoane and Roberto Sanchez Mantecon both have the explosive race power
necessary over the short distances, as Seoane proved in last year’s edition
with his fifth-placed finish overall.
Like Mislawchuk, Richard Murray – now
racing for Netherlands after his nationality switch – will need to be realistic
with his chances following recovery from surgery for the heart condition that
hit his Tokyo 2020 campaign. An impressive 7th place finish at WTCS Leeds
underlining the determination and grit that means you can never discount the
South African.
USA’s Seth Rider was the only man
involved in EVERY race possible here last year – qualifier, repechage, all
three finals AND the mixed relay – securing top 10 in the individual race and
relay gold in the toughest way, but showing what is possible.
WTCS Montreal
Men’s Qualification rounds
Friday 24 June, 2PM (local)
TriathlonLive.tv
ABOUT WORLD TRIATHLON
World Triathlon is the international
governing body for the Olympic and Paralympic sport of triathlon and all
related multisport disciplines around the world, including duathlon, aquathlon,
cross triathlon and winter triathlon. Triathlon made its Olympic debut in
Sydney 2000, with a third medal event, the Mixed Team Relay, added to the
programme at Tokyo 2020, while para triathlon was first added to the Paralympic
programme at Rio 2016. World Triathlon is proudly committed to the development
of the sport worldwide, with inclusion, equality, sustainability and
transparency at our core as we seek to help triathletes at all levels of the
sport to be extraordinary.
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