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After silver in Samarkand and then again at the European Championships last month, Frenchman Yanis Seguin was not to be denied on Saturday afternoon as he took the tape in Rome for a stylish debut World Cup win.

In a sprint-distance race that saw eight athletes unable to finish in tough conditions, it all came down to a shootout between Seguin and Luke Willian, the Australian currently standing fifth in the World Championship chase. Just as it looked like the Australian had found the edge, it was Seguin who discovered the decisive depths of power to dig into, clocking a 14m23s time over the 5km to take the tape by three seconds, compatriot Baptiste Passemard pulling clear late on to earn bronze.

“It was a wonderful race for me,” said a smiling Seguin afterwards. “It was a bit dangerous because of the rain, but it was cool to do a race like this, in which we needed to take some risks. I was a bit behind to catch the first pack but we did a good job to close the gap and then tried to do some relays to push as hard as we could. For the run it was very hard, especially the first kilometre, but at the end of the second lap I just pushed really hard on the downhill and tried to keep the momentum until the end.”

Hobor and Dey dial the swim

With the top-ranked athletes all lining up to the right for the non-wetsuit swim, it was the young Hungarian Zalan Hobor and GB’s Marcus Dey searing through the middle of the field to take to the front, cruising around the diamond-shape course to emerge from the 750m first segment with daylight behind them.

The young Italian talent Pietro Giovannini was right there too, Tayler Reid (NZL), Kayotaro Yoshikawa (JPN), Mitch Kolkman (NED) and Valentin Morlec (FRA) all looking to close up a small gap ahead over the awkward 250m run to transition.

Adrien Briffod and Aurelien Jem stumbled with their bikes and lost a little ground on the likes of Henry Graf (GER) and Willian as they caught onto the front riders.

Bike packs shuffle as riders drop

The earlier rain had left the surface slippery and Kolkman was the first victim, setting his race back and dropping into the last pack after just one lap. The front riders were well spread out, too, as they took extra caution on the corners, Spaniard Kevin Vinuela off the back off the group.

It was a manageable 17 seconds to the Adrien Briffod-driven chasers after two laps, but the Swiss saw his race end with a second crash as he climbed for the fourth lap, so at the bell there were 17 athletes following Graf through transition, Paul Georgenthum (FRA) with Callum McClusky (AUS) at the front of chasers looking to keep the gap under 30s.

It was Graf and another young Italian Euan Denigro who rolled the dice over the closing stages of the bike and carved out a useful 10 second advantage, only for the home favourite to lose time as he struggled into his shoes, leaving Graf all alone up top, Passemard, Hobor and Reid all out with 10s to make up on the young german star.

Series contender and Seguin into battle

Willian was then straight onto the gas and into second, slowly reeling in Graf as Simon Westermann became the first of the leaders to fade.

And at the bell it was Willian asking all the questions, looking comfortable up front with Reid, Seguin and Graf holding on.

Then, just as they came back along the lake and towards the climb through the park, Seguin made one final burst that Willian just couldn’t cover. Up the hill the gap went out and with a glance back, Seguin knew his first gold was safe. Willian held on to secure silver ahead of Passemard, Graf with an excellent fourth ahead of Reid, Spain’s Genis Grau crossing the line ahead of Westermann.

What they said

Luke Willian
“Yanis was very impressive today. He came past with 1500 meters to go and I just couldn’t pass him. The rain had an impact, I tried to stay warm and safe, and then the sun came out and it felt better. It is good to head to the Championship Finals in this form. I’m happy with my race today, now time to recover!”

Baptiste Passemard
“It’s my first World Cup podium and I am very happy. It was really fun today. I took the lead after the third lap of the run, but then Luke Willian pushed, and Yanis, and I just stayed focus on my pace so that I could finish in a good position.”

There was sunshine, rain, crashes and slips in Rome on Saturday morning, but out of chaos came the cool head of Germany’s Nina Eim, securing her second successive World Cup gold in the Italian capital.

Caution was key over the 20km bike, athletes coming off with alarming regularity, but after Eim and the chasers closed the gap on the leaders on lap three, there was something inevitable about the result. Alissa Konig of Switzerland established herself as Eim’s main threat by the midway point of the 5km run, only for the German to pull clear, Belgium’s Jolien Vermeylen hanging tough for an excellent bronze.

“I was not in control until the very end, but my sprint was better than last year,” said a happy Nina Eim after the race. “I had a good swim, worked hard in the first few laps to catch the girls up front, but I saw soo many girls crashing. So I rode carefully, especially in the corners. On the run I didn’t feel great in the first lap but I increased my speed to the end.

I liked the conditions and running in the rain, even riding, though the road was very slippery and dangerous in the corners, but i’m happy that I stayed on my bike and that every girl that crashed is okay. My plan was to run in comfort the first lap and then push harder on the second… the gap opened (with Alissa)... and i’m happy with the fact that I didn’t have to sprint in the last metres!”

Seregni and Vermeylen set the early pace

Eim lined up next to Bianca Seregni (ITA) and Tanja Neubert (GER) on the far right of the pontoon, Emma Jeffcoat (AUS) and Eva Goodison (NZL) far left as the cloud cover improved the line of sight, causing the first half of the swim to split up less than the previous year.

Seregni was soon out at the front, though, Vermeylen having a great leg just off the heels with Jeffcoat, GB’s Olivia Mathias and Therese Feuersinger (AUT).

It was Vermeylen who negotiated the 250m run to the bike fastest and was away, Poland’s in-form Roksana Slupek, Marta Kropko (HUN), Ainsley Thorpe (NZL) and Mathias out together with a 36 second gap to Eim, Nora Gmur (SUI) and Marlene Gomez-Goggel (GER) followed by a big pack.

Soon the front six were working together, Thorpe doing well to catch on, but soon the rain took its toll. She and Slupek went down just before the first climb, leaving Vermeylen and Seregni having to take evasive action and needing work to get back to Mathias, Kropko and Jeffcoat.

Conditions take their toll

At the end of an eventful first lap, 15 chasers were working to get onto leaders, now again including Seregni, Vermeylen yoyo-ing off the front group as chasers got closer after two laps. Gmur then came down and a group of 17 formed up front as the leaders rhythm was shaken by the conditions, Feuersinger and Brea Roderick’s races over early too.

Eim was well set with Mathias and home favourite Constanza Arpinelli, but out of T2 it was Vermeylen the fastest, Kropko with Verena Steinhauser, Alissa Konig and Robin Driejling going well as Jeffcoat stumbled into transition.

Konig and Eim seize the moment

Eim was 5s back onto the but quickly hit the front with Konig and Vermeylen, Mathias into 4th before the front three streaked away.

At the bell they had 6 seconds to the now-flying Nicole Van Der Kaay, Steinhauser and Mathias just off her, but just when it looked like the Kiwi could catch the leaders, a surge put an end to her hopes.

Eim drove home confidently down the long straight to leave Konig chasing shadows, the Swiss claiming her first World Cup podium with silver and a strong bronze for Vermeylen, Van Der Kaay crossed in fourth ahead of Verena Steinhauser and Olivia Mathias in sixth.

A lot has happened in the world of triathlon over the 12 months since Nina Eim won the inaugural World Triathlon Cup Rome. Top of that list for the German star was a 12th place finish at the Olympic Games, and she will wear the number one on Saturday in her first race since Paris 2024 on a course she now knows and loves.

It was a thrilling finale between Eim and teammate Marlene Gomez Goggel at the first Rome World Cup after they reeled in Jolien Vermeylen’s bold break, but Eim will want a better 750m swim this time around to take the pressure off on the bike.

A 250m run into transition precedes the rolling 20km bike, each of the 5 laps including a 5% climb, before a 5km run to the tape in the Italian capital. You can watch it all play out over on TriathlonLive.tv from 9:30am on Saturday 5 October.

Past performers prepare to podium

With three of last year’s top four returning to Rome, the heat will be on in the race for gold. Swimming into the sun made sighting tricky 12 months ago, leaving Nina Eim with a minute deficit to the front after just 750m in the water.

That meant she and Marlene Gomez-Goggel had work to do cover the gap on the bike, which they managed with legs to spare, even after Jolien Vermeylen (BEL) had taken off out of T2 and ramped up the pressure before getting passed over the closing stages.

That awkward swim was spearheaded by Bianca Seregni who also returns with unfinished business on home turf after coming off her bike on the second lap and recovering to finish 13th. She will also have the impressive Therese Feuersinger (AUT) to work with in the water, two athletes responsible for some of the biggest leads out of the swim we have seen in recent World Cup seasons.

Kiwis on the charge

There will be a strong New Zealand contingent lining up as Ainsley Thorpe, Nicole Van Der Kaay, Brea Roderick and Eva Goodison look to deliver a little late season surge of momentum. U23 world title hope Roderick had a strong showing in Karlovy Vary and will have the podium in her sights ahead of a big Championship Finals. 

Another potential swim leader arrives in the form of Olivia Mathias, the Brit having scooped silver in Valencia in September after exiting the water on the heels of Emma Jeffcoat. The Australian herself will have designs on the podium after taking 7th three weeks ago in Spain.

Roksana Slupek’s pre-Games form was running hot, taking the Polish talent all the way to an Olympic debut and 13th-place finish. A strong swim-biker and fearless on the run, her Chengdu bronze behind Julie Derron and Tilda Mansson underlined just how far she has come in 2024. A debut World Cup gold would be the next big step forward.

Full start list available here.

After hosting a thrilling debut on the circuit 12 months ago, the blue carpet will be rolled out again in Italy’s iconic capital for the men’s 2024 Rome World Cup on Saturday 5 October.

It was Vasco Vilaça who made waves over the sprint-distance course last year. This time around, it will be an Australian wearing the number one as Luke Willian spearheads a talented field with many of the athletes looking for a strong hit out before the Championship Finals in two weeks’ time.

A 750m swim exits to the northern edge of the Lago dell’EUR and into a 250m uphill run through the park to transition. Frome there, it’s a technical 5-lap bike, each loop with a grinding 400m climb to test the legs, before a 5km run to the tape. Watch it all unfold from midday local time, on TriathlonLive.tv.

If anyone can, it’s Willian

Fifth in the Championship Series, World Cup gold in Wollongong followed by a first Series medal in Yokohama, Luke Willian arrives hot off the plane from WTCS Weihai to pick up the number one decal this weekend.

He may have been the third fastest Aussie runner in Wollongong behind Callum McClusky and Jake Birtwhistle, but winning the gold confirmed the 27-year-old as a great all-rounder, and he will be using the race as a post-China shake out before mounting his challenge for a first overall Series podium in Torremolinos.

Expect Willian to emerge from the lake right on the feet of New Zealand’s irrepressible Tayler Reid, Canadian Aiden Longcroft-Harris and Frenchman Valentin Morlec, all of them torpedoes likely to be stretching the field through the water.

Bike versus run power for the battle of Rome

That 250m run to T1 could make or break some of the athletes’ efforts to hit the front pack, the likes of Simon Westermann (SUI) and Henry Graf (GER) certain to be straight onto the gas to try and put some daylight into the fastest runners, including the rising French duo of European Championship silver medallist Yanis Seguin and Aurelien Jem.

Spain’s Kevin Tarek Vinuela Gonzalez showed his prowess last month over the tough Karlovy Vary course to take bronze, and the 2024 Aquathlon World Champion will surely be pushing the pace right from the start horn.

A strong Italian delegation includes the ever-dangerous Gianluca Pozzatti and Nicola Azzano hoping to give the Italian crowds more to cheer than this time last year when Alessio Crociani’s 10th place was the hosts best. Talented youngsters Euan De Nigro and Pietro Giovannini will want to seize their moment in the spotlight, the latter making his World Cup debut.

The 2024 World Triathlon Championship Finals head to Torremolinos on 17-20 October, and initiatives put in place surrounding the event’s suppliers, the banning of single-use plastics, accessibility and carbon neutrality, have all helped towards the event being awarded the World Triathlon Gold Certification for Sustainability.

The four-day event will see World Championship racing at the elite, U23, Junior, Para and Age-Group level. Providing the competition circuits with drinking fountains for water consumption, for age-group athletes, as well as for volunteers and staff and the use of reusable cups will save more than 65,000 single-use plastic bottles from being used, thanks to the collaboration with the Torremolinos City Council and Aguas de Torremolinos.

The award underlines the progress made since the 2023 Championship Finals in Pontevedra, where silver was achieved, and matches the gold that was awarded to the Multisport World Championships Ibiza last year.

WTCS Hamburg, WTCS Yokohama and WTPS Swansea are the other events this year to have achieved the highest level of certification.

“It is extremely gratifying to see the importance being placed on sustainability at our biggest events as World Triathlon continues to work to mitigate our impact on the environment,” said Marisol Casado, World Triathlon President and IOC member.

“We are seeing our LOCs come up with innovative solutions that we hope will become the norm across our events as the practices are first put into place, and then shared with other organisers. Congratulations to the team on their hard work ahead of this year’s Championship Finals Torremolinos-Andalucia, which will be our most sustainable finals yet.”

Watch all the 2024 World Triathlon Championship Finals action on TriathlonLive.tv

Save for one tiny, insignificant problem, the World Triathlon Championship Series has ignited at the perfect moment. WTCS Weihai was the final opportunity for the athletes of the 2024 Series to improve their points total ahead of the season finale in Torremolinos-Andalucia and several athletes seized that chance with both hands. As a result, there have been several eye-catching shifts in the rankings with multiple players moving within striking range of a place on the overall podium. The small problem for the men’s field? Alex Yee’s quest for perfection is showing no signs of slowing down.

As a reminder, each athlete’s three best scores across WTCS events, the Paris Olympic Games and their Continental Championships are aggregated to give their current total. Having been worth up to 1000 points, Weihai was among the most important races of the season so far. A win at the WTCS Final, though, will be worth 1250 points, creating space for even more changes to come. Read on to find out how the racing in Weihai influenced the top of the men’s and women’s standings before we arrive at the Series endgame in three weeks’ time.

The Men’s Series Rankings

How do you solve a problem like Alex? Unbeaten in the Series this year and the men’s individual Olympic champion, Alex Yee’s run has proved a weapon too great for any of his rivals to match this year. In Weihai, he produced perhaps the most complete performance of his career to continue his perfect 2024 record. With three wins and the maximum available 3000 points to his name, he has soared to the top of the men’s standings with no one else in sight. Of course, everything could go wrong for him at the Series Final and he will need to look no further than the 2023 Final in Pontevedra for a cautionary tale. However, Yee’s challenge right now does not appear to be whether he can claim a maiden world title. It is whether he can win the Final too and end his 2024 season with a flawless record.

A silver medal for Leo Bergere in Weihai has similarly guided him up the rankings. The Frenchman stood 5th in the rankings prior to the race, two places behind Yee, and has now moved up to 2nd overall. Having finished 3rd in Paris and 4th in Yokohama, the 2022 world champion has been a consistent force throughout this campaign. However, his 2572.08 points put him quite a way back of Yee and his focus at the WTCS Final may be on defending his newly-acquired position.

The great rivalry between Yee and Hayden Wilde never really got going in Weihai as the latter spent much of the bike in the chase pack and slumped to 7th place. His result stands as his third score of the season, after two silver medals, and leaves him on 2476.40 points. Wilde thus has Bergere within his sights. A first world title for the New Zealander, however, seems a remote possibility right now. WTCS Weihai was also not the day Matthew Hauser would have envisioned. Having entered the race as the Series leader, the Australian could only muster 19th place. He therefore failed to improve upon his tally of 2301.40 points and dropped to 4th overall.

There was greater joy elsewhere in the Australian camp. Luke Willian finished 6th in what matched his second best performance ever in the Series (after claiming a maiden medal earlier this year). The handy bump in points that followed has left him on 2112.24 points and a repeat of Weihai could see him overtake his esteemed compatriot, Hauser. Willian’s result also edged him past Pierre Le Corre, who finished 10th in Weihai. As Le Corre did not improve upon his tally of 2110.36 points, he slots behind Willian in 6th place overall.

Altogether, then, Yee looks to be the runaway favourite to claim this year’s world title. Any combination of two from five men, though, could join him on the final Series podium with a big performance in Torremolinos.

The Women’s Series Rankings

The women’s race at WTCS Weihai could hardly have balanced the season climax up any more deliciously. A first ever WTCS win for Lisa Tertsch was exactly the result she needed to go alongside her silver medals in Cagliari and Hamburg. At the same time, Beth Potter claimed the silver medal after winning three bronze medals already. Tertsch and Potter have therefore scythed across the gap to the Series leader, Cassandre Beaugrand, and passed Emma Lombardi for good measure.

Beaugrand’s total of 2750 points from her wins in Cagliari, Hamburg and Paris mark her out as the clear leader. Note, Hamburg was a sprint distance event as thus was worth 750 points for a win. While Beaugrand has enjoyed the same unbeaten campaign as Yee, then, she has not maximised her possible points. Potter now hovers behind her with 2636.26 points while Tertsch’s number stands at 2618.75. Although beating Beaugrand has seemed close to impossible at the biggest events of 2024, Potter and Tertsch have given themselves every chance of denying the French athlete the Series crown.

Having opted against racing in Weihai, Emma Lombardi has slipped to 4th overall. Finishes of 3rd in Yokohama and 4th in both Cagliari and Paris have earned her 2438.53 points. Considering the gap to the three women ahead and that each have won three medals this year, Lombardi faces a tall task indeed to match the overall podium finish she achieved in the 2023 season.

Meanwhile, a 3rd place finish for Georgia Taylor-Brown in Weihai has moved her up to 5th overall with 2210.01 points. Hers was a first medal in the Series since Cagliari in May 2023. Like Lombardi, Taylor-Brown faces a challenge to rise onto the overall podium, but it is by no means impossible, especially if she recaptures the form that took her to the 2020 world title, Olympic silver in Tokyo, and silver at the 2022 WTCS Final.

The countdown has therefore begun until the WTCS Final arrives and if one thing can be taken from the 2022 and 2023 Finals it is that a last dramatic twist may yet be in store. Stay up to date with all the latest developments across all World Triathlon channels.

Taylor Knibb became Ibiza T100 Triathlon Champion, taking her second T100 victory from two race starts to underline her once-in-a-generation talent among an incredibly strong women’s pro field.
While Knibb was a class apart, Olympic silver medallist, Julie Derron, showed she could be the one to challenge the American, with a strong second-place finish marred by a 1min drafting penalty on the bike. The last spot on the podium was secured by breakthrough Miami T100 Triathlon winner India Lee, who overcame the disappointment of a weekend before in Nice to show her class in Ibiza.

Speaking at the finish Knibb said: “You always want to execute the best of your ability on any given day and you wanna do the best you can on any given day so each race counts.” On the next race in Lake Las Vegas, she added with a smile: “Yes I am excited to race at home with a less than 2-hour flight.”

T100 first-timer, Julie Derron, said: “I am super happy, I didn’t know what to expect. It was pretty tough to get back into the swing of things after the Olympics and I am super pleased I had a good day out there.”

India Lee spoke about coming back from the struggles that saw her DNF the previous weekend at the IM world champs in Nice: “I was so motivated to prove that I had put in all the work for this week and I didn’t want it to be a waste of time so to pull off a solid result I am really chuffed with.”

How It Unfolded

As the pro women dived into the sea off Ibiza’s beautiful Figueretas Beach, Olympic power in the front swim pack came from the USA’s Taylor Spivey and 2020 Olympic Champion Flora Duffy along with Miami T100 winner India Lee and Sara Perez Sala, followed by San Francisco T100 Champion Taylor Knibb.

Spivey was first out the water but before long – and as all pundits predicted – it was Taylor Knibb who took charge, extending her lead throughout the 80km bike course while India Lee established herself in clear 2nd place.

The lead of the chase group was shared between Olympic silver medallist Julie Derron and 3-time Canadian Time Trial Champion Paula Findlay and Imogen Simmonds.

55km in, Derron was handed a 1-minute penalty for drafting, which the Swiss athlete had to serve at the next penalty tent. Meanwhile, multiple T100 Champion Ashleigh Gentle made it inside the top 10.

By the end of the bike, Knibb had a lead of 3:13 to Lee, who in turn earned an advantage of 2mins to Simmonds, Byram, Derron and Findlay.

Such was Knibb’s lead that by the time Gentle came off the bike 10-minutes back, Knibb had already lapped her fellow T100 Champion.

Meanwhile, Derron showed the foot speed that earned her an Olympic Silver medal. As the fastest on the course, the Swiss talent was quickly into 3rd and munching through her deficit to Lee to take 2nd by the halfway mark in the 18km run.

From there Derron continued to make up time on Knibb, but the top step of the podium seemed out of reach. Gentle, having un-lapped herself was blitzing through the field, moving up from 9th out of T2 to 4th place.

Knibb’s victory was assured, however, the US superstar taking two T100 victories from two starts this year, she crossed the line in 03:30:03 to earn 35 points and $25,000. She now sits in 3rd in the T100 Standings after only 2 races.

Julie Derron claimed second on debut with the day’s fastest bike split (01:00:48), earning 28 points and $16,000.

India Lee held strong to round out the podium, adding 25 points to her tally, taking home $12,000 and moving to 3rd in the T100 standings.

Gentle, 4th in Ibiza, maintains her grip on top of the T100 Standings, but, like Lee, has a full compliment of scoring races to her name. Meanwhile, ever-consistent Paula Findlay secured 5th place and is 6th in the T100 Standing.

Martin Van Riel proved he truly is the real deal in becoming the Ibiza T100 Triathlon Champion and putting himself in pole position to become the inaugural T100 Champion with just two races to go. The Belgian star and fan favourite is the first male athlete to become a two-time T100 champion, by breaking away from London T100 Champion Sam Laidlow in the closing stages of a sun-soaked run around Ibiza Old Town.

After the race, Van Riel said: “It was my biggest goal before this year to become the first T100 Triathlon World Champion and I am all in for it. If I do my best for every single race I am on the line and if I keep getting good results like this I’ll be very close.”

Asked why he’s so suited to the 100km distance, Van Riel said: “I have the perfect mix between speed and endurance. Naturally I’m quite a fast guy, but I still have endurance. So I’m the best of both worlds. For now, this format is perfect for me.”

With two races to go, in Lake Las Vegas and then Dubai for the T100 World Championship Final, it will be fascinating to see if anyone can beat him.

French star Laidlow said: “The fuel on my fire is I want to be the best triathlete in the world, and it is a slow process to get there. Today I lost not only to an amazing athlete but a great guy, he is just phenomenal.”

Mika Noodt was third to register his first T100 podium finish. The German had been targeting this race and said: “I was 6th in Singapore and 5th in San Francisco so I was hoping for an improvement and was super glad I managed it.” Second in Lake Las Vegas where the tour moves next perhaps?

Britain’s Alistair Brownlee was fourth, after losing a minute to the first drafting penalty in a T100 race, but had no complaints when asked about it afterwards: “At 50km I got a drafting penalty and it was fair enough to be honest. I’d rolled into the draft zone and the light came on and I didn’t come out of it quick enough. It was a fair decision and I then rode the last lap on my own and ran just trying to catch people – and I was pleased to feel good right to the finish.”

How It Played Out

Using Olympic-honed speed, Marten Van Riel surged to the front of the swim in the clear blue waters off Figueretas Beach as Ibiza’s famous nightlife made way for the world’s best triathletes. The Belgian led through the half-way Aussie exit at 1km and went on to leave the water in first place in 24:46.

Van Riel, the San Francisco T100 Champion was joined by London T100 Champion Laidlow and went straight on at a roundabout letting the German pairing of Rico Bogen and Fred Funk slip past to take the lead. Before long, Laidlow was back at the front with Funk in second, Bogen, Van Riel, Alistair Brownlee and Mika Noodt in close proximity.

As the bike wore on, Funk and Laidlow traded turns while Alistair Brownlee was given a 1-minute penalty for drafting. After serving his time in the sin-bin, the double Olympic Champion was back to 6th place and off the back of the front group in no-man’s land.

First in and out of T2, Bogen was quickly in the lead on the run with Van Riel and Laidlow in hot pursuit. Laidlow stormed into the lead, only Van Riel able to match the Frenchman’s pace as Bogen was dropped.

From there, the two pushed on, Laidlow in the front for the majority, making time on the rest while Noodt moved up into the last podium spot by the half-way mark of the 18km run while Brownlee was in 4th.

With 3.3km to go, Van Riel made a long attack, pushing to 94% of his maximum heart rate to break the elastic to Laidlow.

In what Frodeno described as “a masterpiece of a performance”, Van Riel crossed the line to assert himself as the first men’s T100 repeat champion and the best T100 athlete in the roster. He took the tape in 03:11:36 after a 57:45 run. Meanwhile, Noodt stayed strong for 3rd place with Brownlee claiming 4th and Funk 5th.

Van Riel takes 35 points and $25,000, also moving up into 4th in the T100 Standings.

Laidlow earned 28 points and $16,000, solidifying his 3rd place in the standings by replacing his 0-point DNF from Singapore T100.

Noodt took 25 points, $12,000 and now sits 7th in the standings.

WTCS Weihai could hardly have been more different to the race that preceded it in the Series. Whereas Hamburg has been a staple of the competition for well over a decade and offers a flat and rapid sprint distance course, Weihai stepped up to host a Series event for the first time and served a brutal, hilly standard distance affair. For all the differences between the two races, one crucial point in common was the fantastic action they provided.

In this article, we delve into five major talking points from WTCS Weihai. From the completeness of the race winners’ displays to the rising talents that made a big impression, and to the athlete that continued a bonkers season, there was plenty to digest.

Their most complete performances

That Alex Yee and Lisa Tertsch won the men’s and women’s events in Weihai was not necessarily the main takeaway. Rather, it was how they earned their gold medals. Yee, the man in the golden helmet, enjoyed one of the best swims of his career, exiting only 8 seconds in arrears of the leader, Matthew Hauser, and in shared 9th place out of the water. For reference, across standard distance Series races in 2023 and 2024 (including the Olympic Games), Yee has lost 24 seconds on average to the fastest swimmer.

After a statement swim, Yee stamped his authority on the bike. On the sixth lap of eight, he broke away with Leo Bergere and Jack Willis. We have seen Bergere make such mini-breaks before; it was a hallmark of his in the 2023 season in particular. Yee’s cycling prowess, though, has tended to be a little more on the subtle side, never quite drawing the same plaudits as some of his rivals or his run. Although the trio were eventually reeled in by the lead pack, Yee’s mini-break was certainly a head-turning moment of strength.

Thereafter, the only question to answer was whether Yee could still call upon his trademark run. Spoiler alert: he could. His split of 29:40 was the fastest of the day and made Yee one of two men to break the 30 minute barrier on the 10km course. We have seen Yee win many times before, but it is hard to recall quite such a commanding display across all facets of the race.

 

As for Tertsch, she was impeccable from the moment the starter’s horn sounded. The German athlete logged the fastest swim of the field, opening up a 5 second lead to her nearest competitor. For good measure, she was the fastest through T1 too. Perhaps her efforts in the water were inspired in part by her recent performance at the Valencia World Cup. While she won that race, she admitted her frustration at losing ground in the swim and having to make up considerable ground to the breakaway group on the run.

Tertsch then rode cleverly throughout the tough 40km bike before blasting off on the first of the four run laps. She opened up a healthy lead over the defending world champion Beth Potter and 2020 world champion Georgia Taylor-Brown. A steadier middle two laps followed and after the midpoint Potter began to gain ground. Tertsch proved unfazed, though, and promptly stormed away again on the final lap to win by 17 seconds with the fastest run split of the field (32:24). A fair case can be made, then, that the wins of Yee and Tertsch were the most complete of their careers so far.

The pipeline continues

The German team was the largest of the women’s field to take to the start line. From their ranks, they could put forward multiple WTCS medallists, although the defending World U23 champion Selina Klamt ultimately did not start, and it was Tertsch that garnered the limelight with her performance. At the same time, a younger member of the team made a significant splash of her own.

In her second ever Series appearance, Tanja Neubert claimed 4th place. Her debut came in Hamburg where she finished 25th and, as such, she has made quite the jump in the intervening months. A powerful cyclist, the hilly course looked like it would play to her strengths and once she made the front pack out of the water she looked set for a promising result. Nevertheless, she had a series of more experienced rivals ranged against her.

Beyond her WTCS medal-winning teammates, she faced down the likes of Kate Waugh and Rosa Maria Tapia Vidal, both of whom medalled at a WTCS race in 2023, former Olympic champion Gwen Jorgensen and the recent European Championships bronze medallist Alice Betto. Neubert had enjoyed wins at the Europe Cup level this year and recently finished 4th at the Valencia World Cup, but Weihai represented a real step up. She dealt with it superbly.

In the bigger picture, Neubert became the sixth German woman since the start of 2023 to finish in the top-5 of a WTCS race. This is the most of any country in the sport and speaks to phenomenal depth. With young athletes like Neubert coming through the ranks, it seems the German talent pipeline will not be slowing in the near term.

Gwen and Gina stake claims

The American team has been the next deepest in terms of WTCS top-5 finishes; five women have achieved the feat since the start of 2023. In Weihai, two names beyond that group produced performances that indicate the forthcoming competition for spaces on the US WTCS squad will remain as fierce as ever.

Gwen Jorgensen ended the day in 6th place, her best WTCS finish since her return to the sport. Jorgensen’s showing was particularly noteworthy after it came off the back of surgery to treat a broken collarbone. Her teammate Gina Sereno was close behind in Weihai, taking 8th place. Outside of a 31st place at WTCS Sunderland last summer, Sereno had never finished in the top-40 of a WTCS race and so her performance was a huge result. It also came after she won a recent bronze medal at the Karlovy Vary World Cup, suggesting that she is hitting a rich vein of form.

Jorgensen and Sereno are at different stages of their careers but with uncertainty over several futures among the stalwarts of the American team over the coming Olympic cycle they may become pillars of the next iteration of the squad. Notwithstanding that a lot can change over four years, if Sereno and Jorgensen build upon their Weihai levels they could be at the centre of the discussions around the home American team come the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games.

Welcome to the future

Elsewhere, Weihai saw a first WTCS medal for Miguel Hidalgo. The Brazilian athlete therefore becomes the third medallist in the Series born this century. Paul Georgenthum (Hamburg 2021) and Emma Lombardi (Cagliari 2022, plus more since) are the other members of this young club. 

When it comes to Hidalgo, it feels like this medal has been a long time coming. He finished 11th in Montreal in 2021 to almost become the first 21st century athlete to make the top-10 of a WTCS race. A year later, he finished 6th at WTCS Leeds. Furthermore, in the last twelve months he has claimed a maiden World Cup gold, won the Pan American Games title and finished 10th on his Olympic debut. Hidalgo, then, has been banging on the podium door for a while now and in Weihai he kicked his way through with a performance that showed maturity beyond his years. The new generation are coming through with increasing alacrity and Miguel Hidalgo seems set to be at the forefront of its charge.

Gonzalez’s super season

Finally, it has been quite a season for Alberto Gonzalez Garcia. To run through his achievements this year, he has – and take a deep breath first – won a World Cup medal, won a World Cup race, hit a WTCS personal best, hit a WTCS personal best, hit another WTCS personal best, finished 8th at the Olympics, and now in Weihai, just for good measure, hit another WTCS personal best. Based on his current trajectory it seems Gonzalez is set to medal at the WTCS Final in Torremolinos, invent time travel to win the next Olympic gold before 2028 and then become the first man to walk on Mars. Probably. I don’t make the rules here.

His rise through the Olympic rankings from the start of the year was like that of a spaceship and played no small part in keeping the intrigue in the hunt for Olympic slots alive, as readers of the rankings updates may recall. His rise on the WTCS scene has been similarly remarkable. This time last year, Gonzalez’s best WTCS result was a 45th place in Sunderland and now he finds himself on the cusp of fighting for a maiden medal in the Series. To say it has been a great year would be an understatement. More importantly, at the rate he is advancing, Gonzalez might become a problem for the heavyweights at the top of the men’s Series sooner rather than later.

With only three weeks remaining until the WTCS Final in Torremolinos-Andalucia, stay abreast with all the latest developments across World Triathlon channels.

First out of the water, first out of the bike and first on the finish line. The day couldn’t have gone any better for Lisa Tertsch at the first ever WTCS Weihai on Friday morning in China. The German proved that she is on a mission to get her first World title next month in Torremolinos (Spain), although the battle certainly won’t be easy. Tertsch was able to dig deep and outrun the British duo of Beth Potter and Georgia Taylor-Brown, second and third respectively on the day.

“I’ve been working hard on my swim and it has started to show (in the races),” said Tertsch. “The bike was tough, but I thought it was tough for all so I told myself that everyone was suffering, we all had to get up that hill together. When you’re at the front you are the one who is hunted and you have no idea how the person behind is doing or feeling. I thought if there was ever a time to dig deep, that was it. We’ll see (about winning a world title). I focus on the process and not looking too far ahead and pressure and expectation can come easily and stop performing at your best. Today I had a free mind and wanted to show what I’m capable of and I’m glad I did that today.”

Tertsch delivers dream swim scenario

It was a small field for the women’s race in Weihai this Friday, but full of talented athletes. With no fewer than five Olympic medallists lining up - Beth Potter, Georgia Taylor-Brown, Lisa Tertsch, Laura Lindemann and Gwen Jorgensen - the race was on fire from the horn, with Tertsch taking the reins from the first meters of the swim, to lead the athletes on their run out of the water on the first lap of the 1500m swim.

But it was on the second of two swim laps that the German managed to open a small break, enough to give her a few metres over the rest of the field, all of the athletes exiting the sea less than 8 seconds behind the leader.

Tough bike takes its toll

By the time they all jumped on their bikes, it was a massive group with almost everyone negotiating the first turns together and heading up the infamous Weihai climb for the first time, but not all of them made it to the top together. Indeed, lap by lap, the large group started to lose individuals, Laura Lindemann (GER), Djenyfer Arnold (BRA) and Miriam Casillas (ESP) the first casualties.

Up front, Tertsch, Potter, Kate Waugh (GBR), Taylor-Brown, Jeanne Lehair (LUX) and Alice Betto (ITA) took solid turns up front, with Gwen Jorgensen, Gina Sereno, Tanja Neubert (GER), Annika Koch (GER) and Xinyu Lin (CHN) managing to stay in the group, never losing contact with the leaders.

Kirsten Kasper (USA), Anna Godoy Contreras (ESP) and Erika Ackerlund (USA) were the next to drop off the pace and by the end of the 40km bike, they had lost almost three minutes to the leaders.

And it was again Tertsch who led the pack into T2 and onto the run, with a smooth transition that allowed the German to open a small gap with Potter, Neubert, Taylor-Brown and Lehair.

Head-down run to the sun for Tertsch

Tertsch looked as if the 8 laps on the bike hadn’t hurt her legs at all, and once again set about scoring the fastest run split, as she has done almost every race this year.

Behind her, Potter and Taylor-Brown started the chase together, but with a little over one lap to go, the Paris 2024 Olympic bronze medallist decided that she was going on the chase solo, and left Taylor-Brown behind. But Tertsch was determined to get as many points as she could here in Weihai, and the German added one extra gear in the last 500m to keep Potter out of sight and cross the finish line in first place.

Neubert managed an impressive fourth place, a best-ever result on the WTCS circuit for the German, while Kate Waugh had a fabulous sprint at the end to finish in fifth place, followed over the finish line by an extremely happy Gwen Jorgensen, only 8 weeks after surgery to fix a broken collarbone.

What they said

“You always have to assess the situation and everyone tries to have a good second transition,” added Tertsch. “Sometimes it works, like for me today, sometimes it doesn’t. You have to look at who is around you the first kilometre and when I saw nobody was around me I thought, ‘okay, I guess it is time to push!’ I was lucky I got some practice in Valencia running on my own… 10km on your own is tough mentally with no one to take turns and there was always wind on the back side and that was a first on my own… so this race was a lot of firsts, including my first time in China!”

Beth Potter claimed a valuable silver medal that puts her in second place of the Series rankings, still led by Cassandre Beaugrand, while Taylor-Brown claimed bronze showing that her excellent run form is back. “I actually really enjoyed that, probably the first time I enjoyed a triathlon since Pontevedra last year and that was my main goal today. It’s been hard, I’ve know it has been there in training and I haven’t quite found it in the race, but that was a really interesting course and good fun and played to some of my strengths.I believed (I could get to Lisa ) and backed myself and probably could have made a move a bit earlier on but I’m really happy with everything I executed today. It’s not over until it’s over (the world title challenge), so I’ll go to Malaga in a pretty strong position and fight for the title again.”

“I said to myself I’d be so happy to just get back on that podium and prove to myself that I can still do it. It’s been a bit rough and I’ve been disappointed since the Olympics and not felt in my groove and rhythm, but super happy with that performance today,” explained Georgia Taylor-Brown.“It was such a big bike group and nobody wanted to pull turns so a gap would form on the uphill then on the flat section no one wanted to do anything so I had to sit with that and realise it was probably going to be a running race and try and find some legs. It has been a long road getting back to fitness and feeling like myself and im just happy to be racing not sat at home watching!”

The first-ever edition of the World Triathlon Championship Series Weihai saw another masterclass of hard racing by Olympic champion Alex Yee on Friday morning in China. The Brit was in the big lead group out of the 1500m swim and stayed up front during the eight laps of the gruelling bike course to then lead the run from start to finish and claim yet another victory over New Zealand’s Hayden Wilde, who didn’t have the legs and suffered on the bike segment to cross the finish line in 7th place. Second over the line was France’s Leo Bergere, while Brazil’s Miguel Hidalgo (BRA) finished in third place, the best result of his career so far and the first time ever on a WTCS podium for the rising star.

“That was a triathlon for sure!” beamed Yee afterwards. “I just wanted to come back and have fun, the last few weeks have been so chaotic and being on that course with these guys on this course, I couldn’t ask for much more, that was a race to be proud of. This format is what I love doing. I’ve grown up inspired by the likes of Vince (Luis), Mario (Mola), Alistair and Jonny (Brownlee)… and I wanted to be just like them and that’s what I aspire to do. I’m absolutely loving it. For me, this is the racing I’ve had a passion for.”

Yee off to perfect start

As the 42 men lined up on the stunning beach of Halfmoon Bay in Weihai, the sun started to shine from early morning and with the water slightly above 24 degrees, it was the perfect temperature for the 1500m, 2-lap swim. It was Australia’s Matthew Hauser who once again showed his dominance in the water, being the first to hit the beach both on the first lap and then on the swim exit towards transition.

But he was not alone. Right on his shoulder was another excellent swimmer, Vincent Luis (FRA), while Alberto Gonzalez Garcia (ESP) and Dylan McCullough (NZL) were only a couple of seconds behind. With all the main contenders in the lead pack hitting transition, Alex Yee (GBR) was only 8 seconds back after a great swim, while Hayden Wilde was 16 seconds behind the leader, the last athlete to make it to the big group that would head up the first of the 8 climbs of the Weihai hills.

As soon as they were on their bikes, McCullough, Leo Bergere (FRA), Jack Willis (GBR) and Simon Westermann (SUI) put their heads down and started to get the group organised. At the same time, Wilde, Pierre Le Corre (FRA) and Hauser stayed at the back of the group, trying to breathe a bit during the fast downhill to hit transition.

Pace too hot for Wilde and Hauser

It only took the front of the packs another lap to drop their first rivals: Hauser first, and half a lap later, Le Corre and Wilde, much to the surprise of the front group, who kept looking behind them checking who was with them.

By the end of the second lap, the lead group was down to 11: Yee, McCullough, Willis, Max Stapley (GBR), Westermann, Bergere, Luis, Miguel Hidalgo (BRA), Jonas Schomburg (GER), Gonzalez and Luke Willian (AUS) and they went to work immediately, knowing that class runners like Wilde, Le Corre and Hauser were struggling behind.

Halfway through the bike, Yee decided to show off his brand new golden helmet putting his head down, and the gap with Wilde’s group increased to a minute and a half, with the chase group struggling to get organised to take turns pulling on the climb on each lap.

Hammer down out of T2

The leading 11 men hit the second transition with a safe 1min30secs lead, enough for Wilde to know that it would be too much of a task to finish on the podium. Up front, it only took a few seconds for Yee to take the lead and never look back, knowing that he also had some strong runners on his lead pack.

The Brit soon got some daylight with Leo Bergere and Miguel Hidalgo, who led the chase, while Luis, Gonzalez, McCollough and Willian fought to stay up front. And behind them came flying Wilde, coming closer and closer and the laps went by.

Meanwhile, Yee extended his lead with another stunning running masterclass, with the fastest split of the day -29:40- to cross the finish line with almost a minute over Leo Bergere. Yee’s victory also puts him in a golden spot for the Championship Finals in Torremolinos, leading the Series rankings with just one race to go.

An impressive final push on the run had Alberto Gonzalez crossing the finish line in fourth place, also a personal best for the Spaniard, while Luis rounded the top five. Luke Willian followed him just a couple meters ahead of Wilde, with the second fastest run split of the day to finish in a bittersweet 7th place, and his teammate Dylan McCullough with a solid 8th.

What they said

“(The swim) has been a long-term project,” admitted Yee. “I’ve been working towards getting to that point where I can call myself a complete triathlete and I feel I’m getting close to that, and it’s kudos to everyone back home in my corner who has put so much into it. This was a standalone race, Torremolinos will be the same. The hard work had been done before the Olympics, now I’m just going to have fun and give everyone a show”, he added.

“I’m pleased more in the way we pushed all day long, we had fun at the front hurting, but we need more tough courses like this,” said Bergere. “Hats off to Alex for the front-pack swim, I was quite surprised to see him there but he did the perfect race. I wanted to make the race hard for everyone and I knew on the hill everyone was suffering, even in the draft. I was pushing with Dylan and Alex and a few guys. I knew Miguel was a tough runner and wasn’t going to let me win the battle easily, I had to really dig deep for that second place.”

Bronze was for Hidalgo on his best performance so far, the first time ever on a WTCS podium for the young Brazilian. “It feels amazing. I remember watching my first WTCS, Stockholm 2013, Alistair doing the breakaway and I knew it was just a matter of time until I could be on the podium. I’ve been consistently in the top 10 for a while now and I knew after the Olympics a lot of people might not be training so much, so I went back to altitude and worked hard and it paid off. I’m still learning a lot in the races. I didn’t race much this year so in Paris I felt bit of a lack of race rhythm, but today I finally did it and there’s much more to come for sure”, he said.