Year: 2023

Who Was The Asian Male Triathlete Of The Year 2023

Benjamin Eastman

After a simply dominant performance at the Asian Games, there was only one man that could really be named the Asian Male Triathlete of the Year. Given the same athlete was the continent’s top performer in the WTCS and the only individual from the region to log a top-10 finish in the Series, his case was close to inarguable. Kenji Nener (JPN) At the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, Kenji Nener was on a different level. He dropped one of the best bike rides of season to build a 3…

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Who Was The Americas Female Triathlete Of The Year 2023

Benjamin Eastman

With four individuals visiting a WTCS podium in 2023, the Americas women were behind only the European women and the European men when it came to the number of individual medallists this year. Much as the top male performer in the region was the athlete that won two WTCS medals, leading the charge on the women’s side was the only multi-medallist. Taylor Spivey (USA) At the start of the season, the American’s women’s team was among the deepest in the sport and the race to make the Olympic squad represented…

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Who Was The Americas Male Triathlete Of The Year 2023

Benjamin Eastman

The men of the Americas delivered some incredible performances in 2023. Three different individuals won the gold medals at the Pan American Games and the Americas Championships over the Olympic and Sprint distances while there were four different World Cup winners from the region. Only one man, however, made it onto a WTCS podium this year. Then he did it again. The Americas Male Triathlete of the Year was thus the athlete that enjoyed the greatest success at the highest level of the sport this year. Manoel Messias (BRA) Manoel…

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Who Was The African Female Triathlete Of The Year 2023

Benjamin Eastman

A double African title was enough to create a convincing case for this year’s African Female Triathlete of the Year. As was the case with the winner of the African men’s mantle, the athlete in question enjoyed a comeback of sorts and ended her season with a best World Cup finish since 2017. Vicky Van Der Merwe (RSA) Vicky Van Der Merwe was in blazing form as she claimed the African titles over the Olympic and Sprint distance. In doing so, she beat her continental rivals head-to-head at least once.…

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Milner Impresses Alongside Triathletes At Euro XC Champs

Benjamin Eastman

Not content to simply compete internationally in one sport, at the European Cross Country Championships in Brussels a number of triathletes stepped up to take on some of the continent’s leading runners at their own game. As recently reported, Hugo Milner and Lisa Tertsch qualified to represent Britain and Germany, respectively, in the Senior races. Milner was in top form in Brussels as he finished 4th in the men’s event. He completed the six-lap 9km course in 30:27, putting him only 10 seconds behind race winner Yann Schrub of France.…

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Who Was The African Male Triathlete Of The Year 2023

Benjamin Eastman

The 2023 season saw a blast from the past in the ranks of the African men. After a prolonged spell fighting injury problems, a former Olympic medallist came back and put together a collection of impressive displays. In doing so, he reasserted himself as the top performer on the continent and had the strongest claim to being the African Male Triathlete of the Year. Henri Schoeman (RSA) There was a fear that injuries had gotten the better of Schoeman. The highs of 2016, in which he medalled at the Olympic…

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Kingma and Derron Flaunt Running Speed at Winter Races

Benjamin Eastman

Two of the top athletes in the women’s WTCS showed off their winter running speed over the past two weekends. WTCS gold medallist Maya Kingma and World Cup gold medallist Julie Derron raced in their home countries of the Netherlands and Switzerland, respectively, and produced some rapid results. Kingma took on the Montferland Run, a race of 15km over an undulating course. In the end, she clocked 53:03 (with a chip time of 53:01) which was enough to make her the 10th woman across the line. Kingma noted that she…

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Will Any Russian Triathletes Race At The Paris Olympics?

Benjamin Eastman

Earlier this week, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) confirmed that Russia will be allowed to race under neutral colours at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. Strict eligibility conditions will be in place. For example, any athlete that has actively supported the war in Ukraine will not be allowed the compete. In the wider picture, though, Russian and Belarusian athletes will be at the Games next summer. The question to be asked here is what this means for triathlon. In April of this year, World Triathlon lifted its ban on Russian…

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Let Them Watch Triathlon! Time To Make TriathlonLive Free

Benjamin Eastman

In exchange for USD 36.99 a year, fans can catch the latest WTCS and World Cup races on TriathlonLive. For enthusiasts of the sport, it is the perfect place to tune in to the latest stops or even browse the events of yesteryear. Notwithstanding that the motorbike cameras can sometimes be wobbly enough to induce second-degree carsickness, TriathlonLive is an ideal centralised hub of triathlon content. The platform is accessible worldwide and helps to cultivate a global audience. In the wider picture, though, there is a case to be made…

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Is It Time To Move On From The World Triathlon Series?

Benjamin Eastman

Sometimes the best way to move forwards is to take a step backwards. For fifteen years, elite short distance triathlon has been held up by the World Triathlon Championship Series (or the WTCS). The Series has brought together the best triathletes in the world over the course of around six to eight races (with four races usually counting towards an athlete’s score) before a Final is held at the end of the year. The world champion is then determined based on the points accrued over the season. It is a…

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Rainsley, Schaufler and the Precarity of National Squads

Benjamin Eastman

Making the national team can be a make or break factor in the careers of athletes. Those that make the team can take onboard support and funding as they pursue their ambitions. Those that miss out, however, face an altogether less comfortable reality. In the past couple of weeks, several federations have revealed their national squads for the coming 2024 season. In the cases of Britain and Germany, a couple of noteworthy names have missed out. Sian Rainsley is one such athlete that has been cut from the British squad.…

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Who Had The Top-10 Men’s Triathlon Performances of 2023

Benjamin Eastman

There have been more outstanding performances this year than can be counted on two hands. (If you can count to more than ten with your fingers, please consult your doctor.) In this article, we will try to whittle down the leading men’s showings of the year into a top ten. As with the top ten performances that have come before, a couple of factors influence how the list has been produced. For example, an athlete’s performance at one event cannot be included in multiple lists. As such, anyone with a…

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Who Had The Top-10 Female Triathlon Performances of 2023

Benjamin Eastman

Having assessed the top performances by athletes in each discipline, today we are turning to the leading all-round performances of the year. In 2023, there have been a plethora of amazing displays by female triathletes and narrowing down the range to double the size of this list would have been a challenge. As with the top ten swims, bikes and runs of the year, a couple of guidelines govern how the top ten has been produced. An athlete’s performance at one event cannot be included in multiple lists. As such,…

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Who Dropped The Top-10 Run Performances of 2023

Benjamin Eastman

We’ve had the swim. We’ve had the bike. Now it’s time for the run. In this article, we will be evaluating the ten best run performances in triathlon this year. Such a list is by nature subjective. Among the factors that could elevate a performance are the margin of victory, the degree to which an athlete dominated their rivals, and the raw time itself (even if it risks opening the can of worms that is course measurement). As with the top ten swims and bikes, the Bianca Seregni rule of…

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Who Delivered The Top-10 Bike Performances of 2023

Benjamin Eastman

Yesterday we took a look into the ten best swim performances in elite triathlon this year. Today it is the turn of the cyclists. When surveying the top efforts on the bike this year, we will apply a similar range of considerations to those used with the swims. For example, an athlete’s performance at a specific race cannot be listed in multiple places. As such, any displays listed among the top swims cannot be repeated in the top bikes. The Bianca Seregni rule likewise still applies; an athlete cannot appear…

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