Year: 2023

Lehmann’s Time To Shine In Front Of Home Crowds

Benjamin Eastman

Tiszaujvaros is home turf for Csongor Lehmann. The winner of the European Cups that came to the town in 2021 and 2022, Lehmann also finished 4th the last time it hosted a World Cup in 2019. He lives in the town. He trains in the town. It is his home and it is therefore a safe bet to say he will put on a show. This season Lehmann has finished 9th at WTCS Yokohama and 7th at WTCS Cagliari. He then nabbed 6th place at the European Championships, even though…

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Breaking Down Round 3 of the Men’s 2023 French Grand Prix

Benjamin Eastman

Three teams now circle the men’s leaders, Saint-Jean-des-Monts Vendée Triathlon, with two rounds to go in the French Grand Prix. After Matthew Hauser claimed a virtuoso win in Metz, Triathlon Club Liévin have taken two individual golds from the past two races. As a result, Saint-Jean-des-Monts Vendée’s lead looks a little more vulnerable than it did a couple of weeks ago. Nevertheless, they held firm despite the absences of a few key men. There was movement throughout the standings after Metz and, given the hit-and-miss season of some teams, there will…

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Weekend Stories: National Titles, Norway’s Relay and More

Benjamin Eastman

Norway win European Games relay With the men’s racing winner from the European Games leading off and the women’s race winner on the anchor leg, Norway had a pretty good chance of winning the Mixed Team Relay in Krakow. At the European Games, they duly put together a marvelous display to seal the gold, their third across the three triathlon events. Vetle Bergsvik Thorn got them off to a great start while Solveig Løvseth sealed the deal at the end. In between, Lotte Miller and Casper Stornes also impressed. One…

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What to Make of Alex Yee’s First Loss of the 2023 Season

Benjamin Eastman

*clears throat* OH MY GOD CAN YOU BELIEVE IT WHAT AN EXTRAORDINARY TURN OF EVENTS… et cetera et cetera. At the third round of the French Grand Prix in Metz, Alex Yee lost a major triathlon for the first time in 2023. Let’s first be sensible about this. Yee still finished 2nd and was only 2 seconds away from matching the field-leading run split of the race winner, Matthew Hauser. To his credit, Hauser had a fantastic race. He carried his form from WTCS Montreal to make it wins over…

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Yee, Coldwell and Knibb Out of WTCS Sunderland

Benjamin Eastman

A series of wholesale changes have taken place amid the start lists for WTCS Sunderland. After illuminating the recent WTCS Montreal with a breakaway on the bike alongside her fellow American Summer Rappaport, Taylor Knibb will not be racing in the UK. In both of her appearances in the Series this year (Yokohama and Montreal), Knibb has been a key part of the breakaway. Her absence therefore removes one of the biggest driving forces at the front of the race. In Knibb’s place, Gwen Jorgensen has been substituted into the…

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Hauser Stuns Yee and Les Sable Vendée Shock Everyone in Metz

Benjamin Eastman

In the final French Grand Prix race of the summer, the third round of the series took place in Metz. The last two races will take place when the Grand Prix picks back up in September. In Metz, then, the teams had a chance to solidify their spots in the standings or move up before the break in the season. The pre-race rain did not make for the most pleasant conditions in the world but the blue skies returned as the afternoon wore on. Plenty of changes had taken place…

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Vermeylen and Staufenberg Triumph in Holten

Benjamin Eastman

After the European Junior Cup took place in Holten yesterday, today it was the turn of the Senior athletes with the European Premium Cup. Several athletes arrived straight from the European Games in Krakow, including the women’s bronze medallist, Jolien Vermeylen. On the one hand, Holten only presented a sprint distance race. However, with an Olympic distance race in Vermeylen’s legs from only a few days prior, it remained to be seen how her body would respond. A notable Junior face also popped up in the men’s field as Bradley…

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Asia Cup Sejong Wins Taken By Kishimoto and Yasumatsu

Benjamin Eastman

Beneath the grey skies of Sejong, South Korea, the athletes competing in the Asia Cup splashed brushes of colour across the city. With the course set over the Sprint distance event, a number of those racing took the opportunity to set a hard pace throughout. Men’s report With the water over 27 degrees (Celsius) balmy conditions awaited the men in the swim. Enjoying the warmth of the water, Koki Yamamoto of Japan made the most of the non-wetsuit swim to lead the way in a time of 9:01. A small…

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The Juniors in June: Final Prep for the 2023 World Champs

Benjamin Eastman

With the World Junior Championships less than two weeks away, the final preparations are being made for the event. Over the past fortnight, several athletes have squeezed in their final races and are now locked in on the road to Hamburg. At any level of sport, momentum can be a curious thing. Sometimes, a late confidence boost can be the key to a breakthrough performance. With Juniors the effect of momentum can be accentuated as athletes build up a head of steam in a short space of time. In this…

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Hepburn and Crome Prevail at Holten Euro Junior Cup

Benjamin Eastman

For over fifteen years, Holten has been a regular fixture on the European Junior Cup circuit. Among the standout versions of recent times, in 2015 Gustav Iden beat Alex Yee to the gold while Taylor Knibb triumphed over a podium containing Sandra Dodet and Kate Waugh. An array of prominent faces have therefore passed through the streets of Holten on their way to the top. As Junior races go, it is one with plenty of tradition to call upon. At this year’s iteration, a fairly small women’s field lined up…

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Breaking Down Round 2 of the Men’s Bundesliga 2023

Benjamin Eastman

Schliersee saw a renewal of the rivalry between Buschhütten and Team Saar, the past two champions in the men’s Bundesliga. Although Team Saar scored the individual win through Lasse Nygaard Priester, it was Buschhütten that came away with the maximum team points. Throughout the standings, there were some notable rises and falls after Schliersee. For some teams, a high finish by their best athlete made the difference. For others, the result of their fourth man went a long way to seal their fate. Remember, unlike the women’s series, the men…

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Heavy Hitters To Step Up To Plate At Metz French Grand Prix

Benjamin Eastman

The third round of the 2023 French Grand Prix will take place in Metz this weekend. With several teams adding big names to their line-ups, the current leaders of the men’s and women’s standings could be vulnerable. The current women’s series leaders, Poissy Triathlon, have a 4 point buffer at the top of the table. After missing the last round in Bordeaux, Lea Coninx returns for the team. Coninx won a bronze medal at the season opener in Fréjus and so will be a valuable addition. Likewise Poissy have added…

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Paralympic Qualification Window Opens Tomorrow

Benjamin Eastman

Tomorrow, on 1st July, the window for Paralympic Qualification will open. Over the coming year, the best Para-triathletes in the world will race to secure their spot in Paris before the window closes on 1st July 2024. How does the qualification system work? In total there are 120 slots available for triathletes at the 2024 Paralympic Games. 54 will be allocated to male athletes, 50 to women and then 16 will be reserved to be assigned independently of gender. Those final 16 slots are allocated for the Bipartite Commission to…

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Is WTCS Sunderland Vulnerable To Just Stop Oil Protests?

Benjamin Eastman

The final WTCS race of the regular season awaits in Sunderland. Notwithstanding that the athletes will have a final chance to log points at the Olympic Test Event in Paris, Sunderland will mark the beginning of the end of the Series before attention turns to the Final in Pontevedra in September. Yet apprehension may stalk the minds of the organisers over the coming weeks. On the first day of the Second Test of the Ashes at Lords (London), two Just Stop Oil protestors invaded the pitch to cast orange powder…

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First Look at the WTCS Sunderland 2023 Start Lists

Benjamin Eastman

First of all, what is a Sunderland? After extensive research, we can confirm that it is in fact a town in the north of England. Throughout the history of the WTCS, Britain has played host to a stop in every season except 2012 (when it held the Olympic Games instead). In the early years, the event took place in London, a run that included the 2013 Series Final. Later, it was moved to Leeds, the home of the Brownlee brothers and, for 2023, the event has been shifted further north…

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