Later this week, Miyazaki, Japan, will play host to the third Asian World Cup stop in three weekends. Looking to defend his gold medal from the event from 2022 will be Gianluca Pozzatti.
The Italian athlete won in Miyazaki in memorable fashion last year, albeit over the Sprint distance. This time the event will run over the Olympic distance. Pozzatti, though, will arrive in Japan in decent form.
He finished 19th at the WTCS Final in Pontevedra and then followed it up with a 12th place at the World Cup in Rome. While good, his recent results have not put him in the fight for medals lately. Yet the way in which he won the race last year makes him hard to look past.
One aspect to note is that, such has been the volume of racing on offer in October, Rome already feels like an age ago. Pozzatti will have thus had a couple of weeks to fine-tune aspects of his race. Meanwhile, some of his rivals will have had more chances to hone their race sharpness in Chengdu and Tongyeong.
After a long season, there is only so much sharpness an athlete can have. Nevertheless, it remains to be seen whether racing in the prior Asian World Cup legs will carry any advantage.
Foremost among Pozzatti’s rivals for the win will be Kenji Nener. The Japanese athlete wears the number 1 and will be racing after recent victories at the Asian Games and the Japanese Championships.
One thing likely to stand in Nener’s favour is the element of home crowd advantage. Similarly, his teammate, Takumi Hojo, will also look to exploit the local support.
Hojo won the Yeongdo World Cup in August and has shown glimpses of his best form in 2023. However, he has not quite managed to sustain it on a consistent basis. If the Hojo that won in Yeongdo shows up in Miyazaki, he could win the race. Yet his form since makes him a little more of a question mark.
One athlete that will probably be a big presence in the race will be Ricardo Batista.
The Portuguese athlete finished 2nd at the Tongyeong World Cup, claiming a second World Cup medal of the season to go with his bronze from New Plymouth. Batista also won his first World Cup medal in Miyazaki last year. As such, he has prior success at the event.
To date, Batista has impressed most over the Sprint distance. Moreover, he is the European Super Sprint champion. By contrast, his results over the Olympic distance have been improving but are not yet at the same level.
Still, a strong showing at WTCS Pontevedra showed he is getting to grips with the longer format. Expect Batista to ride aggressively throughout the bike; based on their recent showings, a Batista-Nener combination on two wheels could make for a long day for the rest of the field.
Samuel Dickinson and Jack Willis also impressed in Tongyeong, with the former winning the bronze medal. Both will look to carry their high finishes forward and repeat them in Miyazaki.
Tyler Mislawchuk will also be racing after claiming 6th place in Tongyeong. Notably, the Canadian athlete was the best runner of the chase pack. If he is a little sharper in the swim this weekend (and subjected to a little less roughhousing) he will contend for a spot on the podium.
Lasse Nygaard Priester also ran through from the chase pack to take 8th in Tongyeong. Prior to that, he finished 3rd in Weihai and 2nd in Valencia. On his day, he should be able to push for a place on the podium and his running has certainly been firing.
However, he has had some recent swim trouble in both Chengdu and Tongyeong. Like Mislawchuk, he will have to make an adjustment in the first discipline to unlock his true capacity in Miyazaki.
Simon Henseleit was a little off in Tongyeong but that could have been down to the intercontinental travel. With another week of acclimation under his belt, the World U23 champion could be a threat. Henseleit won his first World Cup medal in Rome and could return to the podium if he can make the necessary small corrections in the wake of Tongyeong.
After a sterling debut season at the international level, Panagiotis Bitados could be one to watch as he hunts a best World Cup finish.
One unique aspect to the race is that all five Olympic distance continental champions will be racing. While the experienced Nener and David Castro Fajardo should be in the mix, one dark horse could be Bradley Course, the Oceania champion.
He is a very different stage of his career to his fellow continental champions. With power to spare on the bike and plenty of speed on the run, he could spring an upset in Miyazaki.
TriStats Predictions
- Ricardo Batista
- Kenji Nener
- Gianluca Pozzatti
- Tyler Mislawchuk
- Panagiotis Bitados
