Author: Benjamin Eastman

The Poisoned Chalice of the Olympic Triathlon Dream

Benjamin Eastman

I suppose the only way to start is to say we all saw it coming. Or at least, those that have followed the sport of triathlon for long enough knew what was about to happen. There has yet to be an Olympic Games untouched by selection scandals. Dating all the way back to Sydney in 2000 where the home Australian team turned itself inside out with its selection drama, the glittering face of the Games has been pockmarked by scars and warts. It is refreshing to see that, for once,…

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WTCS Cagliari and the Significance of One Second

Benjamin Eastman

Among the many storylines to track at WTCS Cagliari, there was one detail in particular that stood out. Alex Yee and Hayden Wilde treated us to yet another showdown, one that resulted in their closest finish yet over the Olympic distance as Yee won by 2 seconds. In a call back to last season, the same 2 seconds were all that separated Wilde from Yee (and Vasco Vilaca) in his victory at WTCS Hamburg. Over the Super Sprint distances, such small margins are to be expected though. The picture is…

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Neubert and Jem Take Bundesliga Opener in Kraichgau

Benjamin Eastman

The opening round of the 2024 Bundesliga took place in Kraichgau on Saturday. With some teams losing stars to WTCS Cagliari and others to injury, the race looked one of the most open in recent times as the winner could have come from anywhere. The unpredictability ultimately came to the fore as both the men’s and women’s individual and team wins were claimed by first-time victors. In Kraichgau, a Sprint distance affair was on offer with the only slight difference to normal being that the swim was 800m long. Women’s…

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The Debuts and Personal Bests of WTCS Cagliari 2024

Benjamin Eastman

Debuts As was case at WTCS Yokohama, there was only one debutant at WTCS Cagliari. Making her first start in the Series was Australian athlete Ellie Hoitink. Hoitink claimed the Oceania title over the Olympic distance earlier in the season, her first international win, and she was among the leading women from the continent in Cagliari. Only World Cup winners Sophie Linn (20th) and Nicole Van Der Kaay (27th) surpassed Hoitink’s finish of 29th. With Linn being the only Australian woman to beat Hoitink in Cagliari too, the latter may…

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Alex Yee Bests Hayden Wilde Again At WTCS Cagliari

Benjamin Eastman

It was like the whole men’s race at WTCS Cagliari was a countdown to something special. A delayed start due to weather built the anticipation as another showdown between Alex Yee and Hayden Wilde brewed. A year ago the two men were separated by seconds after a back-and-forth fight on the run but today’s race conspired to make this edition the closest yet. In the opening stages, it seemed Morgan Pearson was primed to play spoiler to the Yee-Wilde narrative. The victor at WTCS Yokohama navigated the waves the best…

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Cassandre Beaugrand Sets Out Olympic Claim In Cagliari

Benjamin Eastman

The 2024 season has already taken a decidedly French hue. Amid a barnstorming race that was only settled in the final moments, Cassandre Beaugrand powered to the gold medal. Not only was it a second win from two for the French women in this season’s WTCS, it marked Beaugrand’s first ever Olympic distance win in the Series. Looking ahead to the home Paris Olympics, Beaugrand and the French team could hardly face a more promising position. Maya Kingma was the top swimmer and emerged from the sea in a time…

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2024 Bundesliga Season Launches in Kraichgau This Weekend

Benjamin Eastman

This weekend the Bundesliga season will kick off in the familiar location of Kraichgau. Unlike last season, in which the funky 2+2 format was on offer as the teams tackle the “2+2 format“, this edition of the race will be a normal Sprint distance affair with an 800m swim, 20km bike and 5km run. Although several top names will instead race at WTCS Cagliari, a good start list has been attracted. On paper, there is no overwhelming favourite on the team front in the women’s race, although there are several…

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What are the stories to watch at WTCS Cagliari 2024?

Benjamin Eastman

The final event of the Paris Olympic qualification window is upon us. WTCS Cagliari marks the second stop of this year’s Series and will in all likelihood confirm the Olympic fates of the half the athletes starting. While some athletes will simply put the finishing touches on places earned via the Olympic rankings, others are in live contests that could go down to the wire. In the wider season narrative, the field will also have to strike back at Morgan Pearson and Leonie Periault after they took an early lead…

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Can Morgan Pearson Back Up Maiden WTCS Win?

Benjamin Eastman

Entering the second round of the 2024 WTCS, the name on everyone’s lips is Morgan Pearson after the American athlete won the Series opener in impressive fashion. As a multiple WTCS medallist beforehand, Pearson’s display was clearly no flash in the pan and he will now try to double his number of gold medals. A 29:11 10km split was perhaps the biggest takeaway from Pearson’s race. That stands as one of the quickest run splits of recent times and also came after he exited T2 slightly down on the leaders.…

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Can Periault Hold Off The Big Four At WTCS Cagliari?

Benjamin Eastman

The second stop of the WTCS season is upon us as the action turns to Cagliari. After a spellbinding performance at the season opener in Yokohama, all the attention in the women’s race will be on Leonie Periault. The French athlete was in marvellous form as she claimed a first ever WTCS win in Japan and the ease with which she dispatched the likes of Taylor Knibb, Emma Lombardi and more on the run will have sent a loud warning to the rest of the elite women’s field. Should Periault…

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Brown and Teng Take Wins at Lianyungang Asia Cup

Benjamin Eastman

It has been a busy few weeks of triathlon in China. After the Chengdu World Cup took place in late April, the Asia Cup in Taizhou followed in May. Then, at the weekend, another Asia Cup event followed in the country, this time in Lianyungang. Seeing as China will also be hosting a WTCS stop later in the year, after the reclassification of the Weihai World Cup, the country is clearly making moves in the sport. In Lianyungang, the home team set out to make a statement at the Olympic…

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Richard Murray Caps Perfect Weekend With Huatulco Win

Benjamin Eastman

Going into the men’s race at the Huatulco World Cup, the most important athlete from a Dutch perspective was Mitch Kolkman. As Kolkman stepped onto the start line, he held an Olympic qualification ranking of 146th. After the antics of the Dutch Mixed Team Relay on Friday, in which they secured Olympic qualification by finishing 2nd in Huatulco, Kolkman needed break into the top-140. Failure to do so would mean the Dutch team would have to decline the Olympic relay spot they had worked so hard to secure. When the…

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Pedersen Notches Another World Cup Win In Huatulco

Benjamin Eastman

As darkness took hold in Huatulco, it took a frantic finish to the women’s World Cup to light up the Mexican resort. At every step of the way, the race stubbornly refused to break up, as if the heat and humidity had glued everything together. Zsanett Kuttor-Bragmayer, Sophia Howell and Karolina Helga Horváth jostled for the lead in the wavy 750m swim and each completed the segment in 10:34. A large group of women were close on their heels, including Lotte Miller, who secured Olympic qualification in the Mixed Team…

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Connor Bentley Wins Samarkand World Cup With Late Burst

Benjamin Eastman

After Lena Meißner won the women’s race at the inaugural Samarkand World Cup, a cluster of men ran out of T2 with a maiden win of their own dangling before them. The most recent World Cup winner in the field, David Cantero del Campo, had been consigned to the chase pack and was over 2 minutes behind. While the Spanish athlete’s running prowess still made him a threat, it seemed almost certain that the gold medal would go to one of the eight men in the breakaway. However, given the…

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Lena Meißner Powers to First World Cup Win

Benjamin Eastman

After the drama of the Olympic Mixed Team Relay qualifier in Huatulco yesterday, the action zipped back across to the other side of the world as Samarkand, Uzbekistan, hosted a World Cup for the first time. It was to prove a day of multiple firsts as Lena Meißner of Germany claimed a maiden World Cup win to put an end to a year of injury-hit turbulence. As was the case as the Chengdu World Cup, Therese Feuersinger was the fastest swimmer. She led into T1 in a time of 19:36.…

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