Category: WTCS

Races in Cagliari Shake Up The WTCS Rankings

Benjamin Eastman

By the slimmest of margins, Dorian Coninx is the new Series leader in the men’s WTCS. He nudged his nose 3 points ahead of Vasco Vilaca, the previous leader, after yet another top-5 finish. Across his three appearances this season, Coninx has mustered results of 5th, 4th and 4th. A first podium of the year beckons; with the likes of Alex Yee and Hayden Wilde closing in, though, as well as Vilaca and Leo Bergere, Coninx will need to land on the podium if he is to defend his lead.…

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The Debuts, PBs and Best Splits from WTCS Cagliari 2023

Benjamin Eastman

The Debuts WTCS Cagliari was not the easiest day to make a debut. The nature of the course made it easy to be lapped out and that is ultimately what happened to Garabedian and Peszleg. In making her first appearance in the Series, Garabedian became the first athlete from Cambodia to race in the WTCS. Prior to this year, Garabedian had represented France and she made her first start for her new country back in March. With her new nationality, Garabedian is expanding the frontiers of the sport. Hopefully her…

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The Statistical Breakdown of WTCS Cagliari 2023

Benjamin Eastman

WTCS Cagliari brought two fascinating races as Alex Yee and Georgia Taylor-Brown repeated their 2022 victories at the venue. Here we dive into the exact details of the race and the numbers behind the results reveal plenty. Swim Men The most obvious takeaway from the men’s swim distribution is how the peak concentration of athletes exited the water around 15 seconds after the fastest swimmer. As a result a large front pack was able to coalesce during the first bike lap. Although there was a split in the field in…

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6 Stories You Might Have Missed From WTCS Cagliari

Benjamin Eastman

Piece of cake for Le Corre Pierre Le Corre barely missed a beat. In fact, he made it all look a little easier than he probably should have. In his first WTCS race of the season, the recently-crowned world military champion claimed 5th place on the back of a consummate all-round display. He was also the only man to hang with Alex Yee and Hayden Wilde on the first lap of the run (notwithstanding Jonas Schomburg’s not-so-surprising sneak attack that put him in first place for a spell). In doing…

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Alex Yee Outlasts Hayden Wilde In Cagliari Battle

Benjamin Eastman

Of course it was those two. It had to be. Prior to WTCS Cagliari, the men’s narrative had circled the duo of Alex Yee and Hayden Wilde – each of whom possessed a win apiece in the Series this season – like vultures waiting to pick at the carcass of whichever would lose. For one of them had to lose. From the off, though, it was Yee that lost his footing as he managed to stumble and then tumble down the beach as the rest of the field hurdled into…

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Katie Zaferes Makes a Statement at WTCS Cagliari

Benjamin Eastman

One of the big talking points from the women’s race at WTCS Cagliari was the accomplished performance of the 2019 world champion, Katie Zaferes. In a sterling all-round display, Zaferes finished 12th. That came after her two recent wins at Americas Cup races in St. Peters and Punta Cana. At both of those events, she broke away to race solo in the swim and then rode and ran alone to seal her victories. In their wake, there were hopes that she was nearing the form required to compete in the…

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Georgia Taylor-Brown Back On Top At WTCS Cagliari

Benjamin Eastman

If insanity is doing the same thing again and expecting different results, perhaps we were all fools to anticipate any other outcome at WTCS Cagliari. On the same course as last year, the women’s race yielded practically identical results in many respects. After an indifferent start to the season by her lofty standards, Georgia Taylor-Brown came roaring back to claim her first win of the year. In doing so she made it three different British winners from the first three races of the Series. As was the case in October,…

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The Course Preview of WTCS Cagliari 2023

Benjamin Eastman

WTCS Cagliari will take place over the same course as that used in the previous iteration of the race in October. Last time out, there was enough in the course to enable breakaways in both the men’s and women’s races. In the men’s event, Jumpei Furuya used a late attack to gain a gap. Jonathan Brownlee then bridged across and the duo defended a small lead into T2. Meanwhile in the women’s race, the Taylor Knibb train broke up the field on the bike. Neither the swim nor the run…

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The Start List Cheat Sheets for WTCS Cagliari 2023

Benjamin Eastman

You’ve seen it for WTCS Abu Dhabi and for WTCS Yokohama. Now get ready for the start list cheat sheets for WTCS Cagliari. In a slight change from the previous cheat sheets, this time we can include data from the 2023 season. The information below therefore covers Olympic distance races from the 2022 season plus WTCS Yokohama 2023. As such, the data points exclusively focus on the relevant distance which is the event to be raced this weekend. For cases in which an athlete did not race over the Olympic distance…

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First Look at the WTCS Montreal 2023 Start Lists

Benjamin Eastman

The fourth round of the WTCS season will see the Series move to North America. For several years now, Montreal has been a fixture in the Series and the Canadian city will host a race again this June. After hosting a Super Sprint format in 2021 and 2022, this year it will revert to a classic Sprint race. Who’s there? After a topsy-turvy start to the year, Hayden Wilde will be starting at his fourth straight WTCS event. He will be joined by Tayler Reid to form a two man…

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Potter’s Magic Makes Her the Favourite at WTCS Cagliari

Benjamin Eastman

With Series leader Sophie Coldwell absent, the women’s WTCS is primed to take a new turn in Cagliari. After her exploits at WTCS Abu Dhabi, Beth Potter is back on the start line and will be firmly among the favourites. At the season opener, Potter was in supreme form. She made the front pack out of the water, produced a powerful showing on the bike and then capped her day with a blistering run split. After three WTCS medals in 2022, she has really come into her own at the…

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Knibb out of WTCS Cagliari, Jorgensen and Zaferes Starting

Benjamin Eastman

In a late change to the women’s start list for WTCS Cagliari, Taylor Knibb has withdrawn from the event. Knibb won the bronze medal at WTCS Yokohama and looked in fantastic shape in the swim and on the bike. In spite of an ongoing foot injury that required surgery at the start of the year, she was also able to run to a medal too. There has yet been any confirmation as to why Knibb has pulled out. One possibility was that racing two Olympic distance races over a fortnight…

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Wilde To Take His Shot Against Yee At WTCS Cagliari

Benjamin Eastman

The men’s WTCS finds itself at a crunch point. Notwithstanding the Paris Olympic Test Event that has been shoehorned in as an extra scoring race, WTCS Cagliari will be the last Olympic distance race of the Series until the Final in Pontevedra. At 1000 points, it is a prime opportunity to make a move in the overall Series. Going into Cagliari, the two favourites will inevitably be the winners of the opening rounds in Abu Dhabi and Yokohama, Alex Yee and Hayden Wilde. At Yokohama, Hayden Wilde won an Olympic…

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Who Has Had The Most Impressive Race So Far In The 2023 WTCS

Benjamin Eastman

Two rounds into the 2023 WTCS, there have been a number of amazing performances. Several athletes have made tremendous leaps forward across WTCS Abu Dhabi and WTCS Yokohama while others have maintained previous levels of excellence. In the women’s Series, Beth Potter and Sophie Coldwell have taken their first WTCS wins. In both cases, the victories came after shows of strength across all three disciplines. Meanwhile Alex Yee was imperious in Abu Dhabi as he cruised to his first win of the season. At the same race, Hayden Wilde impressed…

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The Movers and Shakers in the Rankings After WTCS Yokohama

Benjamin Eastman

With the second round of the WTCS season complete, there have been plenty of changes in the Series rankings. The biggest rise of any athlete came from the winner of the men’s race in Yokohama, Hayden Wilde. With his victory, Wilde rose 40 places in the Series rankings to now sit in 6th place. With a win at WTCS Yokohama being worth 1000 points, Wilde made a big statement. If he can produce a similar performance at WTCS Cagliari next week, he will seize control of the Series. It’s funny…

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