The next generation of French triathletes will be put through their paces this weekend as the French federation holds this year’s Junior and Youth testing.
These tests form a critical component of selection for international competition. They will to a large degree determine the teams at the World Junior Championships in Hamburg in July, the European Junior Championships in Balikesir in August and the European Youth Championships in Banyoles in September.
The selection tests cover male and female athletes born between 2004 and 2007.
There are three separate criteria to qualify for the test. However, the point that stands out is the benchmark for the combined run and swim.
To enter the tests, some of the athletes must produce a combined 400m freestyle and a 3000m run.
The times must have been realised between 1st September 2022 and 5th February 2023. Different target times are set if the 400m is swam short course or long course.
For example, if a female athlete born in 2004 swims the 400m short course, their time added to the 3000m must be under 15:18. If they swim it long course, they must break 15:26 with their combined time.
To illustrate this further, a 4:18 400m freestyle (25m) and a 10:59 3000m would qualify an athlete. Likewise, a 4:46 (50m) and a 9:39 in the 3000m would be sufficient.
For a male athlete in the same age group the benchmarks are 13:20 (if swam short course) and 13:28 (if swam long course).
The test weekend itself consists of three parts.
The first stage is an 800m swim (long course). This will take place on the Saturday in the pool Grand Bleu de Cannes La Bocca. The next day, the athletes will run a 5000m on the track. After lunch on the Sunday, the test will conclude with a 3.6km bike test. The bike will take place in a time trial format.
Look out for the reigning World Junior champion Thomas Hansmaennel among the participants.
Hansmaennel won his title in Montreal last summer with a fantastic showing. It was on the run that he blew the field away. In Montreal, he ran 16 seconds faster than the next best athlete to win by a comfortable margin.
In January of this year, Hansmaennel swam a 4:20.73 for the 400m (25m) in Reims. That would mean he would theoretically have had to run 8:59 or better over the 3000m to be able to participate in the test this weekend.
Montreal was the highlight of Hansmaennel’s year in 2022, although he also won a bronze at the European Junior Cup in Quarteira last year. He then followed that with a silver at the European Junior Cup in Wels.
This year will be his final season as a Junior athlete so look for him to add another title to his name.
On the women’s side, Ilona Hadhoum will be another athlete to watch. Last year Hadhoum won the silver medal at the European Junior Championships.
Perhaps the most notable aspect of Hadhoum at this stage, though, is what a tremendous swimmer she is. Already, she has an 800m freestyle (50m) personal best of 9:11.13 from July 2021. That would put her squarely in the front pack at WTCS races. She also swam 8:54.60 in the short course version of the event in October 2022 which suggests she has gotten even faster in the subsequent 18 months.
The full communication from the French federation can be read here.
