At the weekend, we asked if anyone believed that an athlete might complete the double of winning Olympic gold and WTCS gold in 2024.
The double has proven an elusive feat, with only Flora Duffy and Kristian Blummenfelt having achieved it (both in 2021). Across the five previous Olympic cycles, none of the athletes that claimed Olympic gold won the corresponding world title. Even Duffy and Blummenfelt were aided to a degree insofar that the Tokyo Olympics counted towards the 2021 season’s WTCS.
Looking ahead to 2024, the TriStats audience took a dim view of the double being repeated.
The largest share of the vote, 48% in total, went to those that felt neither the men’s or women’s Olympic champion would complete the double. Meanwhile, a paltry 4% of the vote backed the idea that both the men’s and women’s Olympic gold medallist would also win the WTCS crown.
In total, 48% believed that either a male or a female athlete could win the double. This was broken down as 36% supporting the women’s champion and 12% backing the men’s winner.
Altogether, the poll results seem to reflect two things.
The first is the sheer difficulty of achieving the double. Unsurprisingly, the largest response of the four possible answers went to nobody achieving the fact. Of course, if the Paris Olympics are included as a race within the WTCS, the picture could change. Nevertheless, it will still remain a challenge.
The second element shown in the poll results is the differing characteristics of the men’s and women’s fields. Whereas the men’s field is rather multipolar, with several men in contention for Olympic gold and the world title, the women’s competition is currently shaped by a single leading force.
Based on last season, any of five men (or more) could end up as the WTCS champion; indeed, all five had a real chance of winning the Series last year. That kind of range makes it less likely that one athlete will sweep the major titles.
By contrast, the women’s Series was dominated by Beth Potter in 2023. Given that she won the Paris Test Event, WTCS Pontevedra, the world title and more WTCS races than any other athlete, Potter’s gargantuan season positions her as the likeliest athlete to complete the double.
It is therefore no great surprise that the poll respondents assigned a greater likelihood to a female athlete (such as Potter) completing the double than their male counterparts.
With the start of the WTCS season less than a month away, we will soon get an insight into the form of the leading names.
Olympic gold and WTCS gold will be up for grabs, but will anyone manage to win both?
