The fire-power is all over the globe this weekend with pros taking on race courses from the US to Europe and beyond. Get your screens ready and your weekend chores done ahead of time so you can take in the action as athletes look to challenge longtime rivals, seek redemption, chase points and revisit where it all started.
The Norwegians continue their “combeback” year
The Norwegians continue their Ironman Pro Series in France at 70.3 Aix-en-Provence on Saturday. Kristian Blummenfelt is on a winning streak with a dominating performance on the run and victory at Ironman Texas only weeks ago. Not long into the marathon Blummenfelt was out in front and continued to increase his gap against the rest of the field to the finish. Blummenfelt had also recently ran the fastest run split of the day at Ironman 70.3 Oceanside, though a mechanical on the bike destroyed his podium chances.
Fans can expect a show down in France with top athletes like Rico Bogen from Germany, who has been making a name for himself on the bike this season. Fellow Norwegians Gustav Iden and Casper Stornes will be there to back up Blummenfelt.
Austria’s Lisa Perterer has been burning up race courses lately, and she is a favourite going into Aix-en-Provence this weekend. France will be represented by Julie Lemmolo, and both women can expect a challenge from Spain’s Marta Sanchez.
Longtime rivals race together one last time
Across Europe and onto Slovakia, Challenge Family’s The Championship 2025 in Samorin on Sunday has drawn the likes of Great Britain’s Jonny Brownlee. After a few lack-lustre results, Brownlee is looking for his best performance yet this season, but he is sure to have to fight for it with Germany’s Frederic Funk via for a win since placing second and third in previous years.
Greek pro Panagiotis Bitados has been rising through the ranks quickly, and can be expected to challenge Brownlee and Funk, as will Germany’s Justus Nieschlag and Denmark’s Kristian Hogenhaug. But perhaps the best reason to tune in is to witness legendary Slovakian Richard Varga compete in his final race. Always a leader on the swim, Varga will hopefully go out with a bang.
Lucy Charles-Barclay returns to her roots
Ironman World Champion Lucy Charles-Barclay is returning to the place it all started for her. Ironman Lanzarote is where she did her first pro race. She’ll be on course grinding through, arguably, Ironman’s toughest race with extreme elevation and brutal wind conditions on Saturday. Charles-Barclay will be gunning for her Ironman World Championship spot.
After a tough race at T100 Singapore in which she battled against sickness and heat, she pulled through to finish third. Having struggled through the last half of 2024 with an injury, she is still looking for that comeback performance. If she has a good race on such a tough course in Lanzarote it will mark a turning point for her this year.
Sam Long on the hunt for redemption
Another pro on the hunt for redemption is Sam Long. After failing to defend his title in the final race at Ironman 70.3 St. George, he’s waisting no time at a second chance by racing Ironman 70.3 Chattanooga on Sunday. Despite a strong performance in St. George and finishing as runner up to Canadian Lionel Sanders, Long is re-grouping for a second chance at the win.
WTCS Yokohama
And if that’s not enough action for you, the World Triathlon Championship Series (WTCS) is on in Yokohama on Saturday. The Olympic distance race in Japan is attracting more star-power than the WTCS opener in Abu Dhabi in February. Even without the usual showdown between New Zealand’s Hayden Wilde, who recently suffered several broken bones in a bike crash, and Great Britain’s Alex Yee, who is focusing solely on running at the moment, the event still promises some tight racing.
With Australian Matt Hauser, Portugal’s Vasco Vilaca and defending champion, American Morgan Pearson on the start list, there will be no shortage of battles on the men’s side. Pearson comes back after recovering from a bike crash and will give fans a glimpse of how his return to fitness is shaking out. Leo Bergere and Dorian Coninx head a strong French contingency.
On the women’s side, Paris Olympic gold medallist, Cassandre Beaugrand from France will be the one to watch. She has won both her races this year, at the Supertri E World Championship in London and the T1 Indoor Triathlon World Cup in Lievin. She also broke her country’s national 5 km road race records earlier this year. Looking to run past her on Saturday will be another of the sport’s fastest runners, Beth Potter from Great Britain. French athlete, Leonie Periault, will be fighting hard to defend her Yokohama title.
Aside from these three strong contenders, Germans Lisa Tertsch, Laura Lindemann will apply some pressure, as they were part of an all-German podium sweep in Abu Dhabi. Fighting her way back to the top of the sport, American and Rio Olympic gold medallist Gwen Jorgensen will also be looking to make her mark, as will fellow compatriots Taylor Spivey and Gina Sereno.
With the time difference, many of these races set off on Friday for those in North America and the UK.
With so much action this weekend it’s reasonable to hope for rain so you can take your bike session to the trainer and ride vicariously through the gritty and inspiring performances that promise to unfold.
The post Global showdown: Pros clash across continents in epic weekend of racing appeared first on Triathlon Magazine Canada.