By Kent Gray/Triathlon.kiwi
Freshly minted Tri NZ Female Long Distance Triathlete-of-the-Year Amelia Watkinson is loving the opportunity to test herself against the best on the T100 Triathlon World Tour. Which is a good thing because the PTO’s best just got even better.
The 32-year-old Sunshine Coast-based Kiwi has been confirmed in the best women’s field yet for the third round of the eight-stop global 100km circuit in San Francisco on June 8.
World No.2 Taylor Knibb is in for San Francisco, ensuring a blockbuster series-first showdown with Aussie Ashleigh Gentle, the only women above her in the official PTO world rankings and fresh from her runaway Singapore success.
Throw German ace Anne Haug into the mix for her T100 bow, likewise countrywoman Laura Philipp, 10-time Ironman World Champion Daniela Ryf (injury permitting) and reigning Ironman NZ champion Chelsea Sodaro and there is star dust at every turn.
After her DNF in Singapore, Sodaro will be determined to rebound in San Fran, the city she went to college in and considers a second home.
World No.15 Watkinson, meanwhile, finished a strong 4th at T100 Singapore in her series debut and will be motivated by the stiffer competition she’ll face in the ‘City by the Bay’ over the legendary Escape From Alcatraz Triathlon course.
The full list of contracted T100 women who will compete in the San Francisco T100 is:
Ashleigh Gentle (AUS)
Taylor Knibb (USA)
Anny Haug (GER)
Daniela Ryf (SUI)
Laura Philipp (GER)
Paula Findlay (CAN)
Emma Pallant-Browne (GBR)
Kat Matthews (GBR)
India Lee (GBR)
Chelsea Sodaro (USA)
Imogen Simmonds (SUI)
Lucy Byram (GBR)
Amelia Watkinson (NZL)
Marjolaine Pierre (FRA)
Skye Moench (USA)
Tamara Jewett (CAN)
The 16 contracted men will be announced overnight. The four wildcards to take each of the men’s and women’s fields up to the 20-athlete cap are then set to be unveiled later in the week. Kiwis Kyle Smith and Rebecca Clarke earned wildcards in Singapore with Smith’s 5th in the men’s race making him a strong contender for another chance in San Fran.
The stunning San Francisco Bay area will host the 2km swim, 80km bike, 18km run with the start beginning with a plunge into the icy water adjacent to Alcatraz Island. Since the first race in 1981, the Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon has hosted top professional and amateur triathletes to attempt the impossible – Escape from Alcatraz Island. The infamy of Alcatraz Island is part of the attraction that draws more than 2,000 triathletes to San Francisco year after year.
