By Kent Gray/Triathlon.kiwi
World Triathlon’s showpiece elite and age group championships have landed on Spain’s southern Costa del Sol only to find host town Torremolinos strangely out of kilter.
Rain and leaden skies have characterised the days leading into the WTCS finale and World Triathlon Age Group Championships – a rarity for the Mediterranean municipality renowned for its tourist magnet beaches and 300+ sunny days every year.
Spain’s national weather agency, Aemet, has issued a number of rain alerts for the Malaga province as the tail of Hurricane Leslie lingers. While the forecast is for fairer skies into the weekend, until then the start of four days of intensive racing will have athletes, coaches and fans on tenterhooks.
Beach start swims will be to the liking of the majority of Kiwis – 12 elites and 53 age groupers at last count – but drama looks certain on a technical bike course with no fewer than 16 turns on each lap.
Indeed, the bike leg won’t be for the faint of heart given a shiny road surface which, even when not mixed with water, would make even Bamby nervous. For those competing in standard distance races (all the races save for age group sprint triathlon and elite U19 Juniors, also over the sprint distance) that’s 40km and 128 potentially treacherous turns.
The Kiwis, as ever, are up for the challenge. Canterbury’s Brea Roderick gets New Zealand’s campaign underway in the U23 Women’s World Championship from 0900 local time (8pm NZT) on Thursday. You can watch live on Triathlonlive.tv and the official World Triathlon YouTube channel.
We preview the championships day-by-day before taking a look at the Team NZL age group team further below.
ELITES and AGE GROUP – Torremolinos Schedule
Time and listings are subject to change
Thursday, October 17
• U23 Women (0900/8pm NZ time) – Brea Roderick
• U23 Men (Noon/11pm NZT) – Dylan McCullough, James Corbett, Henry McMecking
• World Triathlon Championships Age Group Sprint Triathlon (from 1430)
At the end of a long season which saw her selected as an Olympic Games reserve in Paris, Roderick will look to eclipse her 21st placing in last year’s U23 worlds in Pontevedra. Should comfortably achieve that but will be wary after a bike crash in her last start out, an unfortunate DNF at World Cup Rome. McCullough is one of the favourites for the U23 title after his 19th individually in Paris and 8th at the last WTCS round in Weihai, just a place behind Olympic silver medallist Hayden Wilde. Corbett is on a high after his continental breakthrough in Tokyo and is a top 20 shout if he can temper his high octane style early on, while 20-year-old McMecking, set for his first U23 worlds start, impressed with 15th (ahead of Corbett in 20th) the following weekend at European Cup Ceuta. Afterwards, it will be the turn of the Team NZL age groupers in the sprint triathlon.
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Friday, October 18
• Junior Women (1515/2:15am NZT, Oct. 19 ) – Hayley Cornwall, Olivia Rooney
• Junior Men (1715/4:15am NZT, Oct. 19) – Finnley Oliver, Benjamin Airey
The spotlight shines on Tri NZ’s four strong Junior (U19) team on day two with Cornwall and Rooney set for the world championship debuts while inform Oliver and just back from Covid-19 Airey will look to better their 46th and 23rd places respectively at last year’s Junior worlds in Hamburg.
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Saturday, October 19
• World Triathlon Championships Age Group Standard Triathlon (from 0900/8pm NZ Time)
• Triathlon World Championships Age Group Standard Aquabike (from 1100/10pm NZT)• Elite Women (1535) – Nicole van der Kaay, Ainsley Thorpe
Early Saturday is the chance for Team NZL age groupers to shine once more in the standard triathlon and aquabike races before van der Kaay and Thorpe look to finish the 2024 WTCS strongly. Van der Kaay will be buoyed by her 4th at World Cup Rome where Thorpe battled home to a brave 30th after being one of a number for fall on the bike. Expect a higher finish with a little more luck in Torremolinos.
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Sunday, October 20
Junior/U23 Mixed Relay (0900/8pm NZT)
Age Groups Mixed Relay (from 1300/Midnight NZT Oct. 21)
Elite men (1700/4am NZT Oct. 21) – Hayden Wilde, Tayler Reid
The final day on the Costa del Sol starts with mixed relay action, spearheaded by the Juniors/U23s where Roderick and McCullough are posied to start with the second male likely to be chosen from Corbett and McMecking, and the second female from Cornwall and Rooney.
Team NZL has a number of age group MR teams entered and then everyone will scramble for a good spot to watch the latest instalment of the Hayden Wilde v Alex Yee show. Given his unbeaten run in the (WTCS) this season, with wins in Cagliari, Paris and Weihai, it would almost be a crime if Alex Yee doesn’t add the world title to his Olympic gold at the season finale. Wilde would need to win, hope for Yee to finish no higher than 8th, as well as put a place between himself and Leo Bergere to win an unexpected world title. That’s highly unlikely, not least given Yee’s near faultless Weihai performance. But rest assured, the Kiwi No.1 is fired up to finally get one over his great British rival. Reid, an impressive 5th at World Cup Rome, is trending nicely to finish his gutsy season on a high. Improving his current WTCS ranking of 23rd looks a minimum return on his latest training effort.
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TEAM NZL AGE GROUPERS
The traditional Parade of Nations, set to rumba from 1815 local time on Wednesday, is the first call of duty for Tri NZ’s 53-strong age group team in Torremolinos. Thereafter, the 2024 World Triathlon Age Group Championships is a feast of sprint and standard distance triathlon, standard distance aquabike and roaring on the 12-strong Kiwi elite team in between times.
Team NZL – Torremolinos 2024
Female
16-19
Jessie Coxon (Manawatu Triathlon Club)
Monique Spedding (Triathlon Tauranga)
20-24
Charlotte Carter (Auckland City Triathlon Club)
Brooke Davis-Goodall (Overseas)
25-29
Genevieve Bowler (Hibiscus Coast Harriers & Triathlon Club)
Melissa Chambers (Overseas)
Cara Davis (Canterbury Triathlon Club)
Tayla Smit (Triathlon Tauranga)
30-34
Zara Ward (Triathlon Tauranga)
Nicole Lovegrove (RATS)
40-44
Dale Berrill (Auckland City Triathlon Club)
Faye Welsh (North Harbour Triathlon Club)
45-49
Liana Gerbes (Triathlon Hawke’s Bay)
Shan Maas (Hamilton Triathlon Club)
50-54
Lynne Morgan (Triathlon Hawke’s Bay)
Natalie Weinberg (Hamilton Triathlon Club)
55-59
Nikki Fox (Triathlon Hawke’s Bay)
Mirjam Morris (Tri Wellington)
60-64
Raelene Rees (Canterbury Triathlon Club)
Mary Anne Woods (Whangarei Triathlon Club)
75-79
Maggie Dalziel (Triathlon Tauranga)
Male
16-19
Ashton Guitry (Triathlon Tauranga)
Ryan Marfell (Canterbury Triathlon Club)
Tyler Mumby (Manawatu Triathlon Club)
25-29
Kieran Coates (North Harbour Triathlon Club)
Max Hoonhout (Waitakere Triathlon & Multisport Club)
Reuben Houghton (Auckland City Triathlon Club)
30-34
Charlie Taylor (Triathlon Tauranga)
35-39
Blake Hawes (Tri Wellington)
40-44
Richard Chambers (Auckland City Triathlon Club)
Bram De Boeck (Triathlon Hawke’s Bay)
Terry Jack (North Harbour Triathlon Club)
50-54
Michael Whitesmith (Triathlon Hawke’s Bay)
Peter Maas (Hamilton Triathlon Club)
55-59
David 55 (Triathlon Tauranga)
Gavin Champion (Tri Wellington)
Iain Gauld (Tri Wellington)
Greg Morgan (Triathlon Hawke’s Bay)
Dave Nicholls (Overseas)
60-64
Dean Rees (Canterbury Triathlon Club)
Kevin Bowler (Hibiscus Coast Harriers & Triathlon Club)
Paul Carter (Auckland City Triathlon Club)
Mark Robinson (North Harbour Triathlon Club)
Dave Scott (Manawatu Triathlon Club)
Roger Spice (Auckland City Triathlon Club)
Mike Trees (North Harbour Triathlon Club)
65-69
Conrad Young (Overseas)
Michael Carden (tri-sport Taupo)
Fred Koenders (Triathlon Hawke’s Bay)
70-74
Warren Mumby (Manawatu Triathlon Club)
75-79
Grant Jeffreys (Canterbury Triathlon Club)
Gregor Coster (Tri Wellington)
David Knight (Auckland City Triathlon Club)
