Europe Triathlon

ETU has a packed weekend with athletes competing in Latvia, the Netherlands and in Poland. They will be competing over Sprint and the massive long distance, with the focus on Poznań, where the titles will be fought over at the 2016 Poznan ETU Challenge Long Distance Triathlon European Championships.

After the rather disappointing show last year in Weymouth, where finding anyone who was not British was in itself a challenge, we see a start list in Poznań that truly represents the variety that the European Federations are. The Age Group athletes presents the greatest diversity, with 17 nations hoping to see their national uniforms on the podium. There is representation from the French in the Para Competition and for the Elite athletes we see 14 nations represented in the men’s’ race and 10 in the women’s. In both of the Elite races there is a visiting American who will of course both receive a warm welcome from Challenge Family as they negotiate their way around the 3.8k swim, 180k bike and 42k run.

The LOC is proud of its achievement and rightly so. They are bringing the biggest triathlon event to the South-Eastern part of Poland and will most certainly make this a weekend to remember. The Technical Delegate, Daniel Martin from Austria is on site and reports that the build looks good, that the weather is fine and that the athletes are arriving.

Using their own words, they promote this event as having one of the fastest courses on the circuit, “Poznań belongs to the fastest triathlon routes in the world and certainly encourages excellent scores and even records at this distance.

The swimming stage takes place on the boat race track of the Maltańskie Lake. Athletes, thanks to the oblong shape of the lake, swim on the initial section of the route right next to the shore, and then return to the finish line right at the stands for more than 1500 people, offering support for the athletes already at the swimming stage, incomparable to any other events in the world. The shallow reservoir shielded from wind provides very favourable conditions for navigation and achieving short times of the swimming stage. Along the swimming direction there are small beacons facilitating keeping straight direction to the turnaround beacons.

Owing to a small amplitude of hills, very broad roads with top-quality pavement and a limited number of bends, the cycling route makes it possible to obtain exceptional time results. The cycling route goes along a two-lane national road both in the very city and outside it, going through smaller towns. As a result, athletes can count on excellent support from the fans almost within the whole route of the competition. It is a route making it possible to successfully beat the time records of the cycling stage at this distance.

On the other hand, the run takes place on both Old Town and an asphalt sidewalk around the Maltańskie Lake. The running course, similarly to the cycling one, is not hilly and runs entirely through picturesque areas through Old Town in Poznan. At each loop, the athletes run right at the stands among thousands of supporters, which creates an incredible atmosphere, comparable to no other triathlon event in Poland, and few other events in the world.”

Amongst the Elite, who should we be watching out for?

Ewa Bugdoł POL was world champion in 2015 in Weihai and has been using the home advantage by settling in nice and early at the race venue. “Dzisiaj jeszcze cisza i spokój… Pogoda około 26C.  Gotowi? It’s very peaceful here today at the Maltanskie Lake. Weather about 79F. Who’s ready?” Her photos from the venue can be seen on her blog and it looks really good there already. She will of course be hoping that the home advantage plays into her hands but Alyssa Godesky USA, although not eligible for any ETU medal, has a strong ultra-running background and could well be a threat on the final 42k run. Moving up from the standard and sprint distances we will see Hanna Maksimova BLR racing. A top ten in the pouring rain in Tartu shows that she is race fit but this event is a huge step up from her usual distances. She will be joined by Croatia’s Sonja Škevin who also usually races the shorter circuit. If neither get to the podium it will be exciting nevertheless to see how they perform. Germany will be hoping that with results like a 1st at Challenge Almere-Amsterdam (Full Distance) and 2nd  at Triathlon Vitoria-Gasteiz (Full Distance), ESP in 2015 will lead Kathrin Walther to the podium.

For the full start list, please click this link.

For the men, Ukraine-born Anton Blokhin BLR, will hope that his silver in IM Barcelona in 2015 will be a solid enough foundation to provide him with a chance for a place on the podium. Jaroslav Kovačič SLO, took the silver last year in Weymouth. His powerful swim led him out onto the bike course and despite then getting the third fastest bike and run, his swim and transition skills took him comfortably to the second position. Will 2016 be his chance to step up to the top place? Not if Sergio Marques POR has anything to do about it. In Weymouth, the chilly waters of the English Channel meant that throughout the race he was playing catch up with the Slovenian. In Poznań, the warmer waters might just work to his advantage.

For a full start list, please click this link.

Amongst the Age Group athletes we will see all ages compete. From 20 up to 75, wearing their national uniforms, the Age Group athletes will make the city come alive.

As usual, Team GB, is one of the biggest teams. Some will be trying to improve upon their 2015 results. Sarah Leakey GBR won silver last year. Against Agnieszka Pelc-Wanielista POL who has a 1:28 half marathon time this year, she will have to work hard. Cédric Largajolli FRA will be hoping that his training has gone well enough to improve on last year’s bronze. His 3:27 marathon time in Weymouth is impressive enough but when you think about the 180k tough bike he had done to get there, well … chapeau! Sweden will be watching the race to see how Rasmus Sellehed gets on after his 5th in Motala in 2015. It is nice to see Tamara Larizza return to the ETU-Challenge events after her victory in Paguera in 2015. A six-minute margin saw her take gold back to Switzerland. Helene Rossiter GBR, took silver last year over the longer distance and may well be better-prepared for the Polish Challenge. Kristina Beckendorf DEN has a world title from Motala and a silver from Rimini. Her 2015 season looked good. Can it get better in 2016? GB’s Anthony Webb will want to keep the title, “European Champion” to himself after Weymouth as he races in the 40-44 category having won the race last year when he was at the older end of the previous age-group. Karen Bridge has had back to back silvers in 2014 and 2015 but the British athlete will face stiff competition from Denmark’s Marianne Schøler. Portugal and Great Britain will be going head to head in the Men’s 45-49 category as the silver and bronze medallists from 2015 are both racing. Paulo Margarido POR and Kenneth Holder GBR had a tremendous battle on the bike last year. The power of Holder on two wheels was not enough though and the faster pace on the Portuguese athlete took him to gold. With titles in Cross Duathlon and Winter Triathlon Spain’s Maria Isabel Zapata Dominguez will be seeking to add at least a medal to her collection but against Denmark’s Anita Thoning she will have to work hard. In the men’s 50-54 category, watch out for Bernd Markgraf GER as he races against GB’s Alexander Telfer. Telfer’s fast pace over the marathon was not quite enough to make up for time lost on the bike. A year later …. Could be interesting! Germany’s Golden Couple, Marianne and Hans-Peter Grünebach are here to race. Marianne has made several podium appearances but has yet to take the title. Hans-Peter, however, has been collecting golds, silvers and bronzes since 2009 on the ETU and ITU circuit and they both race cross, winter and long distance events. Latvia will be hoping that Raimonds Garenciks can come home with a medal. His main opponent, on paper at least, is GB’s Ron Skilling.

Watch the race live.

Moving westwards and we come to Riga. This event is fast-growing into a “must-do” race. The LOC has such enthusiasm and the promotion of the race that welcomes all age-groups for a celebration of races in the morning. The LOC is expecting some 300 athletes to race this weekend and for those who race in the morning, they will have a chance to watch the 2016 Riga ETU Triathlon Junior European Cup in the afternoon.

“LatSwimShop” will be proving a trade stand for the visitors to get their race gear and with support like this from local businesses, the LOC can show strong local support.

Volunteers are an all-important part of any event and if you want to help out there, just click this link.

A massive gallery of images are available that shows how well the event has grown. This year the focus turns to the Junior Athletes and this will be a great chance for further development in the region of the next generation of triathletes and those on the start list have had some good results this year already.

With a strong performance in Burgas, Ekaterina Matiukh RUS wearing number 1 will hope to get back onto the podium after missing out in Tartu when she raced Elite. Her 9th in Holten, also when she raced Elite, suggests that her depth and strength in swim, bike and run could well see her take this race for her own. Simona Šimůnková CZE, has a gold and a silver already this season, having won the Châteauroux ETU Aquathlon European Championships and missing out in Kupiškis against Latvia’s Daniela Leitāne. Paula-Brit Siimar EST, as Baltic Champion, will come to the race with confidence but will face stiff competition. Relatively new on the circuit, she is certainly one to watch.

8 nations racing. Check out the start list here.

For the men we can welcome athletes from Colombia and South Africa. In fact, it is a Colombian who takes pole position. Eduardo Londoño Naranjo. He took a bronze in Tabor last year and is back now to see if he can improve. South Africa’s Dylan Nortje joined in the fun in Tiszaújváros and so will be well-known to most of the competitors. Leading the Europeans is Vasily Krestyaninov RUS. A Kupiškis silver already, he will be hoping to beat Estonia’s Henry Räppo whose faster run pace was just too much.

14 nations are racing. Check out the start list here.

Further west again and we come to Rotterdam. This is a big one as the 2016 Rotterdam ETU Sprint Triathlon European Cup shares the stage with the ITU Paratriathlon World Championships and will be used to test the course for next year’s World Championships.

The weather here looks good. The venue looks fantastic and the city centre setting is quite amazing. Click the photo below to see the course.

A prize fund of 10.000 EUR will be shared between the men and women.

• 1st. 1,250 EUR
• 2nd. 1,000 EUR
• 3rd. 750 EUR
• 4th. 500 EUR
• 5th. 400 EUR
• 6th. 350 EUR
• 7th. 300 EUR
• 8th. 200 EUR
• 9th. 150 EUR
• 10th. 100 EUR

42 women will race for the € but also for the valuable ETU Points. Yes, ETU Rankings will be changed once more this weekend.  18 nations will be represented on the start line and the organisers must be delighted to see USA’s Kirsten Kasper following her gold as part of the victorious US Team in the World Mixed Relay Championships last weekend in Hamburg. Whilst she will not impact upon the Women’s Rankings she will nevertheless be the one to beat. Belgium’s Claire Michel will lead the Europeans out onto the pontoon, wearing number 2. A silver at the Chengdu World Cup was followed by a top-20 finishes in Stockholm. We welcome back to racing Italy’s Sara Dossena. Side-lined by injury, this amazingly powerful cyclist and runner, collected so many medals on the international circuit but never quite managed to get the gold. A mechanical failure robbed her of victory in the ETU Duathlon Championships in Alcobendas last year. If she has a good swim, then watch her race through on the bike and run. Dutch hopes will be upon another Kirsten. Young Kirsten Nuyes has a bronze already this year as a Junior but will here be racing against the older and more tactically-aware athletes. If anything, this will be a great opportunity to gauge her power. Watch out for GB’s Zoe Thomas. Although she did not get the result she wanted in Burgas at the ETU U23 Championships, this powerful Welsh athlete’s power on the saw her ride solo from the chase group to the lead pack, bridging a massive gap. We might see her work with fellow Brit, Georgia Taylor-Brown who, after a short break from racing on the ETU / ITU circuit, came back to test herself at the incredibly tough Cagliari World Cup earlier this year. Germany’s Delphine Halberstadt posted the fastest run in Burgas and narrowly missed out on the medals. On this course, her strength on the final 5k might well give her a top ten place.

For the full start list, please click here.

The results from this race might not impact on the top three places in the Men’s Ranking but with 61 athletes from 22 nations and with the athletes coming to the race in great form, we can expect some exciting and fast racing. Wearing Number 1 and from Spain is Francesc Godoy ESP. Having the silver last weekend in the hot Mediterranean sun of Altafulla, he knows his strength and we can expect to see him at the front end of the swim. Matthew Roberts AUS. No stranger to Europe, he has fond memories of Châteauroux, where he won gold and of Holten where he took the bronze in the Junior Cups. Dutch fans will be cheering on Marco Van Der Stel whose spectacular dive last weekend in Hamburg won prizes. On this course, with the shorter swim, watch out for the immensely powerful Jorik Van Egdom.His strength on the bike is a major threat to all. Only U23, he can race and beat most on two wheels and in Kalkar posted the fastest bike split of all athletes. When he raced in Cagliari, despite leaving the water towards the back of the pack, he raced through on the technically challenging and hilly course. With a home crowd and with the technical course here, he will do well. Menno Koolhaas adds further with to the Dutch team. A bronze on home soil in Weert earlier this year boosted his points and confidence. The Swiss bring Sylvain Fridelance who missed out on the podium in the rain of Tartu. He is joined by Max Studer moving up from the junior ranks but if it comes down to a sprint finish, you can generally put your faith in Switzerland’s Adrien Briffod. He has yet to reproduce his form from 2015 but together they can work well and a top ten place is not to be ruled out. GB will hope that Netherlands = Medals once again with Douglas Roberts, who won silver in Weert on the back of a top ten finish in Melilla. With Sam Dickinson, silver medal in the Junior European Championships in Lisbon and then two golds at Kitzbühel and Holten, he has shown that he really is on fire this year.

For a full start list, please click here.