NDR-Sport: Hamburg Triathlon World Cup: The KO format should add to the excitement

The Hamburg Triathlon Championship is held for the 21st time. It starts on Thursday – with a change of heart: in the elite, the new Eliminator format should provide more excitement and entertainment.

Here the athletes have to qualify for the final over the sprint distance (300m swim, 7km cycling, 1.5km run) via preliminary heats and semi-finals. Qualifying starts on Friday with a total of 60 players (30 men and 30 women). 15 of them made it to the final.

The athletes start in two groups for each gender, with the ten fastest women and men qualifying directly for the final three runs. For the five remaining spots in the finals, the remaining twenty male and female athletes compete in two consecutive heats and determine the five remaining contestants.

Athletes are eliminated in each round

On Saturday there will be three final rounds with 15 male and female players, where the five worst men and five women will be eliminated in each round. The final rounds are timed so tightly, that there is hardly any time for the athletes to regenerate.

The men start the first final round at 4.20pm, and the women at 4.55pm. The second round begins at 5:30 PM and 6:05 PM, respectively, the final round with the five finalists approximately an hour later (6:40 PM and 7:15 PM). In such tight races, it’s all about the changes, which also give outsiders a chance.

Hopes rest on Tertsch and Lindemann

German champions Lisa Tertsch and Laura Lindemann, who finished second at last year’s European Championships, have a good chance of reaching the final. Lena Meissner, Annika Koch, Marilyn Gomez Google, who finished third in the German championship, and Annabelle Knoll belong to the group of finalists. International favorites include Cassandre Bogran (France), Beth Potter (Great Britain), Gene Leher (Luxembourg), Summer Rappaport and Tyler Spivey (both from the USA).

For men, Lasse Lührs as well as Lasse Priester and Tim Hellwig are medal contenders. They will face Matt Hauser (Australia), Alex Yee (Great Britain), Christian Blumenfelt (Norway), Hayden Wilde (New Zealand) and Vasco Villaca (Portugal).

Everyone competes for medals over two distances

Jedermann competes for medals over two distances at the Triathlon World Championships. On Saturday, 204 registered athletes will compete against each other in the 500-plus-meter swim, 20-kilometre bike and 5-kilometre run. The race over the Olympic distance (1.5km/40km/10km) starts on Sunday at 6.30am.

World Triathlon Championship schedule

Thursday, July 13:
From 17:00: Junior World Championships (0.75 km swim / 20 km bike / 5 km run)
From 7pm: World Junior Sprint Championships (0.75km / 20km / 5km)
Friday, July 14:
From 8 a.m.: Qualification of elite women and men (0.3 km – 7.5 km – 1.6 km)
From 12 noon: Age Groups – World Sprint Championships (0.5km / 20km / 5km)
From 7pm: Men’s and Women’s Repechage Elite (0.3km – 7.5km – 1.6km)
Saturday 15 July:
From 7.30 am: open race – men / women sprint distance (0.5 km / 20 km / 5 km)
From 1pm: U23/Juniors Mixed Relay (0.3km – 7.0km – 1.6km per athlete)
4.20pm: Men’s and Women’s Elite Finals (0.3km – 7.5km – 1.6km)
Sunday 16 July:
From 6.30am: Open Race – Men’s / Women’s Olympic Distance (1.5km / 40km / 10km)
From 2:15pm: Elite Mixed Relay (0.3km – 7.0km – 1.6km per athlete)

This topic in the program:
Hamburg Journal | 07/13/2023 | At 19:30