Olympic Games Triathlon: What WTCS Abu Dhabi skill for Paris 2024 qualification puzzle

The tip tier of draft-honest racing, the World Triathlon Championship Sequence, returns this coming Friday (March 8) as the motorway to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games triathlon hots up. The now familiar starting up level of the Yas Marina Circuit will host the 2024 version of WTCS Abu Dhabi and it’s an keen prospect – no longer honest in the case of who makes the rostrum.

As it’s most likely you’ll perchance well presumably ask, there are some spectacular open lists scheduled to urge over the Dash distance (Girls and Men), with the first facets on offer in direction of World Triathlon Championship honours in 2024, titles earned last year by Beth Potter and Dorian Coninx.

Surely, there will be a parallel story running your total skill till late July, as we are now in an Olympic year, and Paris 2024 is asking. Kristian Blummenfelt and Flora Duffy both secured the World and Olympic double in 2021, but what segment will Abu Dhabi play in the Olympic qualification course of this year?

Let’s preserve shut a thought at about a of the aptitude storylines to be conscious this weekend, that can hold via the first segment of the season.

How Olympic qualification slots work

There’s no person-size-suits-all in terms of particular person athlete qualification for Paris 2024, as the implementation and introduction of option policies (or indeed merely leaving to selector discretion), rests with every National Federation.

That said, Abu Dhabi (plus Yokohama and Cagliari), will play a key segment in determining what number of athletes a Federation will be ready to capture for the Games. The utmost sequence of quota slots (3) that can perchance even be earned for the Men’s and Girls’s Particular person events requires that nation to have three athletes ranked contained in the tip 30 of the World Triathlon Particular person Olympic Qualification Rankings as the Would possibly perchance presumably presumably also 27, 2024 qualification window closes.

As of the time of writing, the nations who currently meet this are as follows:

• WOMEN: France, Sizable Britain, Germany, USA
• MEN: France, Germany, Hungary

For the males, France and Germany’s space is all but assured such is their depth. For a country love Spain, the chance to transfer from two to a couple slots for his or her males appears very real looking. They currently have 5 athletes contained in the tip 40, with three of these honest on the threshold of that high 30. A sturdy outcome from European Champion, David Castro Fajardo as an illustration, would no doubt enhance their prospects of a Spanish trio in Paris.

All four nations currently in space to voice three slots for the females’s particular person races in Paris are sturdy favourites to abet that space via to the discontinue of Would possibly perchance presumably presumably also. Of the nations looking out to be part of them, Italy are no doubt one in every of the frontrunners with Ilaria Zane (ranked #34) and Alice Betto (#45) both racing this Friday.

Final analysis then, outdoor of particular person performances, is that Abu Dhabi can play a segment in determining what number of slots a nation can come by, and we’ll be tracking these modifications up to the Would possibly perchance presumably presumably also lower-off. And honest to confuse issues (!), the athletes who execute these slots, are no longer robotically the athletes awarded them…

France – How issues stand for Les Bleus

If we are referencing Paris 2024, then clearly now we must focus on the French squad. As highlighted above, as of now no longer lower than, they are one in every of most efficient two nations that currently appears to be space to qualify three athletes in both particular person races. Clearly, they are one in every of the strongest nations in the immediate-course sport.

Already ‘qualified’ are 2023 World Champion, Dorian Coninx, the WTCS Sunderland winner, Pierre Le Corre and 2023 World Championship silver medallist Cassandre Beaugrand. Now, the gap off of the single quotes around qualified is that even their efforts in 2023 haven’t pretty fulfilled the entirety of the incredibly tricky French qualification criteria. That extra step, with a confirmation of fitness in 2024, would be definite by one in every of:

• A podium come by in Abu Dhabi, or
• High-six come by in either of Yokohama or Cagliari

Whereas Le Corre will no longer urge this coming weekend in the UAE, a high-three come by for Coninx and/or Beaugrand would in the smash tick every qualification field for them and preserve shut away any lingering tiny print. Whereas it feels no longer seemingly that either athlete would be deselected, Friday affords the first opportunity to hold 100% definite.

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the French team’s selection discussions begins with the presence of both Léo Bergere and Vincent Luis. Both are World Champions and Super League Triathlon Championship Series winners in recent years, yet one of these superstars looks set to miss out on the big dance, and provide the sort of selection dilemma which every other nation can really only dream of. Abu Dhabi won’t determine that decision, but the desire to catch the selectors’ attention will provide another interesting race within a race.

Team GB – Who joins Potter and Yee in Paris?

There will be no automatic selection available to the the Brits this weekend – but that doesn’t mean that results won’t be closely watched, and could factor into selection discussions in early June.

Beth Potter of course has already booked her slot, but with the presence alongside her of Sophie Coldwell, Georgia Taylor-Brown and Kate Waugh, there’s a full complement of other British female WTCS podium finishers from 2023 present. I’ve previously outlined the British selection process, and – confirmed by British Triathlon’s Performance Director in November – all three secured results that would tick the ‘genuine medal contender’ box.

There are masses of others who’ve plans to be in the option mix – Vicky Holland, Jess Learmonth, Olivia Mathias, Sophie Alden and extra – but correct now no longer lower than, that trio are in high space to hold their claims for one in every of the two remaining slots.

A foremost outcome this weekend would no doubt lend a hand, but even a capture won’t stable the relaxation. With the Olympic Games taking space over the 1.5/40/10 distance, the most important urge for any most likely GB Olympian this season, in the case of qualification, is WTCS Cagliari, Italy. The importance of that urge became confirmed by Mike Cavendish, British Triathlon’s Performance Director in that November interview.

What we’ve tried to voice to the athletes is, for these that recede to Cagliari, hold it very no longer seemingly for us no longer to capture you.

Mike Cavendish, British Triathlon Performance Director

Curiously, there is nearly an analogous historical precedent here. Leading into Rio 2016, Jodie Stimpson won in Abu Dhabi – after which each and every week later added extra success on the Mooloolaba World Cup. That made her apparently the favourite to be part of Non Stanford and Vicky Holland in Brazil. Nonetheless, the principle option urge had continuously been space as World Triathlon Gold Cruise a month later. There, Helen Jenkins produced one in every of the greatest performances of her occupation – ending Gwen Jorgensen’s nearly two year unbeaten sprint in the intention – and earned her third Olympic Games open.

It’s a vivid line then for athletes to level hold and fitness, whereas restful radiant their key option intention is 11 weeks away.

For the British males, issues are a miniature bit utterly different to my eyes. With Alex Yee already selected, it appears to be love there will most efficient be one extra slot on hand. Unlike the females – objectively, based mostly totally mostly on 2023 WTCS performances – no person is currently in that ‘proper particular person medal contender’ category either. Things can switch like a flash clearly, but correct now, there will be a neighborhood of athletes thinking that there’s no longer lower than an opportunity there to be grabbed – and that takes us to ‘Segment 4’ of the option protection, particularly relay specialists / pilot athletes. It’s a potentially vast opportunity too, as becoming a member of Yee alongside any two of the chosen GB females in the Mixed Relay in Paris is finally a podium opportunity.

Becoming a member of Yee this weekend are Daniel Dixon and Max Stapley, two younger guns who will be amongst these looking out to heart of attention on that opportunity. With the Mixed Relay tournament taking space on Saturday (and no Paris qualification factors for Personnel GB on that entrance), I suspect – indeed, I hope – both will be given an opportunity to showcase their most likely there. Abet an see on their races in the particular person too – both very honest appropriate swimmers, could well one or both be looking out to potentially lend a hand Alex Yee must the need come up, one thing Stapley tried to place into effect in Pontevedra?

United States – Let battle open

In automatic qualification terms no longer lower than, the Personnel US window of opportunity is even shorter than that for Sizable Britain. They are in a identical space, with a wealth of abilities in the females’s discipline, all looking out out out to voice one in every of the two remaining slots alongside the already qualified Taylor Knibb.

Whereas the Brits’ key urge is Cagliari, for the U.S. athletes their heart of attention falls two weeks earlier in Yokohama. The first athlete to come by in the tip three (who’s rarely any longer already qualified) will come by auto option. Meaning, for the females no longer lower than (who are all but definite of earning three starting up slots), that discretionary option(s) will be made. With the USAT protection explicitly citing that shall be on the premise of ‘athletes who can elevate out or make a contribution to a podium outcome in the particular person tournament and/or to the mixed relay tournament’, then that adds extra weight to both Particular person and Mixed Relay events this weekend.

Attention-grabbing to conceal double Tokyo medallist Katie Zaferes doesn’t even come by to open in the UAE this week, with the 5 USA slots crammed by their high-5 ranked athletes in the recent World Triathlon Rankings (Spivey, Rappaport, Knibb, Kasper, Jorgensen). As an different, Zaferes will urge on the Americas Triathlon Championships in Miami – also on Friday – which is segment of the CLASH Miami / PTO T100 weekend.

Down Below

The latest AusTriathlon option protection (HERE) signifies a switch to the skill originally posted last year. Apparently space to come by two slots for both the ladies and men (and with Matthew Hauser already assured of 1), there became in the open the possibility of a high-5 come by in a WTCS Dash urge (which would must have been Abu Dhabi) being a route to automatic option. That’s now no longer in space, with – love USAT – the Australian option now focussed on WTCS Yokohama, a high-eight come by there will be honest ample.

Callum McClusky and Sophie Linn secured vital wins recently on the World Triathlon Cup Napier, and rather then that Would possibly perchance presumably presumably also intention in Japan, will must continue their progress and hold, in the most likely seemingly scenario that discretionary picks will be made.

Mixed Relay diversifications

It’s worth noting the Federations also must qualify their nations for the Mixed Personnel Relay in Paris. Three of these are already known (France, Sizable Britain and Germany), with one more six nations going to the next six National Olympic Committees (NOCs) in the World Triathlon Mixed Relay Olympic Qualification Ranking. Currently, that’s Original Zealand, Switzerland, Australia, USA, Italy and Portugal.

Provided that Abu Dhabi is the last WTCS Mixed Relay tournament forward of the March 25 2024 lower-off for that particular rating, ask about a nations to be placing out some sturdy teams to preserve shut a thought at and shut off that field early.

All is rarely any longer lost nonetheless, as there is one closing ‘World Triathlon Mixed Relay Olympic Qualification Tournament’ in Huatulco, Mexico on 17 Would possibly perchance presumably presumably also the build two extra nations can qualify. And honest to confuse issues extra (!), any nation that qualifies two males and two females to the Games, irrespective of the route, will come by to discipline a team in the mixed relay tournament.

Personnel Norway missed out last time around (but has since won the European Games), but the difficulty will be extra relating to for the Netherlands. A honest appropriate fourth in Tokyo, the Dutch are currently sitting 17th in the Mixed Relay Olympic Rankings, and with most efficient Richard Murray (54th) contained in the tip 140 of the Particular person Olympic Rankings. As of this day they’ve work to attain to even hold it to the Paris open line.

Seize the popcorn!

There will be masses extra narratives to be conscious at some stage in lots of nations as the season will get below skill, as outcomes, hold, accidents, rankings and extra are all prone to play their segment on the motorway to Paris.

We’ll be following it closely – so tune in and be conscious the action with us.