Ironman World Champion Gustav Iden and three-time Olympic gold medallist Jonathan Brownlee are among the star names ready to race as Arena Games Triathlon prepares for its World Championship Series final in London on April 8.
Norwegian star Iden, who won the coveted long distance title in Kona last year to add to his two Ironman 70.3 World Championships, is dropping back down to short distance racing ahead of a push for the Paris Olympics in 2024.
Brownlee also has his eyes set on Paris and an attempt at a staggering fourth Olympic medal, and will be cheered on by home fans at the London Aquatics Centre at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.
Also coming in for the event are Britain’s Beth Potter, the 2022 Arena Games Triathlon champion, fresh off her maiden WTCS victory in Abu Dhabi, as well as France’s Cassandre Beaugrand, who took the win in London last year.
The four stars cannot compete for the overall World Championship title, which is decided by a best result from either of the first two events of the Series in Montreal or Switzerland plus the final, but will make things very interesting as they add further competition to a stacked field that includes 18 of the top 20 ranked women and men in the Series.
The favourites to become the official triathlon esports World Champions are Chase McQueen and Henri Schoeman in the men’s field and Gina Sereno and Zsanett Bragmayer in the women’s.
American couple McQueen and Sereno produced a fairy tale day at the first event of the Series in Montreal as they both stormed to victory. The second event in Sursee, Switzerland, belonged to 2018 Commonwealth Games winner and 2016 Olympic bronze medallist Schoeman, who finished second behind McQueen in Montreal, and Bragmayer.
There is also plenty of British interest aside from Brownlee and Potter for home fans with Olivia Mathias – second in Sursee – Kate Waugh, Dan Dixon and Jack Stanton-Stock all racing. In addition, 15-year-old sensation Fanni Szalai, who stunned the triathlon world with a podium performance in her first ever race as an elite in Switzerland, will also race again in London.
