Posted: June 6, 2004

Triathlon: Edmonton Race Focus for Canadian Olympic Hopefuls

EDMONTON, June 4: Results from the upcoming Edmonton World Cup triathlon will be the deciding factor in naming the 2004 Canadian Olympic triathlon team. Natasha Filliol, Canada’s 3rd ranked female triathlete, is in town today to test the Hawrelak Park course as part of her preparation for the ITU World Cup event to be held in the city on July 11th. Natasha, ranked 17th in the world, is currently one of three triathletes in contention for the final spot available on the women’s team.

"There are going to be three of us fighting for the final spot in Edmonton," said 24 year-old Natasha. "It will be a hard fought battle and I’m prepared for the race of my life!”

Having finished as the top Canadian female at the recent World Championships in Portugal, Filliol now has her sights on Edmonton’s ITU World Cup event. The race through the river valley will provide the final opportunity for Natasha to realize her Olympic dream.

Filliol is confident she will perform well in Edmonton. “The bike and run elements have always been my strongest and the Edmonton course suits those strengths,” said the former six-time national junior champion. “I’ve spent a lot of time in Florida working on my swim so I’m hoping to have it all come together when I race here in July.”

Based on international rankings, Canada is eligible to send up to three women and two men to Athens. At this time, current Olympic champion Simon Whitfield, together with Canada’s top ranked Jill Savege and Commonwealth Games champion, Carol Montgomery, are the only Canadians who have secured their place on the team headed to Athens in August.

The elite World Cup races will be part of a daylong triathlon festival. The line up of events this year also includes the Pan-American Junior Championship featuring international junior athletes, the Provincial Age-Group Championship and the one-lap Try-this-Tri and TRI-ing for Kids races. Local politicians and business leaders will compete in the latter to raise funds for two local children’s charities – Kids Kottage and ABC Headstart.

Organizers expect more than 800 athletes and 30,000 spectators to attend this year’s triathlon festival. Grandstand tickets for the July 11th event are now on sale at Ticketmaster

The event website is at: www.triedmonton.com.