Posted: August 29, 2007

Triathlon: World Championships start with Juniors and Under23

HAMBURG, Germany - This Friday the ITU will crown four new triathlon world champions. The Hamburg BG Triathlon World Championships kick off with the men's and women's junior and under23 categories. The day starts with more than 65 junior women from 27 countries taking the start line at 8:30am (all times CEST). Last year's bronze medalist Rebecca Robisch of Germany looks to take a step up on the podium while getting the home country started with a flourish. Great Britain's Hollie Avil is a serious contender after having won the junior European championships earlier this summer. Others to watch are Canadian Paula Findlay, this year's junior Pan American champion, as well as Ukrainian Yuliya Yelistratova, who finished 4th in the elite women's race at the Tiszaujvaros BG Triathlon World Cup two weeks ago. A full field of 80 junior men follows and all eyes will be on Brit Alistair Brownlee. The defending junior world champion and this year's junior European champ is the odds-on favorite to win it all again. If he does, he'll become just the second junior man to repeat as world champion. But he'll face opposition from Aurélien Raphael of France, a bronze medalist from 2005 and last year's junior European champion, Joao Silva of Portugal, this year's junior European Duathlon champion and American Gregory Billington, last year's junior aquathlon world champion. The women's under23 race isn't the largest field but it will be highly competitive and without a clear pre-race favorite. Britain will have yet another serious threat for a world title with Rosie Clarke. She's coming off a victory at the Under23 European championships last month in Finland. Camille Cierpik of France took the bronze at that event and will be eager to best Clarke here in Hamburg. In the men's under23 field, Russian Alexander Brukhankov appears to be the overwhelming favorite but the big Russian has yet to win junior or under23 gold at a major race. Last year in Lausanne he was runner-up to Brownlee, he was second to Raphael in the Junior European championships and this year he again settled for silver at the Under23 European champs. Will Hamburg be Brukhankov's first major win? He's been on the world cup podium twice this year already so it's clear he can compete with the big boys. Ritchie Nicholls, the man who topped him in Finland, will be among Brukhankov's prime challengers. This is the 19th edition of the world championships in ITU history and the first time held in Germany. The junior division features a half-Olympic distance and has been part of the ITU world championships since 1991. The Under23 category is the full Olympic distance and was first introduced in 2002. The elite women will race on Saturday and the elite men on Sunday. Full race results and reports will be available immediately after each event. For up-to-date athlete start lists and race information: Triathlon.org. Subscribe to the Runner's Web Weekly Digest