Variety and depth have been the catch words of the ITU World Triathlon Series so far this season with five different athletes on the podium in just two events. You can expect a few more new faces to emerge as the eight-race series visits Yokohama in Japan this weekend.
The downtown course is a stunner, taking in one of the largest urban national parks in Japan, Yamashita Park, offering stunning views of the Bay Bridge and Minato Mirai and superb spectator vantage points around the multi-lap course on both the bike and run.
Women’s Preview The women’s race is about as hard to predict as the results at the opening two races of the season. If Gwen Jorgensen (USA) repeats her stunning form from San Diego, she will be hard to beat. But any drop in form will open the door for a host of contenders, led by the well-performed Emma Moffatt (AUS), who so bravely led late into the action in San Diego despite cramping in both hamstrings.
Maaike Caelers (NED) was third last year behind the incredible sprint finish between Lisa Norden (SWE) and Anne Haug (GER) and will fancy her chances of another podium with neither of those two on the start line this year. A victory for Caelers will see her move up the overall rankings in the absence of series leaders Haug and Felicity Abram (AUS).
Jodie Stimpson (GBR) at her best is always a contender and she showed signs of that with a 5th place finish in San Diego after struggling in the cooler Auckland conditions to start the season, while Kate McIlroy (NZL) has quietly been going about training since a season opening 4th place finish in Auckland. The Kiwi was on the podium here in the 2011 race, making her familiar with the environment and conditions.
Ashleigh Gentle (AUS) enjoyed one of her best ever results with 6th in Yokohama last year and will be hoping for a repeat performance. The young Aussie has consistently featured in the top ten over the past year without yet breaking through to the podium.
The Japanese women were surprisingly off the pace last year with no athletes in the top ten and will race with the support of the local fans ringing in their ears to improve on that form. They won’t lack for numbers with Mariko Adachi, Juri Ide (currently third in the overall WTS rankings), Yuka Sato, Yuko Takahashi and Ai Ueda all lining up in front of friends and family.
