Here

Hopefully Frodeno and Brownlee will get wildcards and we will see all Olympics gold medallists since 2008

Brownlee should have been listed: he was ranked (#37) way higher than several on that list when the 'cut' was made (ranking list as at 27 March).
https://stats.protriathletes.org/rankings/men?set=78
I assume they are keeping back his name to increase the impact of the wild card announcements.
"a lot of big men missing it" maybe. Who is missing from MPRO:
Iden
Sanders
Long
Iden has to get his short course game back on track and has Yokohama on 14 May.
https://wtcs.triathlon.org/...ries_yokohama/576164

Side note: Can't imagine Blummenfelt will go well in Japan 7 days after a hard Ibiza 100km, but he's reigning Olympic Champion - having fun - and Paris is a way off.
Sanders and Long recognise (youtube self-asserted) they'd get a good thrashing, plus an element of 'Monro Doctrine' reluctance to travel.
Chartier (no race so far in 2023 - is he injured? or just deliberately starting his season late)
Skipper (racing Texas and then WT Long Distance World Champs on 7 May, Ibiza)
Hanson (racing Texas)
Wurf (racing Texas and then Ineos duties (assumed)) At least the antipodeans have Royle, Neumann and Smith flying the flags.
Shame there's not a single MPRO Spaniard: Dapena was ranked high enough (#32) to get a roll-down slot (in the published list).

Dammit i was hoping for brownlee vs jan vs kristian! Maybe even iden! And now you are telling me only jan and kristian!

Wierd with skipper, but i guess he knows the distance is too short to make up for the bad swim?

A lot of great athletes on the men's side, but I'm way more excited to watch the women's race.

His training has gone sideways in the lead up. Sick then injured. https://spotify.link/8jPDuc8lWyb

No chance of Gomez being included?

True womens have the big 4 plus mat + gentle.

Would need jan ali, iden and blume to match


Q: can Frodeno drop blummenfelt in the water?

great call - seems like this format would suit him really well. would just love to see a fit javi back in the game.

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https://lshtm.academia.edu/MikeCallaghan

http://howtobeswiss.blogspot.ch/

I can't even remember the last time he raced, nothing on his Insta indicates he's injured, I know someone on here said he's been suffering from long covid, I do miss seeing him race!

How can Gentle not be in 'the big 4' she's prety much the undisputed, undefeated champ?

Weird? No - what would he gain by racing 100km: chance of top 15 slim in a great SOF. And as an IM 'giant' he will be right up there for the World Triathlon LD World Champs win and (my estimate) better PTO Ranking points for an equivalent performance.
I'm not saying Brownlee won't be on the list. Wild cards are announced tomorrow: as said "I assume they are keeping back his name to increase the impact of the wild card announcements."
From CJWurf insta he is heading for IM Lanza in May (no mention of Texas).

https://files.constantcontact.com/...b8b-d6f69d45eccd.pdf
Gomez could get a wild card (as a nod to the host nation) but when an athlete has reached and stayed for several years on the top step, they have to be 'full on' ready. One assumes Frodeno is but no evidence: same with Gomez.

I think it was 70.3 Pucon last year. He won the race although it really wasn't a stacked field. He has been MIA ever since. Based on his IG he did some testing with Plews in NZ but he has been pretty quite after that. Just like A. Brownlee, they are both incredible athletes, but I get the feeling that their best days are now behind them.

Agree, and I'd also say that at this distance, an in form Knibb would need to be included for any "big #" discussion. Maybe hasn't won as many races but when she starts, she usually wins.

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Benjamin Deal - Professional - Instagram - TriRig - Lodi Cyclery
Deals on Wheels - Results, schedule, videos, sponsors

Knibb is the big miss for me too for prety much a full house of top women at this distance.

https://stats.protriathletes.org/rankings/women
Well given @lassekk's 'big 4' are the Kona WC podium plus the St George WC IM winner, at 100k Gentle has to be favourite, in the absence of Knibb. The latter is racing in Yokohama 8 days after the Ibiza race and targeting the Paris test event, with the aim of AQing for the fiercely competitive USA team: that's her focus. But certainly with Gentle in the 'big 6'.
It'd be great to see Knibb with LCB and Gentle out of the swim and then disappear up the road on the bike, setting up a chase for Gentle and likely Sodaro. Guess we'll have to wait till Lahti.
Unsure whether Matthews will prefer helping test Race Ranger the following day. The PTO race will be only 13 days since Texas and 4/9ths the distance.
EPB and Philipp, on good days, will be in the mix. Stalking them all: a 1:13:00 weapon which the top 10 will be intent to keep 'out of harms way'.

He recently revealed in an interview he has been injured (stress reaction in the femur). He was in very good shape before St. George and covid symptoms prevented him from getting back to fitness for the rest of the year. He will now focus on Nice, and I'd be surprised if he races in Ibiza as he is probably not as fit as he would like.
Also Dapena was meant to race WC in Ibiza but a foot injury has left him without running.

PD: Very good interview btw https://www.relevo.com/...230325191246-nt.html

Thanks for sharing, yeah before St. George I "saw" him a few times on Zwift and he was doing some serious indoor training rides ~3h on about 300 W. He was probably building his bike to close the gap to the best riders.

Think the wildcards are due to be announced today.
https://stats.protriathletes.org/...en/2023/participants?
MPRO (maybe 5), SOF=91:
Frodeno (confirmed after Blummenfelt called in a favour - https://www.instagram.com/p/Cq-UsrVuU3z/ )
Brownlee
Nieschlag
Brownlee junior? (Edit: VMT @ sidelined - is on Yokohama list)

WPRO (maybe 5), SOF=92:
Simmonds
Visser
Madsen
Oliveira
Buckingham

Lopez not on Yokohama list
https://triathlon.org/...ries_yokohama/544223
Surprised Byram is opting for the 100k: I'd have thought she would be more competitive in the WT LD champs
https://www.triathlon.org/...onships_ibiza/584060

https://protriathletes.org/media-releases/ibiza-wildcards-set-up-olympic-charged-duel-in-the-sun/


M: Jan Frodeno, Ali Brownlee, Cam Wurf, Justus Nieschlag
F: Amelia Watkinson, Sif Madsen, Anne Reischmann, Els Visser

Why Wurf? He'll be outrun by 8+ minutes, and no way he can put that much time into anyone.

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viewings

It's a show, he'll be entertaining and hopefully light up the bike course. Probably not - but who would you rather get the wild card?

I know...Van Riel, Geens, Bergere, but the olympic pathway is firmly in the way here...so really in LC tri, I can't think of a name that would be a bigger draw to the wild card list.

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DFRU - Detta Family Racing Unit...the kids like it and we all get out and after it...gotta keep the fam involved!

Oh boy! This will be amazing!
Do we think Jan and alistair can push the swim, drop kristian and work together to keep him at bay?
Who is able to swim with those two on the list? Bakkegaard?

Brownlee jnr is on the Yokohama list

you have also royle laidlow angert smith neuman nieschlag bishop rather strong swim field

you have also royle laidlow angert smith neuman nieschlag bishop rather strong swim field//

Yes the way it looks is that Jan and Ali may not even have to take a stroke into still water. If the boys are sharp and on their game, there should be a brutal swim in this race. The best swimmers are also the best bikers, so they will want a gap on Blu and anyone else back in the 2nd pack. Could be 6 or 7 in the lead bike pack well into the ride, so gonna be hard for anyone else to bridge up. Not an ideal situation for a guy like Long or Lionel, maybe they are giving this one a miss...

at the same time you have blum funk and ditlev meeting soon after the swim , and the front pack likely going to be blown into 2 packs after the swim
btw do we have a bike course yet ...

Hogenhaugh too?
All those 9 have an incentive to work on the bike.
Wurf might help Blummenfelt bridge up (Ditlev there also) but West will not be strong enough to stay with them.
If Brownlee is firing on all cylinders I have to fancy him winning the foot race if some of those 10 fish work well and have a gap in T2. 18km is a fair way, mind. Oceanside 2022 and PTO Canada run fails were an aberration.

Not sure why anyone even has Wurf in the mix here. He is going to be so shelled after the swim that he most likely wont even bridge up to 2nd bike path on the road. I think by now we know he is not dominant on the bike in these races, and now often doesnt even have the fastest bike split. The lead swimmers are going to drill the bike from K one, and the chasers will probably only be about 30 to 40 seconds back doing the same thing. Wurf is going to come out alone(well not with anyone that can help him on the ride) and will be drilling it alone.

I'm quite interested in the guys that havent raced in awhile, Laidlow, Jan, and Ali especially. They all may not be there at the end, but they will be drilling it all the way through the swim/bike and most of the run...Thinking Laidlow will take a flier on the bike at some point, his only recipe for a possible win with those runners..

Thanks for that link. That was a great interview. I would have loved to see him race in Ibiza. He's definitely one of my favorite triathletes of all time.

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http://dontletitdefeatyou.blogspot.com

Yeah, I agree he is popular, but he is going to be way off the back racing this distance against such a stacked field.

I predict Laidlow really drilling the swim and bike and blowing a ton of guys. He seems pretty fired up after many questioned his Kona ride. And as you said, it is his only chance so 100% certain he is going to go for it.

Personally, I am really enjoying these super stacked fields. Seeing about 15 names in the start list all with a reasonable chance to podium.

It is unfortunate that Long and Sanders will not race. I understand from a professional athlete perspective, i.e. crossing several time zones to get smashed at a race, is not very effective use of time and resources. But considering this will be one of Frodo's last races, it would have been cool to have as many athletes as possible.

Lionel wanted to race but missing 3 weeks of training is not the ideal prep for a start list like this.

Ya would have been fun to have Lionel, Sam, and Wurf in their own little chase group hammering to the front. But makes sense for both those guys to skip this, brutal travel and a super world class field. So absolutely would have to be on their 100% A game to even make the start.. Neither need any more mediocre races, either show up ready, or give it a miss..

I’ll get excited when they all take their first stroke in the water. Hate to be a Debbie Downer, but the Oceanside MPRO start list was looking stacked, until it wasn’t, and many others before it.

Gomez is the biggest miss here, imagine a scenario were Blum, Frodo and Ali B all come out of T2 together (OK just missing Iden also for a complete full house)

Gentle, Haug and Jewett coming onto that run together would be very tasty! (Ryf and LCB shoulder to shoulder a minute up the road)

That was always a WTS announcing classic!

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Aaron Bales
Lansing Triathlon Team

Frank is 40, no way he's going to be on big time invites anymore unless he puts up some results of note and I don't remember the last time he won a race.

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Washed up footy player turned Triathlete.

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Pink? Maybe. Maybe not. You decide.

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Maybe he needs to start a YouTube channel?

Who is Frank?

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Aaron Bales
Lansing Triathlon Team

Haha!

Sam Long is an entertaining (and competitive) guy but after last year I think he realised that he will focus on American races.
He spent a few weeks if not months in Europe last summer and was not able to perform well at races with a strong field.

He’s not alone and I find it quite clever that he seems to accept his limits.

The time zone thing could definitely be a thing if only coming for one race (like Collins Cup last year).
Collins Cup won't be an issue for the non Europeans this year since it will be at the end of the season (or almost during off-season).

Look up Francisco Gomez Noya and see what you find.


Well this promoter is actually just a media company so that might be the correct play.

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Washed up footy player turned Triathlete.

Learned something new today!

Interesting that he was born in Basel. Also, 5’10”? Okay Frank…

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Aaron Bales
Lansing Triathlon Team

i've said it before but i think it's a shame that ali and javi couldn't race st george - the way things shook down would have been very good for them. both would definitely have swum/biked with the braden pack out front, and might even have been able to push the ride a touch quicker. and then ... those two starting the marathon together? fireworks!

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____________________________________
https://lshtm.academia.edu/MikeCallaghan

http://howtobeswiss.blogspot.ch/

In the mix for what?

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"FTP is a bit 2015, don't you think?" - Gustav Iden

This is why Gomez not being in this race is a huge loss, with Frodo and Ali starting and with them all ageing and riddled with injuries the chance to have the three of them all line up in the same race are dwindling, maybe not so much Frodo but to have Gomez and Brownlee in the same race as you said fireworks!

In the mix for what?//

In the mix for having anything to do with the race up front. Because of how far back he will be in the swim, his race will not affect any of those up front. Some people talk like he is going to ride to the front and have some affect, not what I think will happen. Of course he could prove me wrong, but likely he will just get a lowly place outside top 10 and be among the bottom 2/3rds of the field that have no impact on others..

You have such a downer on those whose swim is not FoP. Do you think Blummenfelt is going to exit T1 with the gang of 12?
Wurf will be in the mix for . . . fun. This'll be an excellent warm-up / sharpener for Lanza a fortnight later. Wouldn't be the slightest surprise if he gets a seat above the salt on the Pro 'press conference'.

You have such a downer on those whose swim is not FoP. Do you think Blummenfelt is going to exit T1 with the gang of 12?//

Not really a downer, but being a realist. In this field he is BOP in the swim, so not even a sniff of the actual race going on up front. And Blu will probably be 2nd pack, I imagine the goal of the top swimmers will be to drill him off the back. And if he goes, a few more go with him too, so the race up front is cleaner and more defined. Get Blu on his back foot so to speak, and the incentive to hammer the bike just goes up a tiny notch.


So not down on Wurfie, just that like the SL race he thought he could do, this format is pretty lame for him and his strengths. Off the back in the swim, then lapped out on the 1st lap of the bike, this race will not be too much different, except he gets to finish no matter what happens up front with the speedsters.

what do you think wurf can run ,,, its not just his swim is weak the run as well in such a field. he could be a pretty good triathlete if he was to focus on it but he does not .

#11 in Kona and #18 fastest MPRO run. #36 in the PTO rankings so one ahead of Brownlee.
https://stats.protriathletes.org/rankings/men?set=78
On 28 March Wurf was asked if he wanted to accept a wildcard (and said yes) but he would have got a place at Ibiza on roll down.
Should I assume that you reckon Sanders and Long would both "not be in the mix" at Ibiza? Bergère, were he not headed for Yokohama, would be front pack in Ibiza. Long caught him in Camp Pendleton, and so would've Sanders ("anything to do with the race up front"). Are they better cyclists than Wurf? Marginal call. And Wurf finishes IM races he enters with more consistency than either of them (and Brownlee fwiw).
His presence brings fun, colour and humour to what promises to be a triathlon with the strongest field than ever seen.
Wetsuit swim.

I’m as pro-Wurf as we get, but I think the counter argument is that the front group after T1 will have some serious biking power. Way more than Oceanside.

Anyway, the point about whether Wurf is a top contender seems moot as nobody has seriously promoted it. I’ve seen someone question the wild card and that’s preposterous in a different way*. Wurf would have more than enough potential to perform in the race to be granted a wild card. The colorful personality and the profile of a guest in the sport of triathlon is just a nice bonus.

* (unless the problem with the wildcard is that he would’ve gotten to race based on the roll down - but that’s just how the allocation system works scheduling wise)

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"FTP is a bit 2015, don't you think?" - Gustav Iden

Yes he ads fun, agreed.

Not nearly fast enough. We all know run splits have gotten ridiculous the last couple years and although Wurf has improved his run he’s probably lost ground to the fastest runners. Add to this that the others have improved their bike times he’s lost even more total ground.

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Let food be thy medicine...

I had this same tedious debate when they put Wurf in Superleague, he's a big name and he brings a bit of interest to the race, we know he's got no chance of winning but neither has half the field, I'd rather he be included than pro triathlete Bloggs who usually comes 20-30th.

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Yeah but this is Slowtwitch where the fans are fickle and don't seem to understand the real star power that Cam Wurf and Ineos bring to any race in any country outside of the USA and Canada.

As long as you say Wurf racing SL was pure gimmick I'd have no issue (and a smart gimmick to get eye balls). But the moment you think he would not be lapped out at the earliest spot, is where I was pushing back. He was never going to be competitive 10 strokes after the swim start.

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Brooks Doughtie, M.S.
Exercise Physiology
-USAT Level II

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Who cares? He gets the invites because of who he is and his connections.People get so pissed off here about Cam,it is hilarious.

Who was pissed? It was clear he was going to be a gimmick and it was clear he was going to get whipped.

Did you not like to want to hear that part?

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Brooks Doughtie, M.S.
Exercise Physiology
-USAT Level II

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You are being a fucking dick AGAIN mate. I have said repeatedly that Cam is living the dream and that his invites to these events are because of his connections to Macca and others in the industry. Cam himself admits that it is all in fun.

sounds like we are all agreed.and we can leave it there.

I don't remember saying otherwise, it was always going to be interesting seeing Wurf biking on a SL course, and again I thought his inclusion was more interesting than most the start list who had no chance of winning also.

One for the Frodeno fans

Haug and Frodeno: rocking it for the quadragenerians!

He is just being realistic and logical. Wurf is one of the "cool kids" in this forum because he is a good cyclist. People often mistakenly remember him as some legendary pro cyclist (he never won a single race) He is one heck of a triathlete, but he is just not going to be competitive at this distance and this level.

He's one of the cool kids not because "he can bike, and none of us can swim or run", but because (a) he doesn't fit the stereotype (b) he does whatever the f he feels like doing (pro cycling where he's average, World Cup and Super League where he's guaranteed last place), and not what you're expecting him to do (c) he's got a mad sense of humour, is great in interviews and likes to troll fellow athletes.

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"FTP is a bit 2015, don't you think?" - Gustav Iden

Wurf

Nieschlag: "I decided to withdraw from PTO European Open in Ibiza (Achilles)"
Not the wild card people might have expected to 'fold'.
But as @cherry bomb said "I’ll get excited when they all take their first stroke in the water."

https://protriathletes.org/...r/european-open/pro/
Open this and scroll down about one third: 2.3km out to the by-pass and then 9.6km out to a 180/roundabout and back: 4 laps and then back in to T2 (2.4km). Measurements are mine. (4.7 + (19.2x4)= 81.5km.
Looks very 'exciting' but one has to assume minimal chance of any spectators getting beyond that first and last mile from T1/T2 (maybe via Sa Tanqueta to the San Rafael (tunnel)).

well nieschlag is very injury prone, at the same time like most dan lorang atheltes when they stand on the startline that usually means they are ready.

thanks for the bike course update I appreciate that

Pity that Nieschlag is not 100% fit. He would have been at the pointy end of the race. It would be exciting to see the rest of the season with him around…..

gustav is out too - wants to focus on short course training and racing for the time being.

blu will apparently continue doing to the impossible.

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https://lshtm.academia.edu/MikeCallaghan

http://howtobeswiss.blogspot.ch/

Iden was never on the start list. Guess the surprising winner of the PTO US Open last September will be missing too, now. (edit: not referring to Gentle)
https://ita.sport/ita-news/ I'm not going to start that thread.

Keulen has replaced Nieschlag on the start list, which is 28 strong (MPRO):
https://www.tri247.com/...-bib-numbers-pro-men
This really is shaping up, if they all toe the line, to be the strongest ever field. Iden ought to have FOMO but he has to get that Olympic selection: key part of his Faustian pact with Norges Triatlonforbund (I assume).
WPRO start list: no obvious changes: https://www.tri247.com/...ib-numbers-pro-women
From the ranking list, only Duffy and Derron missing (McCauley flying the S&S alone). Matthews(?) and Astle to race the following day in WTLD champs, against Frades, Pierré and Thoes.

Excited to see how much gap key athletes can put into mesdames Haug, Sodaro, Gentle and Jewett.
How to watch and 6 May start times: https://www.tri247.com/...me-how-to-watch-live

Episode 2: Jan Frodeno, Daniela Ryf: Not Done Yet | Countdown to PTO European Open

I wish they went with a different tone for their videos. They are all way too dramatic.

What time in the US will this air?

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-Of course it's 'effing hard, it's IRONMAN!
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I am looking forward to watching this...
My favourite within the women is LCB, yes, before Ash Gentle...can´t wait to see that. Then my pick for podium is Tamara Jewett...Haug and Sodaro will be top 5.
Men: Blum vs Frodo vs Alistair. I don´t think there is anybody else who could be close to them but Laidlow. Another guy, IMO, that could be top 5 is Kyle Smith. Still, LD specialists have to prove against ITU or former ITU guys that don´t lose more than 1m in the swim and can run sub 1.08 in half marathons, otherwise game over. We see it over and over again in 70.3, even with guys with will not show up: Iden, Bergere, Luis, Gomez, Van Riel, Royle... Iden has never been a top 5-10 guy in ITU, neither Nieschlag nor Bishop..but they are at the top of the game in MD

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Spaniard. Sorry for my english for the sensitive ones :P

Been meaning to nab you when I seen you in here, off topic a little bit but some questions about the Spanish, what's happening with Gomez, Mola, Alarza and Routier?

All the Spanish gone AWOL from competition?

How I would LIKE to see it end

Frodo
Brownlie
Blum

How I THINK it will end

Blum
Laidlow
Ditlev

Gustav isn't racing.

Thank you for that.

Does that lower his chances of winning lol

Ok I edited my picks. I knew it was one off the Norwegians :)

There was an excellent little interchange between Ali and Frodo on Instagram, after Frodo posted he was ordering a family sized package of cotton wool in the lead up to this race. Ali agreed it was a good idea.

Hopefully they both get there. If they can get in a group with Laidlow and some others then Blu and Ditlev could be a long way back by the time they hit the bike.

Sam Laidlow just withdrew from the Ibiza race (from his Instagram story).

What a bummer. Unfortunately I don’t think he’ll be the last to pull out.

I hope it's not because of a... back injury. XD

So, now, the dominoes start to fall......................

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Pink? Maybe. Maybe not. You decide.

Roll on all the conspiracy stories after Sam's announcement! LOL!

Super sketchy citing personal reasons. Could he not come up with some other reason that doesn't sound so sketchy? I mean even if it's legit sure doesn't sound good. Maybe he just likes stirring everything up. Lol.

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My Strava | My Instagram | Summerville, SC | 35-39 AG | 4:41 (70.3), 10:05 (140.6) | 3x70.3, 1x140.6 | Cat 2 Cyclist

I was wondering if something like this would happen. Casts a big shadow of doubt, especially after he just won a race. Who else is going to suddenly 'develop' an injury?

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Well, his explanation hardly does a lot to prevent them. He’s not doing one of the biggest races of the year, where he would be a favourite to win/podium, because of some ‘personal issues’ including being in the middle of moving house. Ok then.

I could see "personal reasons" if there was something family related going on, but then randomly throwing in "I'm moving" is very odd.

This place is becoming a cesspit of amateur detectives.

He raced a week or two ago and won, if he was missing races for doping then it seems unlikely he would have raced. I would also imagine it is statistically more likely the winner would be tested, in other organisations and sports the winners are always tested. So all the speculation here seems ill informed at best and a little bit risky from a legal standpoint. I’m sure the mods will have a comment on this shortly

He just added another post saying it was really messed up so many people are questioning him. But like really dude, you have to see how it looks.

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My Strava | My Instagram | Summerville, SC | 35-39 AG | 4:41 (70.3), 10:05 (140.6) | 3x70.3, 1x140.6 | Cat 2 Cyclist

I never said he was doping or anything like that. I said the statement for pulling out of one of the biggest races of the year is odd, which it is.

So he peaked his early season for a $3500 prize race and bails on one of the biggest races of the season? Seems like poor planning at best, something else at worst.

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My Strava | My Instagram | Summerville, SC | 35-39 AG | 4:41 (70.3), 10:05 (140.6) | 3x70.3, 1x140.6 | Cat 2 Cyclist

Did you listen to his post? He said there is a long season ahead with Nice the ultimate goal. Instead of two races in quick succession it appears he’s claiming he’s saving himself, so not sure what your idea of peaking us but it doesn’t seem it would match what most people think.

If you want to accuse him of doping then be brave enough to come out and do it. Don’t hide behind false assumption and supposition.

Laidlow surely knew this before racing Gran Canaria, Ian. PTO has invested a lot (disproportionate amount ) of publicity effort into him these last few months.
And rightly so after his sudden breakthrough year with those remarkable races at Edmonton, Dallas and Kona (I last saw him walking the run course in Bolton).
After an excellent warm-up last weekend, beating a quality field, he was an each way favourite for Ibiza, with great exposure swimming and racing (till T2) with likely 3 Olympic champions: a dream for the young man. He must be gutted.
https://stats.protriathletes.org/athlete/sam-laidlow
Athletes who might pull out of Ibiza (eg doubt over injury, iillness, trouble at home, need NOW to consider how they are going to announce that and what reasonable reason to give. We live in febrile times: when the sun's up, shade casts a long shadow.

How ouch is First place laying at PTO open?

How many months away is Niece?

If there's anymore then eye brows deservedly raised maybe, bit harsh this though!

Agree.

In the context of this week, deciding to announce his withdrawal with an Instagram story citing personal reasons, moving house, and preferring to focus on a race 5 months away and thinking this would not raise any eyebrows is naive at best.

That Instagram story was painful to watch. He may not be doping. He also may not be the brightest athlete out there.

I need to move…lol

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https://twitter.com/mungub

Javier: Ready to compete...recently had an injury in his femur when he was fully recovered from covid...will do an IM in june to try qualification for Nice

Mola: Has been training specifically for the duathlon world champs for this weekend. I guess he is racing Yokokama next month

Alarza: not racing since tokyo olympics because he had a child and was studying to become policeman

Routier: i guess you know she is Mola's partner. After her child i have no news from her (more than 1 year ago..). No sure if she will be back

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Spaniard. Sorry for my english for the sensitive ones :P

I think all things considered he deserves the benefit of the doubt and if he raced Gran Canaria recently there is a strong likelihood he was tested. It seems very unlikely he’d pull out of Ibiza for doping as it is so close to Gran Canaria, and if he was doping he surely wouldn’t risk that race before this one. I’m not an expert by any means but i can’t imagine the 2 weeks between the races would allow for much of a doping program.

Yes it doesn’t look good but that is only because of the times we are in. No idea what the reason is, but on the balance of circumstance and the type of character he seems to have id give him the benefit of the doubt.
.

What's your opinion on the Mola drop off? It's sad to see him disappear off the scene, Mola should be focusing on 70.3 now, I don't see how he can get back to elite ITU level (although I'd love to see prime Mola run with Yee and Wilde)

He tried a few non-draft races but it did no go very well. The guy obviously has a massive aerobic engine and can obviously push some serious W, but he does not look very polished on a TT bike. As for Alarza it really just seems like he is ready to move on from the sport after the Olympics.

Separate from this but I have to admit that Laidlow's last minute DNS just comes across as weird to say the least. He simply does not come across as the type that will just bail from a race like this due to a house move.

Not implying anything in particular but it really feels as if there is more to the story.

You mean the type of character that would bandit the practice swim before Kona, then cross the line as if you had won............?????????????????????

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Pink? Maybe. Maybe not. You decide.

Haha nailed it.

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https://twitter.com/mungub

Sorry guys, I have to drive a uhaul that weekend. Enjoy winning that 100k y'all.

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What's your CdA?

I don’t think we will see Routier back at ITU. She had some horrific injuries the year before she got pregnant after being hit by a car.

He also doesn’t give a sh1t what anybody thinks about him on a forum either.

He has one goal for the year and that is Nice. He is a PROFESSIONAL athlete, if he is fatigued physically or mentally he is making a very wise decision to look at the bigger picture.

I will guarantee Sam has been tested more than most North American athletes. He will come under FFR and IM testing pools.

He looked tired in both videos tbh.

Also I think they are both enjoying being a family and being parents first. Mola no longer appears to be training with his old squad but a group close to his home base now. Maybe the same intensity just isn't there.

He needs to "give a sh1t [about] what people think about him. As he has said, he has 'Sam Laidlow' the product to nurture. Mind you maybe this inuendoversial will add to his ig followers (58k).
Nearly all the top male LD athletes "have one goal for the year and that is Nice" and nearly all are racing Ibiza, unless it's too far for them to travel.
Laidlow said, immediately after Challenge GC (21 Apr) his race programme was Ibiza (6 May), IM Lanza (20 May) and then Roth (25 Jun). I guess as well as moving house and personal issues, the race to the win last weekend was harder than expected and Ibiza was always a 'race if OK' option. "If he is fatigued physically or mentally" say that, not 'personal issues'.
His DNS drops the SOF by about 0.8 of a point.

I sad he doesn’t give a sh1t about forum opinions. Not opinions from sponsors etc.

Being a cynical git (,remember - cynics are optimists with experience) then the timing of this and the 'explanation' come across as fishy as 2 sardines tied together.

To sum up: it's very very unlikely that Laidlow's absence is doping-related.

A whole bunch of things could've happened, and a silly "excuse" for not racing that looks untrue doesn't come close to implying doping. Fatigue? Possible. Injury? Also possible - a lot of pros don't like to immediately disclose injury (we know one very famous British Olympic champion who has the habit of going silent for months when injured, and this up and coming star from France may, in contrast, be in the BS production business).

---

"FTP is a bit 2015, don't you think?" - Gustav Iden

Timeline certainly could be explained by a AAF and a provisional suspension while they sort out the b sample, get his explanation, etc

I wonder why he didn't just say that: "Unfortunately, I was not able to recover from my last race at Mallorca, did a big block after without adequate recovery and I have now compromised my performance for Ibiza, need to reset and start building for Nice"

I know the pitch fork idiots would still crucify thim. But it would come across as a bit more credible than scheduling a move just before a high profile race he had penciled in the calendar some time ago.

.
.
The new Duathlon World Champion.

He doesn’t care about them either. Last year he had barely any… nothing worth mentioning really HED maybe

Go to his website. The first splash image is him with a pretty new Trek SC…. Followed by a Canyon sponsor logo below.

What shoes is he wearing in that splashy pic… black Nikes.

He needs a mentor/manager. Or at the very least someone to update his webpage 😂

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http://www.TriScottsdale.org

Agree both. For the avoidance of doubt and since others could infer it, I have not suggested or implied (review posts) that dropping out with 8 days to go, 5 days after Gran Canaria is "doping-related". This stuff (announcements) need to be managed 'professionally' in the current climate.

All the top guys are on scientific training plus hard work. This allows you to race at any distance, train like a maniac, smash world championship records on first attempt, forget the off season, race back to back to back.....science biotches!

Not sure if y'all have noticed, but all the big stars have chosen against racing the entirety of the Moritz 100 series. And more by the day scratch. I think the decision to realign the series, cut the prize money down and cut slots is hurting them amongst their "membership". They want to showcase the best? Well the best are saying that they may do one event, may, but still focused on Ironman. Think that says a lot about what the pros think and perhaps the internal comms to them is not going well.

I work in sports, moved house in the middle of a season across the country, it was awful. I couldn't imagine being a pro triathlete and trying to do the same if he actually lives alone and is moving to a house. If it's just out of his parents house to an apartment, that's an easy one. But I don't know his living situation.

---

Washed up footy player turned Triathlete.

2nd in Kona. New sponsors. Just won a race. Opportunity to win 30-100k

Kid has enough money to pay movers and race

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http://www.TriScottsdale.org

Example of 'professional' announcement and regret not able to race from Norden:
lisanorden1
"The plan was to start up the rocket ship 🚀 and lace up the racing shoes in Ibiza in a weeks time - but . . . last week I felt a niggle in my right calf at the end of an interval session, early this week I had a scan and was diagnosed with a grade one tear in the gastrocnemius. The tear is in a good place and the healing should be fairly quick meaning I should be able to ease back in to running sometime next week already.
"Unfortunately the time frame for Ibiza is not enough and throwing myself into 18km flat out is too risky for the rest of the season.
"Just like every other time it really hurts missing out to make the start line, a feeling of failure before even making it to the race. But I think the 20 odd years in the sport makes it easier to make good decisions - and also feeling ok about making them.
"Knowing it’s not the end of the world and that there are so many more opportunities coming."

Do we know who replaces Sam and Lisa?

Lisa is also 38 and a former World Champion in the ITU...so far more polished. Sam, for better or worse is not polished. But I thought this board loved his trash talk?

---

Washed up footy player turned Triathlete.

They maybe won't try. In WPRO possible high ranking candidates are:
#33 Pierré (FRA), #38 Thoes (GER) and #29 Frades (ESP) all on WT LD WC start list - Sunday.
But they have already said 'thanks but no thanks; prefer the 3/4 distance and want to represent my country'.
Likely same goes for Genet (FRA #47).They'll be up against (inter alia) Astle (GBR) and ? Matthews (GBR): latter on both start lists but insta: "Guess, I'm starting at the weekend 🏁 🇪🇸 🌎"
A late call like this isn't attractive, really: who wants to race just to make up the numbers?
But how about Morier or Bailly (both FRA) after beating a jet-lagged Gentle at Peniscola? Neither at Yokohama.

And in MPRO, maybe Wilkowiecki after his Texas heroics matching RvB for 226km?
Margirier (after his battle with Laidlow on the Canaries) - now #37 is racing Sunday against Skipper, Mignon, Nilsson et al.

https://www.tri247.com/...-bib-numbers-pro-men
https://www.tri247.com/...ib-numbers-pro-women
https://triathlon.org/...onships_ibiza/584059

Lol the guy is an expert troll I think he just spent 100k to troll the life out of us personally 😂

It has always bugged me that LD worlds isn’t given more credit. It seems like the answer to LD triathlon problems and relevancy is staring at them in the face in the form of LD worlds. PTO should have used its capital to fund a LD World Cup series that culminated with worlds. IMO it’s the only true world championship race among a plethora of privately claimed “world championships”.

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https://twitter.com/mungub

Because ITU worlds is a C race at most. What is the cash prize that the ITU puts up for it?

Why would Moritz plunge money into that? He invested in something to have upside, to have upside you have to have ownership.

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Washed up footy player turned Triathlete.

$15,000 for the win ($60,000 total prize pot for the LD race, $300,000 for the whole multisport event in Ibiza, including duathlon, cross Tri/duathlon & aquathlon).

World Triathlon LD WC is a platinum level race in the PTO rankings system (with the 70.3 WC and Challenge Roth) so in theory (but agree not perception) is given credit: there are reasonable ranking points up for grabs which may go towards Collins Cup AQ and end of year bonus payouts.

https://ibizamultisport.org/...os-economicos-elite/
The top 4 in the WTLDWC will likely do better racing in that than on Saturday in the PTO race. This judgement is clearer for those who are better at LD versus 100km.

• 1st: $15,000
  
• 2nd: $12,000
• 3rd: $9,000
• 4th: $6,000

Which is why we'll see Skipper, Astle and Matthews leading the GBR charge on Sunday against Mignon, Beals, Thoes, Frades and Svensk rather than taking up their invite to sweep up the breadcrumbs of Saturday.
Triathlon.tv - free seven day trial?

PTO Tour races prize money:

• 1st: $100,000 (same in 2022)
• 2nd: $50,000 ($70,000 in 2022)
• 3rd: $35,000 ($50,000 in 2022)
• 4th: $15,000 ($40,000 in 2022)
• 5th: $10,000 ($35,000 in 2022)
• 6th: $8,000 ($30,000 in 2022)

and from #15 onwards it's $3000 down to $2000 for the rest of those finishing.

You don’t get it. We’re supposed to think that non-Ironman races are unnecessary 😂

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"FTP is a bit 2015, don't you think?" - Gustav Iden

How do Laidlow and Chevalier retain their FRA elite/pro licence then, if that is indeed a criterion for retention thereof?

How they train podcast out with laidlow which supposedly explains his reasoning. I haven’t listened yet.

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My Strava | My Instagram | Summerville, SC | 35-39 AG | 4:41 (70.3), 10:05 (140.6) | 3x70.3, 1x140.6 | Cat 2 Cyclist

Don’t waste your time. It’s basically 40 minutes of Sams Instagram story. Not sure how that was advertised as a breaking news feature.

He needs to move. There saved you 40 minutes.

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https://twitter.com/mungub

Following the broadcast of the race's, which will be in a prohibitive time slot for me, do they immediately post it up to stream for a replay?

---

-Of course it's 'effing hard, it's IRONMAN!
Team ZOOT
ZOOT, QR, Garmin, HED Wheels, Zealios, FormSwim, Precision Hydration, Rudy Project

Ugh yeah just wasted 40min. He did seem to lean a bit more towards wanting to focus on World Championships instead of PTO races. But still weird he’s not stating that as the reason.

Anyways looking forward to the race this weekend.

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My Strava | My Instagram | Summerville, SC | 35-39 AG | 4:41 (70.3), 10:05 (140.6) | 3x70.3, 1x140.6 | Cat 2 Cyclist

At least Jacks consistent. Believes Laidlaw with no tough questions, sucks up aggressively, then continues to pontificate about the truth from Colin, even though he's the one that broke the story and Jack told him he believes him.

That podcast is a waste of time.

My phrasing was wrong. Racing the WT champs is not mandatory in order to retain a FRA pro/elite status. But it's certainly part of the deal if you're granted some sort of public funding, which is common in France (even if the vast majority of said funding goes to short course athletes). Laidlow and Chevalier are most certainly not supported by the french federation, as far as I know, so they have no obligation in return. That's not necessarily the case for other athletes, who may depend on some sort of support.

When did Alistair last race??? Very interested to see how he goes!

Does anyone else think he looks really old and worn out now? Compared to Jonny he has not aged well at all.

I am not sure I would rank him to be on the podium but he might make top 5/6 if he has a good race.

He only raced 4 times in 2022.
Was on track to winning Oceanside (in a pretty strong field) till a few miles to go (first race 'back' - not enough running in bank for 13 miles?).
Start at IMWC 2021 at St George (May 2022) kiboshed late on (same as Iden).
Was headed for the win in the PTO Tour race at Edmonton, till he got stomach cramps (like he's never had before)
Raced Swansea: well ahead of domestic competition. Looked impressive (from my roadside view).
Aced IM Sweden with high (old style) PTO points.
If legs and stomach hold up, he will ride to T2 in Eivissa in the front small pack and eventually run away from all those still with him.
I suggest calling him "really old and worn out" is unkind: which other athletes >35 do you assess similarly?
ETA: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H42UxkAL0jc

I said he looked old and worn out not he is. TBH he looks fatigued. Never been an AB fan so perhaps bias, quite happy to be called out for it.

Going by his socials alone, I think we may get the fittest Alistair we've had for a while, over the last few months I've seen him do a lot of running where usually in the build up to a race you'll get one or two vids of him running in the build up.

Also obviously pulled out of the last race with a niggle he had, where ad usually he'd have gone ahead and raced, we're possibly on for a Brownlee master class 🙏

Daniele Ryf is getting a private plane over from Moritz over to Ibiza, alright for some!

https://www.facebook.com/...dGX6X6WYtrbnPgY9Y5l/

You done your picks yet??

https://www.obstri.com/fantasy

I would really like to see a Jan VS Brownlee battle for first for the last few miles

For some reason it would make me feel younger. 😀

I became a triathlon fan in fall of 2021. I've never seen Jan or Brownlee perform in a big race. Looking forward to seeing if they can live up to their names.

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My Strava | My Instagram | Summerville, SC | 35-39 AG | 4:41 (70.3), 10:05 (140.6) | 3x70.3, 1x140.6 | Cat 2 Cyclist

It would be great to see them take it to KB (and I wish Laidlow). I don’t think those that are newer to the sport appreciate how good they were (are?). Both can lead out of the water and win if it comes down to a bike race or run race. They are just so strong across the board when firing.

AB is still the best to have ever done ITU. KB would never win an Olympic medal if the real AB showed up. I think that’s why I’ve lost some interest in ITU races. The top guys right now wouldn’t have even been in the front pack during ABs prime and no way they were closing the gap.

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https://twitter.com/mungub

I'm hoping that Javier Gomez bandits the race and we get the same finish as the 70.3 WC in South Africa! Probably a bit unlikely, though.

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Blog: http://262toboylstonstreet.blogspot.com/
https://twitter.com/NateThomasTri
Coaching: https://bybtricoaching.com/ - accepting athletes for 2023

Javier has more integrity than that. I don’t expect him to pull a Laidlow and bandit a race ;)

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https://twitter.com/mungub

When the two Brownlees and Gomez showed up to the start line fit, everyone else knew they was racing for 4th!

Don't want to go too much off topic but I think you're right in saying that wouldn't be any different today!

Seems like Patrick Lange has dropped out as well due to sickness according to his Instagram post

I really wanted for him to do well in this one but man this sucks. I kinda wanted him to show new and upcomers what he’s got with his running.

Lange always seems more suited to the full 140.6 than 70.3 or shorter. It's odd how good of a runner he is in full distance racing, but rarely has the top run split at the 70.3 distance. I don't feel he would have been a factor in this race had he been healthy.

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Blog: http://262toboylstonstreet.blogspot.com/
https://twitter.com/NateThomasTri
Coaching: https://bybtricoaching.com/ - accepting athletes for 2023

Not in reply to above but...

Have been in Ibiza all week for World Multisport Champs, last day today but can confirm I have seen the below all out here

Emma Pallant
Paula Findley
Eric Lagerstrom
Ellie Salthouse
Holly Lawrence
Magnus Ditlev
RVB
Chelsea Sodaro (from a distance so this may be wrong)
Varga was doing the aquathlon but not sure if he's down for this

Varga is racing the World Champs (LD) [#24]
https://triathlon.org/...onships_ibiza/584059

Breaking news…

Laura Phillip and Patrick Lange sign on to help Sam Laidlow move….

Howtheytrain IG is writing War and Peace justifying the Laura Phillip 'leak.' She got upset HTT posted the news on IG... so much drama

If anybody has doubted triathlons spot as the greatest sport on Earth, they just need to see how generous the professional field is after hearing Sam Laidlow needs to move 😂

Yeah, doubt he would have either.

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Let food be thy medicine...

Sam better buy pizza n beer😂😂

Time for picks guys! Remember to register with Christophe's Obstri and join the Slowtwitch league.

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"FTP is a bit 2015, don't you think?" - Gustav Iden

Laura being salty about his post is ridiculous. She's a fucking professional athlete so of course people are going to be reporting on if she is going to be at the start line of the biggest race of the season (so far).

He said in an interview for a spanish media some days ago that he has struggled with a femur stress fracture and is now getting back to shape planning to target some IM to qualify for Nice, but not yet decided which one. He's not a guy that will race if he's not 100% fit so I guess he has no need to go to Ibiza and prefers to take it step by step

I am really curious to see him race again. I found he looks really strong. He will be front pack and will not overcook the bike, then run with Kristian. If he will not push to hard to early, I definetely see him podium!

1 Blumi, 2 AB, 3 Frodeno


Second tier chances for: Ditlev & Funk, when they can split are larger front group on the bike and get a gap on the runners.

What other scenarios do u see?

I sense Jack is finding himself in an awkward spot at the moment that he's struggling to adjust to. He has a well-respected podcast, from "within" the sport, focussed on highly specific technical elements with access to the athletes. Now, following his profile increase due to the doping scandal, it appears he's attempting to pivot (or add to his existing platform) to create a more generic triathlon media / news channel bringing it "to the fans" from an outside perspective looking in.

I don't think you can have it both ways. You can't have the trust of the athletes to open up about their training and lifestyles on one hand, then subsequently spread rumour and speculation about them. It's a direct conflict in my opinion and I think he risks losing the respect and trust of the athletes.

Thorsten has posted his seedings for Ibiza.


I don't agree with a lot of it, but that's all part of the fun isn't it !



https://www.trirating.com/...22-may-6th-seedings/

What is it that u dont agree with in particular?

I found a lot of it suprisingly congruent with my gut feeling…

One thing though which suprised me, that the model expects Frodo to run that fast…

Don't get me wrong, I don't think it's massively out of line with my expectations but a few observations on the men's race:

• It has Aaron Royle 20 seconds clear out the swim ahead of everyone else. I don't see him gapping the others. It also has Ben Kanute swimming over a minute slower than Royle, I'd have thought they'd be together exiting the water. I'm also not sure about Tom Bishop's ability to stick with that group, yet he's third fastest on the ratings.
• It has Blu riding nearly 1 minute faster than Brownlee and 2 minutes faster than Frodo - not sure about this. Also I expect Tom Bishop to have one of the fastest bike splits of the day, yet he's way down on the rankings some 4 minutes slower than Blu.
• It has Frodo running faster than Jason West, seems unlikely. And Frodo and Blu running 1.5 - 2 minutes quicker than the entire rest of the field? Can't see it.
• Generally, I think Max Neumann and Leon Chevalier are underrated in the rankings - expecting them to finish higher than 18th and 25th respectively. Also Thorsten has Blummenfelt at evens 1-1 (~50% chance) to win the race, those odds seem far to short given the strength of this field.

Mind games alert:
From the master (of mind games): "I can tell you now that at the peak of the Olympic-distance game, they’re not better than they were 10 years ago.
“Alistair Brownlee at his top is still the one to beat."
https://www.tri247.com/...uropean-open-preview

Exactly, too close to Blu's time. We all know an OTB run is different to running fresh but the beast is ready (8x1km at 2'50" today)
https://www.strava.com/activities/9001415215/laps

Thorsten's analysis is based on previous race performances, with results from dates prior to (?) Apr 2022 progressively (0.8 py) downgraded in relevance and greater weight applied to 70.3/100k race data (cf IM).
https://www.trirating.com/...22-may-6th-seedings/
Royle and Kanute agree (and Smith there too). Bishop: disagree: he will be swim FP. Blummenfelt, without help, will not be able to close to the FP on the bike. Of course this assumes he isn't 'lucky' and is dropped in the water. Funk has to be a player, and maybe RvB, in mutual support. West would be delighted if he can be part of that chase, but think he will get dropped on the bike, or matchbox will be empty by T2.

FP will be charging, with motivation. 90 seconds gap at T2 will be enough. And there will be an old guard v new guard angle here: both Frodeno and Brownlee want to keep parvenu Norge in his place in GOAT pecking order, and this may/will be the only race they (ever) get. Think, in retrospect, Iden will regret his choice of Yokohama: late onset FOMO (too late).

Run speed of Frodeno and Blummenfelt much if at all faster than all others (esp West and Brownlee): agree - no chance.

Neumann's (and Chevalier's) ratings are based on 70.3/100k race results data - point out their good ones. Former's double Collins Cup underperformance, Edmonton #8 was good (and heralded Max's great Kona, as Sodaro's did there too).
60t chainring for the return from San Rafael? Ear defenders for spectators for the disc braking at the roundabout.

  

Men's...

1.Brownlee
2.Blum
3.Frodo

Women's

1.Ryf
2.LCB
3.Gentle

That was a good one, tip of the cap.

---

-Of course it's 'effing hard, it's IRONMAN!
Team ZOOT
ZOOT, QR, Garmin, HED Wheels, Zealios, FormSwim, Precision Hydration, Rudy Project

Micki is also out.

These are some tough races to predict. It's possible that I could get the entire podium wrong, especially on the women's side. I don't quite know what to expect out of LCB and Ryf since neither has raced yet. Gentle had a sub-par race, but how can you bet against her after last year's PTO wins? Haug has looked good this year, as have Jewett and Sodaro, and all of them have such strong runs that you can never count them out. I wonder what happens to someone like Jewett or even Sodaro when the swim and bike levels go up. I honestly have no idea who will win or even be in the top five. It sure is exciting.

Like throwing darts at a dartboard 🤷‍♂️

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Let food be thy medicine...

My picks:

My picks:

Blu - Chevalier - Ditlev - Frodo - Baekkegard. It seems sacrilegious to leave Brownlee out of the top five.

LCB - Gentle - Sodaro - Ryf - Haug.

Philipp's video describing her last month's training (at altitude in St moritz near Ryf) and explaining Ibiza withdrawal
(>>> @5:26)
Let's hope she is well for Challenge Roth.

Check the lapped times, not the average pace by Strava
2.5 laps around a track per split. We are not new here…

Anne Haug is probably the favourite for the ladies given her form but an in form Ryf will be impossible to beat. She will run away on the bike and hang on on the run like she does whenever she is at her best! If she isn't first off the bike or leading by the 50km mark, she won't win.....

You’re right. Deleted my post.

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"FTP is a bit 2015, don't you think?" - Gustav Iden

Is Haug favourite? She should be. Unlike several, she has shown 2023 form, NB having to do the work on the bike alone, unlike Sodaro and Jewett (Oceanside).
The only 70.3/100k Ryf has raced well since Nice is the Collins Cup last year: otherwise 'rien'. So Ryf will need to be in Sep 2019 form for your projection.
Ryf will need several minutes ahead of (in order):
Haug 5
Jewett 4
Gentle, Pallant and Sodaro 3
It will not be easy for the better swimmers to build that much gap on the road imo. And Jewett will certainly be behind Haug after the swim/bike, as will Pallant.
Just don't forget LCB all alone up front either. Quite possible she and Ryf will be close out of T2 and Ryf will run better.
Findlay and Lawrence will be in the mix too, depending on who turns up, and I can't envisage where Sodaro will be: though if she's able to hitch a good lift then: look out.

Done!

Not sure if it has been covered in this thread, but for US people, do we know if the race replay will be available on demand on Saturday morning?

I'd like to try to not find out the result and watch "live" not in the middle of the night.

It's going to be streamed in YouTube, so my guess is that yes.

It’s on GCN+ too and I’ve asked if replay will be available like most of their broadcasts but I haven’t heard back yet.

Is that in US or just Europe? I though the "Eurosport" GCN+ broadcast was ONLY in Europe and USA would be via the PTO app? My question is will there be on demand replay?

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John

Damn! No Brownlee in top 5????

He'll pull out part way with a muscle strain. Plus, not a big fan....

I drank the kool-aid and have him second. I figure this season it’s time for him shit or get off the pot.

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Let food be thy medicine...

Speaking for myself: pro tri news seemed to agree last week that AB is undoubtedly the greatest male triathlete of all time.

In addition to all the adversity he’s faced, that’s the kiss of death he needed to fall outside the top 10.

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"FTP is a bit 2015, don't you think?" - Gustav Iden

Don't disagree with you. Rfy had a monster bike at the Collins Cup last year. Same bike performance, she should blow everyone away and hang on the lead with the run
If she is running out of T2 with others or with a 30 sec lead, she won't win

My picks in obstri
WOMEN MEN
1 LCB 1 Blum
2 Jewett 2 Frodeno
3 Gentle 3 Ditlev
4 Pallant 4 Smith
5 Haug 5 West

FASTEST SWIM
LCB Royle

FASTEST BIKE
Findlay Wurf

FASTEST RUN
Jewett West

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Spaniard. Sorry for my english for the sensitive ones :P

Slightly off topic but did anyone party in Ibiza back in the day? (still does) I've no idea where this course takes them, but its going to be interesting seeing them go past some of my old clubbing haunts if they do!

Why are they having the PTO race and the Long Distance World Champs at the same time. Athletes have to choose between them. Then does the WC not mean so much because a lot of the top athletes were racing PTO instead?

just need the happy mondays playing the afterparty and we're all set!

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____________________________________
https://lshtm.academia.edu/MikeCallaghan

http://howtobeswiss.blogspot.ch/

Barbara Riveros is my underdog bet for top 5 and fastest run.

Because they're taking the approach of attaching the PTO events to other large races in order to drive better in-person fan interaction, given how sparse things looked last year at the two events.

It's only the World Triathlon rule that prohibits racing multiple times in a 24 hour period that is limiting the LD WC field -- otherwise I'd think you'd see a few athletes go for the double.

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Editor-in-Chief, Slowtwitch.com | Twitter

I'm surprised this is running so early in the morning. The PTO had done a good job lining up the time zones for maximal eyeballs. I guess the Giro throws a bit of a wrench in that since they want it on Eurosport.

Correct. They know their primary audience. And it's not going to be in the US.

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Editor-in-Chief, Slowtwitch.com | Twitter

Skipper said on the latest Triathlon Mockery pod that a couple guys were doing the double. Was he mistaken?

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Let food be thy medicine...

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Editor-in-Chief, Slowtwitch.com | Twitter

having just returned from the island for the first time but with my partner and our baby we didn't do any partying 😂. We stayed a few 100m from the swim start, drove the bike course to get around a bit and walked most of the run course. Its all around the main city district east of the airport and they mostly head NE into the island and then run to the port area. The main party area of the island, San Antonio i think is actually on the other side of the island.

Although on our final day we did a morning run around 7am and were going past people leavings the clubs 😂

I grew up in the UK so through the 90's two weeks in Ibiza was an annual summer pilgrimage - can't remember any of it though. Party all night, sleep all day.

Me too - but couldn’t think of anything worse than an Ibiza or Ayia Napa clubbing holiday, even back in the day!!

Early 00s I was sometimes in Ibiza twice a year, Space, Pacha, Manumission, Amnesia and DC10 I'd do anything for a time machine and a day on that Space terrace!

Sounds like they're racing Ibiza town? So a chance to see Pacha and Rock bar if it's still there? El Divino?

Café del Mar San Antonio - DJ José Padilla & Phil Mison proper old school Balearic : )

Amnesia! - flashbacks to foam parties there.

Andrea Salvisberg (SUI) has been offered a start (eg in lieu of Lange). He was on Sunday's WTLD world champs start list.
https://stats.protriathletes.org/...te/andrea-salvisberg
https://triathlon.org/...onships_ibiza/584059

There, I fixed it for you. :-)

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http://dontletitdefeatyou.blogspot.com

Not really, it is a cost saving measure. They're unwilling to spend the money it would take to promote a professional race as a complete standalone. BUT, that is the business model of triathlon. Professional triathlon does not exist anywhere without a mass participation race attached to it. I can tell you that their idea also has not worked well so far, we'll see if it does in Ibiza but I doubt it. It definitely won't in Singapore and I doubt it does in Milwaukee. As Dev says, the spectator is actually the amateur athlete that races the same race.

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Washed up footy player turned Triathlete.

And Kat was on the PTO start list but now she’s doing the long distance! I find it all a bit odd!

Salvisberg was way too far down the PTO rankings (#74) to get a AQ on roll down so had been entered by his fed in the world champs. I suspect he was:
a. there (in Ibiza)
b. much prefers 70.3 distance (he DNF'd debut IM in Israel and IMSA in March did not go well (either) #8, 8:15+ equivalent time).
Matthews was on both start lists: AQing for the PTO race but also entered by BriTri in the world champs (as Beals has said elsewhere, the WT via nat fed entry system has a long lead time so this would be done in March).
Staying on both start lists guess gave her options depending on how Oceanside and IM Texas (10 days ago!) went (or didn't go). https://www.instagram.com/p/CrtT5dlMTcR/
Skipper and Astle both had AQ slots for the PTO race but they are very firmly LD 'specialists' so turned them down. Both stand to win more $$ and get more ranking points in the platinum world champs than they would've in the diamond PTO races. Let's hope Skipper can see over his bottles, takes all the correct turns and has loaded the course into his Wahoo.
Observe all those Brits racing Sunday will be able to watch our King crowned, perched on the Stone of Scone), while the PTO Tour athletes strut their stuff.