If the future belongs to the young, then this coming week’s U23 and Junior World Triathlon Championship events at the World Triathlon Championship Finals Torremolinos-Andalucia could provide an insight into the next generation of triathlon talent.
A quick look through the start lists suggests that talent is not just for the future either, with several names having already made headlines of their own this year in Elite competition. Let’s take a look ahead to the events, and highlight some of the top contenders to look out for.
Start times and how to watch
The racing will take place on Thursday (U23) and Friday (Junior) in Torremolinos, with the following start times.
- Thursday 17 October, 0900 local time – U23 Women (Standard Distace)
- Thursday 17 October, 1200 local time – U23 Men (Standard Distance)
- Friday 18 October, 1515 local time – Junior Women (Sprint Distace)
- Friday 18 October, 1715 local time – Junior Men (Sprint Distance)
You can follow the coverage without leaving this page via the YouTube embeds below and it’s also live on World Triathlon’s subscription service, TriathlonLive.tv.
Junior Women
I’m going to start with the Junior women because, perhaps, this race could represent the first of many World Championship titles for the phenomenal talent that is Hungary’s Fanni Szalai. Just 16 years of age and race in her first Junior World Championship, Szalai burst onto the world scene early in 2023 when taking a podium spot at the Arena Games Sursee, just months after turning 15.
Now, I am the first to highlight that putting any pressure of future expectation on an athlete at such a young age is not necessary, but the reality is that her results, in my opinion, mean she has to deservingly start as the short-odds favourite.
With two full seasons of supertri racing in her development locker already, the simple fact is that at international Junior level, Szalai is unbeaten in individual competition. I’ve followed many of those performance up close as a commentator on Europe Triathlon broadcasts, and the reality is that I’ve yet to see her truly pressured in a race. Several of those wins have come over the Super Sprint format (including her recent European Junior Championship win in Balikesir), but if anything, as the races get longer – and it will be Sprint distance in Spain – it just provides more opportunity to dominate on the run.
In Hamburg last year the silver and bronze medals went to Jimena Renata De La Peña Schott (MEX – but now racing for the USA), and Manon Laporte (FRA) and they both return. Laporte’s French teammates Lisa Lecompte, Ambre Grasset and Léa Houart are amongst those with seemingly keeping the next generation of French triathlon is fine health.
Their challenge will be to try and get away from Szalai before the run starts – because if they don’t, expect the Hungarian colours to be leading the way inside the first few hundred metres of the 5km run – and probably extend her advantage every kilometre until the line.
Junior Men
Looking back to last year’s championships in Hamburg, returning from that 2023 podium are champion João Nuno Batista (POR) and silver medallist, Nils Serre Gehri (FRA).
That duo also took the top two slots at the European Junior Championships this year in that Balikesir race, which for Batista was a repeat of his win 12 months earlier at the same venue. He’s a true championship performer then, and defending his title here would thus represent a European and World Championship double, in back-to-backs years. He has to start as the favourite too, especially as he’s been gaining senior Elite experience with a WTCS debut, an 11th place recently at the European Championships and a debut World Cup in Huatulco, where he finished fifth.
Despite those results, the #1 bib will be worn by the USA’s Reese Vannerson, who is part of the Project Podium program of USA Triathlon. Reese has good experience at these championships, having finished third in 2022 and sixth last year. Racing in Spain won’t faze him either, as his last outing was an impressive seventh at the Valencia Triathlon World Cup.
U23 Women
If there are clear favourites for the Junior titles (at least, in my eyes…), the U23 Women’s start list gives few similar clues, which should mean plenty of athletes lining up for the Standard distance race believing that they can take victory.
With last year’s champion, Selina Klamt (GER) in the Senior Elite race here, we do still have some top performers from Pontevedra looking to perform in Torremolinos.
Maria Tomé (POR) earned silver last year, with Cathia Schär (SUI), Karolina Horváth (HUN) and Barbara De Koning (NED) fourth, eight and ninth, respectively, from the 2023 top-10.
The #1 bib – allocated by world ranking – is Zuzana Michalickova (SVK) who took the European U23 Championship title, when finishing third overall in Balikesir. She might also be challenging for the most active short course racer around!
Having finished a fantastic 11th place at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, Maria Tomé has perhaps the best results of the season, but could come unstuck if her sometimes inconsistent swimming leaves her exposed to a breakaway early in the race.
U23 Men
With a World Triathlon Ranking of 14, Dylan McCullough (NZL) heads the way with the #1 bib this week. He scored a WTCS career-best of eighth recently in Weihai, and is all but a guaranteed member of any front swim pack. He has plenty of experience too, 19th this year in Paris. Having raced in the Senior event last year in Pontevedra, he’s aiming at a World title this year.
The highest ranked athletes from the U23 Champs last year, who finished third and fourth respectively, are Mitch Kolkman (NED) and Panagiotis Bitados (GRE).
Kolkman won a thrilling Europe Triathlon Cup race on home turf in Holten this year, and also helped the Netherlands to Olympic Mixed Relay qualification. It’s been a solid year all round, and if he can go one or two places higher than 2023, he’ll be thrilled.
As for Bitados, he’s been really making a name for himself over the longer distances, with hugely impressive performances in Walschee, Tallinn and San Remo. Will it be another ‘Greece lightening’ performance from the IRONMAN 70.3 European champion?
Another top contender who has had a breakthrough season is the USA’s John Reed. He won at the notoriously tough Karlovy Vary World Triathlon Cup in the Czech Republic. He’s also been the Americas U23 Champion for the past two years. Still very early in his triathlon career, you would have to think his sights are set far higher than the eighth place he achieved last year.
Home turf is often a motivator, and if that’s’s the case then David Cantero Del Campo is the Spanish athlete most likely to get the home crowds cheering. He’s won the World Triathlon Cup Valencia for the past two years, in both races doing so with the fastest run. Those are traits that could prove very useful this week.
There are plenty more names that could be added into the mix. From a British perspective alone, Ben Cumberland recently won the British Elite Championships, Hamish Reilly was U23 bronze medallist two years ago in Abu Dhabi, while Marcus Dey was just three seconds behind Hamish at the European Championships in Turkey.
