Sunday’s women’s race will be the final day of action at the Lisbon World Triathlon Cup, the second race of the recently reopened Olympic Qualification period and the first Cup of the 2021 season, promising plenty of intrigue alongside the entertainment in Portugal’s capital.
The start lists have been expanded to provide more athletes with the opportunity to race given the shortened start to the season, and there are likely to be some surprise names making their way into the top ten at the end of the Olympic distance (1.5km swim, 40km bike, 10km run) affair.
You can watch all the action over on TriathlonLive.tv on Sunday from 1.20pm
Wearing the number one will be Summer Rappaport, the USA’s first confirmed Olympic team member from 2019’s Test Event and silver medallist from the season opener WTCS Yokohama, finishing behind Taylor Knibb thanks to a lightening 10km run and looking every bit ready for a huge year.
The 2018 World Champion Vicky Holland is also confirmed in the British Olympic team and she starts her first World Triathlon Cup since winning gold in Mooloolaba back in March 2020. Holland didn’t have a great Hamburg World Championships in August, and will be using Lisbon as a first assessment of where her race form is for 2021.
Netherlands’ Rachel Klamer has been a regular feature in and around the top tens for the past few seasons without quite rediscovering the form that swept her to the top of the World Series podium in Abu Dhabi at the start of 2018. The Lisbon course could suit Klamer nicely, and a medal here would be just the start she is looking for after a turbulent year.
The Italian duo Angelica Olmo and Alice Betto will both know that they have the potential to dictate the race, and while Olmo hasn’t been a regular on the start lists that have been able to take place in the past 18 months, her strong showing on a tough course in Arzachena and European Cup silver in Melilla will offer plenty of encouragement.
Switzerland’s mighty Nicola Spirig returns to the blue carpet for the first time since her silver in Valencia in late 2020 as she continues to plan for a remarkable fifth Olympic Games in July, and USA’s Kirsten Kasper will want to make a big impact in a race she will undoubtedly be thinking a first medal since 2018 is well within reach.
Brazilian Luisa Baptista and Argentina’s Romina Biagioli look like the biggest threats from the South American contingent, while Mexico’s Cecilia Perez and Lizeth Rueda Santos arrive on the back of solid displays in Yokohama and with plenty to build upon.
Spain’s Miriam Casillas Garcia also looked in great form in Japan on route to her top ten finish, France’s Sandra Dodet, Australian Natalie van Coevorden and Canada’s Amelie Kretz all set for the Lisbon showdown.
The Asics World Triathlon Team comes together for the first time since 2019 and will be represented in Lisbon by Romina Biagiloi (ARF) , Kaidi Kivioja (EST), Edda Hannesdottir (ISL), Basmla Elsalamoney (EGY) and Romana Gajdosova (SVK).
World Triathlon Cup Lisbon
23 May, 1.20pm WEST
TriathlonLive.tv