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Previewing the 2012 ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships

Canadians Gillian Clayton and Natasha Yaremczuk to race on Sunday.

While Olympic distance is the focus next week in London, this week some of the world’s best endurance multisport athletes will head to Spain to contest the 2012 Vitoria-Gasteiz ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships. The event has a strong history, with athletes like Simon Lessing, Greg Welch and Chrissie Wellington taking the titles in the past, and this year athletes like Enelko Llanos, Dirk Bockel, Chris McCormack, James Cunnama, Jodie Swallow and Caroline Steffen are aiming for gold. The 2012 world titles will be decided over a 4km swim, a 120km bike leg and a 30km run in Vitoria-Gasteiz, which is the capital city of the province of Álava in northern Spain.

About the race:

There have been 16 ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships, and Denmark and Great Britain leading the overall medal tally with six titles each. Denmark have five men’s and one women’s, while Great Britain have five women’s and one men’s. The 2012 world titles will be decided over a 4km swim, a 120km bike leg and a 30km run in Vitoria-Gasteiz, which is the capital city of the province of Álava in northern Spain.

SCHEDULE:

Elite Men – Sunday 29 July – 8:30 (UTC/GMT + 2) Click here to time in your area

Elite Women – Sunday 29 July – 8:35 (UTC/GMT + 2)


WEBSITE:

triathlon.org

triatlonvitoria.com

START LISTS:

Women’s start list

Men’s start list

THE CANADIANS COMPETING:

Gillian Clayton and Natasha Yaremczuk.

LIVE COVERAGE:

There will be live results and live streaming of the event available on the event website.

TOTAL PRIZE MONEY: $70,000 EUR (equal for men & women)

COURSE PROFILE: Long Distance

Swim (4km) – One lap of a 4km course with with a beach mass start. The swim takes place in the waters of Ullibarri-Gamboa lake, in the heart of the Provincial Park of Landa.

Bike (120km) – The two-lap bike course runs through the beautiful landscapes of the plains of Alava, along the spectacular lake Ullibarri Gamboa and parallel to the Elguea mountain range, through small towns and sharing part of the course with the Way of Saint James.

Run (30km) – The four-lap run starts and finishes in the heart of the medieval district of Vitoria-Gasteiz.

STORIES TO WATCH FOR:

Elite Women’s Race – Great Britain have had an incredible run of success in the women’s field in this world title event, winning five out of the last six ITU long distance world titles. But the only other woman who has stopped a British win was Switzerland’s Caroline Steffen, who won in 2010, and she will race again here. In Britain’s corner is Jodie Swallow, who won this event in 2009 and finished second in the 2010 European Long Distance Triathlon titles in Vitoria-Gasteiz.

Home-favourite Virginia Berasategi will also be a contender, she won the 2010 European titles and is the third athlete in the elite women’s field with an ITU world title under her belt, she won this event in 2003. Others to watch for over this grueling distance include Denmark’s Camilla Pedersen and Michelle Vesterby, as the pair went 1-2 at last year’s ETU European LD championships.

Elite Men’s Race –  Spain’s Eneko Llanos is already a triathlon legend, having competing in two Olympic Games and then making a successful transition to long distance triathlon racing. But this race is set to mean more than most as Llanos is racing at home. Llanos last won this race in 2003, and also won the European titles in Vitoria-Gasteiz in 2010. But he’s not likely to have it all his own way, with an impressive list of men lined up to try and claim an ITU World Championship. Leading those will be Australia’s Chris McCormack. While McCormack is a two-time Kona champion, he is yet to add an ITU long distance world title to his resume. Others to watch include the in-form Luxembourgh’s Dirk Bockel, a Beijing Olympian who finished fourth at Kona last year and South Africa’s James Cunnama, who broke eight hours racing in the ETU Long Distance Triathlon Championships just a few weeks ago. France’s Sylvain Sudrie will wear the No.1, he won the title in 2010 and finished third at last year’s world titles in Henderson, Nevada. Overall 15 different countries be will represented in the men’s race.

PAST ITU LONG DISTANCE TRIATHLON WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP WINNERS

Men                                                    Women

2011 Henderson ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships

Jordan Rapp (USA)                             Rachel Joyce (GBR)

2010 Immenstadt ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships

Sylvain Sudrie (FRA)                             Caroline Steffen (SUI)

2009 Perth ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships

Timothy O’Donnell (USA)                       Jodie Swallow (GBR)

2008 Almere ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships

Julian Loy (FRA)                                   Chrissie Wellington (GBR)

2007 Lorient ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships

Julian Loy (FRA)                                   Leanda Cave (GBR)

2006 Canberra ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships

Torbjorn Sindballe (DEN)                       Bella Comerford (GBR)

2005 Fredericia ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships

Viktor Zyemstev (UKR)                           Kathleen Smet (BEL)

2004 Sater ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships

Torbjorn Sindballe (DEN)                       Tamara Kozulina (UKR)

2003 Ibiza ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships

Eneko Llanos (ESP)                               Virginia Berasategi (ESP)

2001 Fredericia ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships

Peter Sandvang (DEN)                           Lisbeth Kristensen (DEN)

2000 Nizza ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships

Peter Sandvang (DEN)                           Isabelle Mouthon-Michellys (FRA)

1999 Sater ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships

Peter Sandvang (DEN)                           Suzanne Nielsen (DEN)

1998 Sado Island ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships

Luc Van Lierde (BEL)                             Rina Hill (AUS)

1997 Nizza ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships

Luc Van Lierde (BEL)                             Ines Estedt (GER)

1996 Muncie ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships

Greg Welch (AUS)                                 Karen Smyers (USA)

1995 Nice ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships

Simon Lessing (GBR)                             Jenny Rose (NZL)