Yokohama is ready to get the 2024 World Triathlon Championship Series rolling on Saturday morning, and anticipation is running red hot with the prospect of an almighty first Olympic distance test for the athletes in this huge year for the sport.
The 2021 World and Olympic Champion Flora Duffy was sadly absent from the blue carpet for the whole of 2023 as a knee injury kept her from racing. Yokohama marks her first action since retaining her world title at the 2022 Championship Finals Abu Dhabi, and it will be fascinating to see how she stands up to the exertions of an Olympic distance return and how far she can push it on the 10km run.
The last time Duffy and Gwen Jorgensen shared a start line was the 2016 Grand Final Cozumel, finishing first and second respectively. Here, Jorgensen knows that a podium finish – and above any other US athlete - is required to complete her remarkable comeback to the top and qualify for Paris 2024. If 2023 was marked by some vintage performances on the World Cup circuit, then this year demands the same but at the top tier.
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