World Triathlon Cup Tongyeong kicks off an Asian double header this weekend, as the best in the world head over to South Korea to compete over the sprint distance as the 2023 season begins to draw to a close.
With a number of big names in the field, the competition will be fierce, and with valuable Olympic qualification points on the line every position matters.
We have everything you need to know about the race, from start times and streaming to a preview of the field, which includes our predictions on who you should keep an eye on.
Start time and how to follow live
The Elite Women will race first in South Korea, with the gun set to go off at 08:00 local time on Saturday October 21. This corresponds to 00:00 UK time, 01:00 in Central Europe and in the United States it corresponds to Friday, October 20, 19:00 on the East Coast and 16:00 PST.
For the men, racing will kick off at 10:30 local time on Saturday, which is 02:30 UK time and 03:30 in Central Europe. For American fans, this corresponds to 21:30 on the East Coast and 18:30 on the West Coast on Friday.
All the action will be available to watch live via Triathlonlive.tv
Elite Women racing in Tongyeong
In the women’s field, recently crowned Asian Games champion Yuko Takahashi of Japan will wear the #1, as the Tokyo Olympian looks to end her season in style, having previously finished on the podium here in 2015.
Representing Team USA, Ericka Ackerlund comes into this race ranked #2 and will have teammate Gwen Jorgensen for company on the start line, after the 2016 Olympic Champion opted to miss the Pan American Games to race in South Korea.
Having picked up World Triathlon Cup podiums in her last two outings on the circuit, Jorgensen will be one of the main favourites for the win in Tongyeong. A victory here could be a big boost to Jorgensen’s Olympic ambitions, as the 37 year old currently sits #65 in the Olympic rankings.
The Australian trio of Sophie Linn, Kira Hedgeland and Jaz Hedgeland are all ranked highly coming into this event, as is Belgian Claire Michel, who last week finished second behind Italian Bianca Seregni at the World Triathlon Cup in Chengdu.
British star Vicky Holland continues her return after childbirth, and will plan to build on her two previous performances this month in Tangier and Rome.
Elite Men racing in Tongyeong
On the men’s side, WTCS Finals podium finisher Tim Hellwig wears #1, as the German rising star aims for back-to-back World Triathlon Cup wins having top the podium last week in Chengdu.
Accompanying Hellwig in South Korea will be Jonas Schomburg, Lasse Nygaard Priester and Valentin Wernz. All ranked inside the Top 10, it would be no surprise if the strong German contingent swept the podium in Tongyeong.
2019 winner Matthew McElroy, training out of Flagstaff Arizona along with Canadian Tyler Mislawchuk, will look to replicate his victory here from four years ago, while Mislawchuk also chases another win on this stage after coming up short in a sprint finish at the World Triathlon Cup in Huatulco.
Representing the UK is a group of five men – Harry Leleu, Jack Willis, Hugo Milner, Samuel Dickinson and Cameron Main. Milner interestingly races here off the back of the Izumo Ekiden Championship in Japan, where he was competing for the Ivy League team.
Finally, Norwegian Casper Stornes continues on the road to fitness with his fifth World Triathlon Cup since the beginning of September. Having finished sixth in Valencia and eighth in Rome, the former WTCS Bermuda winner looks to be on the verge of a breakthrough race.
