NEWS

Four Weeks to World Champs

By World Triathlon Admin | 09 May, 2008

The countdown continues to the Vancouver BG Triathlon World Championships.  Four weeks from today, the first day of competition will begin at English Bay and Stanley Park as more than 3,000 athletes from 45 countries will take part in the 20th edition of ITU’s flagship event.

“With the world championships just four weeks away, we’re very confident all the months of planning and preparation will produce one of the best world championships ever,” said Philip Davis, Vice-President of the Triathlon Vancouver Organizing Committee (TVOC) and Director of Operations.  “It’s incredible to feel the excitement building in the city as we head towards the event.  We’re looking forward to a great turnout at an exceptional venue, and showcasing Vancouver as a world-class sports city.”

Momentum and community participation continue to build as the number of volunteers has exceeded 700 and quickly closing in on 1000.  The Corporate Challenge is gaining entries from many local triathletes from businesses and companies and the event filling up quickly.  Already teams have been entered from Tim Horton’s, National Bank, Davis LLP, Ledcor Construction and the BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum.

The world championships will climax with the elite women’s and men’s races on Sunday June 8.  It will be the final Olympic qualifier for Canadians to earn selection to the Beijing Olympic team.  Four Olympic spots (two men and two women) will be at stake for Canada’s top triathletes.  Sydney Olympic gold medalist Simon Whtifield (Victoria, BC) and Lauren Groves (Vancouver, BC) have already earned nominations to the Olympic team and lead the Canadian elite team racing in Vancouver that was announced by Triathlon Canada earlier this week.  Kirsten Sweetland (Victoria, BC), Paul Tichelaar (Edmonton, AB), Kathy Tremblay (Montreal, QC), Carolyn Murray (Edmonton, AB) and Kyle Jones (Oakville, ON) have all had excellent performances on the BG Triathlon World Cup series in 2008 and will be on the start line for Team Canada in June. 

“This is an event I have been looking forward to for a couple of years now.  Last year’s World Cup was a great course preview for me.  I rarely get the chance to race in my home country, let alone my hometown, so this is very exciting for me,” said the Beijing bound Groves.

A strong international contingent is expected to flock to Vancouver for the world championships including reigning world champion Vanessa Fernandes of Portugal and Spanish star Javier Gomez.  Both are widely considered to be the early gold medal favourites in Beijing.  The event also features a $250,000 USD prize purse equal for elite men and women.   The 2008 Vancouver BG Triathlon World Championships will be the final event in ITU’s 24-month Olympic qualification period which began on May 1, 2006. 

Click here for the official website of the world championships

Related Event: 2008 Vancouver BG Triathlon World Championships
05 - Jun, 2008 • event pageall results
Results: Elite Men
1. Javier Gomez Noya ESP 01:49:48
2. Bevan Docherty NZL 01:50:12
3. Reto Hug SUI 01:50:17
4. Hendrik De Villiers RSA 01:50:18
5. Matthew Reed USA 01:50:27
6. Simon Whitfield CAN 01:50:27
7. Igor Sysoev RUS 01:50:28
8. Tony Moulai FRA 01:50:31
9. Paul Tichelaar CAN 01:50:32
10. Ivan Vasiliev RUS 01:50:34
Results: Elite Women
1. Helen Jenkins GBR 02:01:37
2. Sarah Haskins USA 02:01:41
3. Samantha Warriner NZL 02:02:32
4. Erin Densham AUS 02:02:32
5. Emma Moffatt AUS 02:02:34
6. Felicity Abram AUS 02:03:35
7. Sarah True USA 02:04:08
8. Kate Allen AUT 02:04:14
9. Debbie Tanner NZL 02:04:24
10. Vanessa Fernandes POR 02:04:34
Results: U23 Men
1. Alistair Brownlee GBR 01:54:37
2. Gregor Buchholz GER 01:54:56
3. Martin Van Barneveld NZL 01:54:59
4. Todd Leckie GBR 01:55:12
5. Alexander Bryukhankov RUS 01:55:36
6. Lukas Salvisberg SUI 01:55:46
7. Nils Frommhold GER 01:55:56
8. Alberto Casadei ITA 01:55:59
9. Joshua Maeder AUS 01:56:09
10. Tony Dodds NZL 01:56:10
Results: U23 Women
1. Daniela Ryf SUI 02:09:30
2. Jasmine Oeinck USA 02:10:02
3. Mari Rabie RSA 02:11:35
4. Olesya Prystayko UKR 02:12:51
5. Barbara Riveros CHI 02:13:02
6. Justine Whipple USA 02:13:08
7. Yuliya Yelistratova UKR 02:13:32
8. Renáta Koch HUN 02:13:55
9. Sarah Fladung GER 02:14:25
10. Kerry Spearing IRL 02:14:57
Results: Junior Men
1. Vincent Luis FRA 00:57:06
2. Denis Vasiliev RUS 00:57:36
3. Jonathan Brownlee GBR 00:57:43
4. Joshua Amberger AUS 00:57:52
5. Rodrigo Gonzalez MEX 00:58:19
6. Franz Löschke GER 00:58:24
7. Min Ho Heo KOR 00:58:26
8. Igor Polyanskiy RUS 00:58:35
9. Tom Davison NZL 00:58:39
10. David Obozil FRA 00:58:40
Results: Junior Women
1. Kirsty Mcwilliam GBR 01:04:05
2. Ashleigh Gentle AUS 01:04:43
3. Zsófia Tóth HUN 01:04:47
4. Ashley Finaughty ZIM 01:05:07
5. Emma Jackson AUS 01:05:18
6. Alena Stawczynski GER 01:05:22
7. Claudia Rivas MEX 01:05:23
8. Maaike Caelers NED 01:05:27
9. Paula Findlay CAN 01:05:28
10. Nataliya Efremova RUS 01:05:32