Gisborne triathlete Tayler Reid is again among the elite athletes contesting the Super League Triathlon Championship Series.
The series comprises four races – on August 27 in London, UK; September 3 in Toulouse, France; September 30 in Malibu, USA; and October 21 in the “smart city” of NEOM, Saudi Arabia.
Other New Zealand athletes in the series are Hayden Wilde and, in the female races, Nicole van der Kaay.
Organisers this week announced that Kristian Blummenfelt and Léo Bergere would race the series, ensuring the men’s line-up would include the reigning Olympic individual, mixed relay, world triathlon, Commonwealth Games and Super League Triathlon champions.
Blummenfelt, the 29-year-old Norwegian who has an Ironman and Ironman 70.3 World Championship title to his name as well as Tokyo Olympic gold, would take on top contenders French WTCS champion Bergere, Wilde, Alex Yee, Jonny Brownlee and Matt Hauser across the four-race series.
Also confirmed this week for the fastest triathlon series in the world was the leader of the World Triathlon Championship Series rankings, Vasco Vilaça. Japanese star Kenji Nener would also return, while Swiss racer Adrien Briffod would make his Super League Triathlon debut.
Jess Fullagar and Alice Betto joined the women’s line-up.
The all-star line-up would again take part in a teams competition, with a revamped structure soon to be announced.
Super League was born in 2017, the brainchild of Michael D’hulst, entrepreneur Leonid Boguslavsky and four-time triathlon World Champion Chris McCormack.
After successful trial events, Super League held its first championship series in 2018.
This year will be the fifth running of the series with Super League having hosted 26 Championship Series and Arena Games Triathlon events since its inception.
Confirmed 2023 championship series athletes – Female: Georgia Taylor-Brown (GBR), Cassandre Beaugrand (FRA), Beth Potter (GBR), Sophie Coldwell (GBR), Taylor Spivey (USA), Katie Zaferes (USA), Summer Rappaport (USA), Kate Waugh (GBR), Olivia Mathias (GBR), Fanni Szalai (HUN), Verena Steinhauser (ITA), Miriam Casillas Garcia (ESP), Nicole van der Kaay (NZL), Barbara De Koning (NED), Jess Fullagar (GBR), Alice Betto (ITA).
Male: Jonny Brownlee (GBR), Alex Yee (GBR), Hayden Wilde (NZL), Matt Hauser (AUS), Vincent Luis (FRA), Henri Schoeman (RSA), Kristian Blummenfelt (NOR), Vasco Vilaça (POR), Léo Bergere (FRA), Chase McQueen (USA), Seth Rider (USA), Shachar Sagiv (ISR), Kenji Nener (JPN), Max Stapley (GBR), Emil Holm (DEN), Dan Dixon (GBR), Tayler Reid (NZL), Sergio Baxter Cabrera (ESP), Robert Sanchez Mantecon (ESP), Vitalli Vorontsov (UKR), Adrien Briffod (SUI).
Another trithlete with Gisborne links, Josiah Ney, is also making his presence felt on the world stage, in the Arena Games Triathlon format.
In a concept developed by Super League Triathlon, real-life/virtual-reality-blended racing is designed to provide an immersive viewing experience for fans watching at the venue and on broadcast.
Ney is one of 50 athletes who took part in the 2023 Arena Games Triathlon format.
In World Championship Series events, athletes swim in an Olympic pool, bike on static trainers and run on self-powered treadmills. Their efforts are turned into racing gameplay.
Ney, now 23, received Eastland Port sponsorship while based in Gisborne as he pursued his triathlon goals. His family moved to New Zealand from Canada in 2015 for a change in lifestyle, and Josiah represented New Zealand in international events until 2020.
From October 2021, he has represented Canada, although he stayed on in Tauranga until he finished his studies there.
He is now based in Canada, as is the rest of his family, who returned last year.
In Gisborne, father Patrick was a doctor working in general practice and mother Kate was with Sport Gisborne Tairāwhiti, working with primary teachers on the delivery of physical education (PE) and on how to teach youngsters values through PE.
Josiah is in a 50-strong elite men’s field for the 2023 Americas Triathlon Cup race in Montreal this weekend.
Younger brothers Caleb and Matthew, now 20 and 18 respectively, also showed promise in triathlon during their time in Gisborne.
Caleb now competes in triathlon under the Canada flag, having been taken under the wing of the Canadian national performance centre academy.
Matthew has excelled in road cycling, and won the 2023 junior men’s time trial at the Canadian national championships. He has also competed internationally for Canada.