COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – A strong contingent of U.S. athletes is set to compete at the Columbia Threadneedle World Triathlon in Leeds, England, on Sunday, the fourth of nine stops on the ITU World Triathlon Series calendar this year.
Leeds hosts a stop on the World Triathlon Series circuit for the second consecutive year, with a challenging course featuring a 1,500-meter swim in Roundhay Park’s Waterloo Lake, a 38.6-kilometer bike toward the city center and a 10-kilometer run with a finish at the city center’s Millennium Square. The elite women will race at 8:06 a.m. ET (1:06 p.m. BST) on Sunday, June 11, and the elite men will follow at 10:51 a.m. ET (3:51 p.m. BST).
Kirsten Kasper (North Andover, Mass.), who is currently in third in the overall World Triathlon Series rankings, will headline the women’s elite field as the race’s No. 1 seed. Kasper placed third at ITU World Triathlon Yokohama in May to earn her first career WTS podium, and has also won World Cup medals in Chengdu, China (bronze), and Cagliari, Italy (silver), this season. Also set to compete is Taylor Spivey (Redondo Beach, Calif.), who earned her first career World Cup medal two weeks ago with a silver in Madrid.
Taylor Knibb (Washington, D.C.), the 2016 ITU junior world champion, will make her World Triathlon Series season debut in Leeds. Knibb placed 11th in her first career WTS start last year in Stockholm. She also has two World Cup starts on her resume, a bronze in Montreal last year and a fourth-place finish in Cagliari, Italy, last weekend. Summer Cook (Thornton, Colo.) is chasing her first ITU podium of the season after winning gold at World Triathlon Edmonton in 2016. Rounding out the U.S. women’s field in Renée Tomlin (Ocean City, N.J.), who placed fifth at the second WTS stop of the season in Gold Coast, Australia.
For the complete elite women’s start list, visit wts.triathlon.org.
Two Americans, Eli Hemming and Jason West, will compete in the men’s elite field on Sunday. Hemming (Kiowa, Colo.) is making his World Triathlon Series debut after recording a career-best World Cup seventh-place finish in Cagliari, Italy, last weekend. Hemming has also earned two CAMTRI American Cup individual podiums this season, his first at the senior elite level.
West (State College, Pa.) made his WTS debut in March in Abu Dhabi, placing 46th. His resume includes two top-20 World Cup finishes and six CAMTRI American Cup individual podiums.
For the complete elite men’s start list, visit wts.triathlon.org.
Both races will be broadcast live online at triathlonlive.tv, and season passes are available for purchase. In the United States, the races will also air on NBC Sports Group Universal HD on June 12 from 4-6 p.m. ET. Visit nbcsports.com for a complete schedule of Olympic sports broadcasts and channel information.
Triathlon fans can feel like part of the action with TRIFECTA, the official triathlon fantasy game of the ITU World Triathlon Series. Registration for TRIFECTA is open now at trifecta.usatriathlon.org, and podium picks must be submitted prior to the start of the first race.
About USA Triathlon
USA Triathlon is proud to serve as the National Governing Body for triathlon, as well as duathlon, aquathlon, aquabike, winter triathlon, off-road triathlon and paratriathlon in the United States. Founded in 1982, USA Triathlon sanctions more than 4,300 races and connects with nearly 500,000 members each year, making it the largest multisport organization in the world. In addition to its work with athletes, coaches, and race directors on the grassroots level, USA Triathlon provides leadership and support to elite athletes competing at international events, including International Triathlon Union (ITU) World Championships, Pan American Games and the Olympic and Paralympic Games. USA Triathlon is a proud member of the ITU and the United States Olympic Committee (USOC).
