World Triathlon Championship Series

ITU Triathlon World Championship
Founded	1989
Ceased	2008
Replaced by	ITU World Triathlon Series

World Triathlon Championship Series
Sport	Triathlon
First season	2009
Most recent; champion(s)	Alex Yee (GBR); Cassandre Beaugrand (FRA)
Most titles	Javier Gómez (ESP) (5)
Sponsor(s)	NTT
Official website	wtcs.triathlon.org
	2024 World Triathlon Championship Series

The World Triathlon Championship Series is an annual series of triathlon events organised by World Triathlon. The series is used to crown an annual world champion since 2008. Previously, the ITU (the former name of World Triathlon) world champion between 1989 and 2008 had been decided in a single annual championship race.

The Championship Series consists of multiple rounds of competitions culminating in a Grand Final race. Athletes compete head-to-head for points in these races that will determine the overall World Triathlon champion. The elite championship races are held, with one exception, over one of two distances, the standard or 'Olympic' distance (1.5 km swim, 40 km bike, 10 km run) which lasts between 1.5 and two hours, and the sprint distance, which is half of the standard distance and lasts around one hour (750 m swim, 20 km bike, 5 km run).

Since 2018 a mixed relay series has been run in tandem, where national teams compete in mixed team relays for prize money and Olympic qualifying points.^[1] From these races, one is denominated as the World Triathlon Mixed Relay Championships. Relays typically consist of four 'super-sprint' legs.

Since 2021 the leg holding the Mixed Relay Championships has also included the reinstated World Triathlon Sprint Championships under the combined branding of World Triathlon Sprint & Relay Championships. The stand-alone Sprint championship had previously been discontinued in 2011. Races in the sprint world championships are held over Super-sprint distances (300 m swim, 5 km bike, 2.5 km run) using a multi-race eliminator format which is unique to that event.

The final leg of the overall series is designated and marketed as the Grand Final, and has a greater points allocation, which must be included in the athletes final score ranking for the season along with a fixed number of best other results. In addition, the week of the Grand Final event sees other stand alone World Championship events held, including an elite under-23 event, single-race elite para-triathlon championship events, and a series of non-elite age-grade championships, similar to Gran Fondo World Championships in road cycling and World Athletics Road Running Championships.

History

With the establishment of the International Triathlon Union (ITU, now World Triathlon) in 1989 it was quickly established that the governing body should host a yearly world championship to establish the men's and women's world champion. With the creation and hosting of the first ITU Triathlon World Championship in 1989 the ITU had established itself and the sports premier event but the sport overall lacked cohesion with races of varying lengths and prize pools, which increased the difficulty for triathletes to train and plan for seasons ahead. So in 1991 the ITU created the ITU Triathlon World Cup a year long series of races all hosted by the ITU with regular distances and prize money. With a world championship and a regular season established the ITU's attention moved onto other issues including earning the sport a place at the Olympics.

Then in 2008 the day after the 2008 men's Olympic triathlon race the ITU announced starting next year it would be replacing the single race world championship with a six-race World Championship points super series culminating in a Grand Final, it was to be called the World Championship Series (WCS).^[2] The ITU believed it would help grow the sport and increase the reach to the level of major sports whilst gaining a bigger TV audience.^[3] Most athletes and professional coaches were happy at the announcement believing it would help the sport become more popular and increase professionalism and pay for the top level athletes. However, there were major monetary concerns one week after the announcement as the ITUs main sponsor BG had pulled out of its nine-year sponsorship deal after only two years.^[4]^[5]

By its start in 2009 the series had gained a title sponsor in Dextro Energy^[6]^[7]^[8] in a $2 million deal allowing for each World Championship event to feature a $150,000 prize purse and for the Grand final to have $250,000, this also meant that $700,000 was available at the end of the series. This influx of cash meant that athletes would be to earn almost triple what they had previously helping to draw more into the sport. In 2011 the sprint distance world championship was incorporated into the series giving the same points and prize money as any other event, from this point on sprint distance events would make up a part of the series.^[9] In 2012 Dextro Energy ended their title sponsorship in tandem with the series rebranding itself as the World Triathlon Series.^[10] Then in 2013 the prize pool saw an increase to $2.25 million certifying the world triathlon series as the richest series in triathlon.^[10] In 2018 with the growing popularity of the World Triathlon Mixed Relay Championships and the disciplines' addition to the Olympic program ^[11] it was decided that at three of the events on the 2018 calendar a mixed relay event would be held alongside the men's and women's competition; these three events would grant points towards Olympic qualification and constitute the new mixed relay series.^[1]

Only two triathletes succeeded in winning World Championships under both formats, Javier Gomez of Spain, and Helen Jenkins (née Tucker) of Great Britain and Wales. In 2020, in response to multiple race cancellations as a result of COVID-19 the Championship was once more decided on the basis of a single Championship race, won by Vincent Luis of France and Georgia Taylor-Brown of Great Britain and England. As Luis had already won a world title in 2019 under the now established season-long format, he in effect became only the third triathlete to win World Championships in both the single race and season-long formats.^{[citation needed]}

During the 2023 events, at least 57 participants fell ill after swimming off Roker Beach in Sunderland. An Environment Agency sample taken three days before the event indicated 3,900 E. coli colonies per 100ml, over 39 times higher than readings taken the previous month, but the results were not published until after the competition. Northumbrian Water reported that no discharges that would have affected water quality off Roker Beach were recorded since October 2021.^[12]

Disciplines

Currently there are three different distance disciplines:

Standard- A 1500m swim followed by a 40 km cycle followed by a 10 km run.
Sprint- A 750m swim followed by a 20 km cycle followed by a 5 km run.
Mixed Team Relay- A 4 x (300m swim followed by a 7.5 km cycle followed by a 1.5 km run) where each athlete completes the swim bike run before tagging the next athlete, with the order of the athletes always being female, male, female, male.

In all instances the swim will be a mass start in open-water and the cycling will be draft-legal. There is an allowed leniency of 10% on each segment of courses route for the standard and sprint distances, with more discretion being allowed for the mixed relay. The standard distance was also known as the Olympic distance as it was the only distance competed for in the Olympics, however the World Triathlon has tried to enforce the use of the name standard distance saving the name Olympic on for official Olympic events.^{[citation needed]}

Champions

Men's championship

Year	Gold	Silver	Bronze
2009	Alistair Brownlee (GBR)	Javier Gómez (ESP)	Maik Petzold (GER)
2010	Javier Gómez (ESP) (2 †)	Steffen Justus (GER)	Brad Kahlefeldt (AUS)
2011	Alistair Brownlee (GBR) (2)	Jonathan Brownlee (GBR)	Javier Gómez (ESP)
2012	Jonathan Brownlee (GBR)	Javier Gómez (ESP)	Dmitry Polyanskiy (RUS)
2013	Javier Gómez (ESP) (3)	Jonathan Brownlee (GBR)	Mario Mola (ESP)
2014	Javier Gómez (ESP) (4)	Mario Mola (ESP)	Jonathan Brownlee (GBR)
2015	Javier Gómez (ESP) (5)	Mario Mola (ESP)	Vincent Luis (FRA)
2016	Mario Mola (ESP)	Jonathan Brownlee (GBR)	Fernando Alarza (ESP)
2017	Mario Mola (ESP) (2)	Javier Gómez (ESP)	Kristian Blummenfelt (NOR)
2018	Mario Mola (ESP) (3)	Vincent Luis (FRA)	Jacob Birtwhistle (AUS)
2019	Vincent Luis (FRA)	Mario Mola (ESP)	Javier Gómez (ESP)
2020^‡	Vincent Luis (FRA) (2)	Vasco Vilaça (POR)	Léo Bergère (FRA)
2021	Kristian Blummenfelt (NOR)	Marten Van Riel (BEL)	Alex Yee (GBR)
2022	Léo Bergère (FRA)	Alex Yee (GBR)	Hayden Wilde (NZL)
2023	Dorian Coninx (FRA)	Hayden Wilde (NZL)	Léo Bergère (FRA)
2024	Alex Yee (GBR)	Léo Bergère (FRA)	Hayden Wilde (NZL)

^[13]† The athlete won his first title as World Champion under the old world championship system.

‡ The championship was restricted to a single race event due to COVID 19.

Women's championship

Year	Gold	Silver	Bronze
2009	Emma Moffatt (AUS)	Lisa Nordén (SWE)	Andrea Hewitt (NZL)
2010	Emma Moffatt (AUS) (2)	Nicola Spirig (SUI)	Lisa Nordén (SWE)
2011	Helen Jenkins (GBR) (2 †)	Andrea Hewitt (NZL)	Sarah Groff (USA)
2012	Lisa Nordén (SWE)	Anne Haug (GER)	Andrea Hewitt (NZL)
2013	Non Stanford (GBR)	Jodie Stimpson (GBR)	Anne Haug (GER)
2014	Gwen Jorgensen (USA)	Sarah Groff (USA)	Andrea Hewitt (NZL)
2015	Gwen Jorgensen (USA) (2)	Andrea Hewitt (NZL)	Sarah True (USA)
2016	Flora Duffy (BER)	Gwen Jorgensen (USA)	Ai Ueda (JPN)
2017	Flora Duffy (BER) (2)	Ashleigh Gentle (AUS)	Katie Zaferes (USA)
2018	Vicky Holland (GBR)	Katie Zaferes (USA)	Georgia Taylor-Brown (GBR)
2019	Katie Zaferes (USA)	Jessica Learmonth (GBR)	Georgia Taylor-Brown (GBR)
2020^‡	Georgia Taylor-Brown (GBR)	Flora Duffy (BER)	Laura Lindemann (GER)
2021	Flora Duffy (BER) (3)	Taylor Knibb (USA)	Taylor Spivey (USA)
2022	Flora Duffy (BER) (4)	Georgia Taylor-Brown (GBR)	Taylor Knibb (USA)
2023	Beth Potter (GBR)	Cassandre Beaugrand (FRA)	Emma Lombardi (FRA)
2024	Cassandre Beaugrand (FRA)	Beth Potter (GBR)	Emma Lombardi (FRA)

^[13]† The athlete won the title of World Champion under the old world championship system.

‡ The championship was restricted to a single race event due to COVID 19.

Medals classification


Rank	Nation	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1	Great Britain	9	8	4	21
2	Spain	7	6	4	17
3	France	5	3	5	13
4	Bermuda	4	1	0	5
5	United States	3	4	5	12
6	Australia	2	1	2	5
7	Sweden	1	1	1	3
8	Norway	1	0	1	2
9	New Zealand	0	3	5	8
10	Germany	0	2	3	5
11	Belgium	0	1	0	1
	Portugal	0	1	0	1
	Switzerland	0	1	0	1
14	Japan	0	0	1	1
14	Russia	0	0	1	1
Totals (15 entries)		32	32	32	96

Hosts

World Triathlon Series locations

The World Triathlon Series has visited 27 cities in 19 countries since its founding in 2009.

Country	City	Year
Country	City	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018		2019		2020	2021	2022	2023
Australia	Gold Coast	GF						•	•	•	GF
Australia	Sydney		•	•	•
Austria	Kitzbühel	•	•	•	•	•
Bermuda	Bermuda										•		•			•	•
Canada	Edmonton						GF	•	•	•	•	MR	•	MR		GF
Canada	Montreal									•	•		•			•	•	•
China	Beijing			GF
Germany	Hamburg	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	MR	•	MR	•	•	•	•
Great Britain	Leeds								•	•	•		•			•	•
	London	•	•	•		GF	•	•
	Nottingham										MR		MR
	Sunderland																	•
Hungary	Budapest		GF
Italy	Cagliari																•	•
Japan	Tokyo												MR
Japan	Yokohama	•		•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•		•			•	•	•
Mexico	Cozumel								GF
Netherlands	Rotterdam									GF
New Zealand	Auckland				GF	•	•	•
South Africa	Cape Town						•	•	•
South Korea	Seoul		•
South Korea	Tongyeong	•
Spain	Madrid	•	•	•	•	•
Spain	Pontevedra																	GF
Sweden	Stockholm				•	•	•	•	•	•
Switzerland	Lausanne			•									GF
United Arab Emirates	Abu Dhabi							•	•	•	•		•	MR		•	GF	•
United States	Chicago						•	GF
	San Diego				•	•
	Washington, D.C.	•

Where GF = Grand Final, MR = Mixed Relay event

World Triathlon Series Grand Final locations

The final race of each season is known as the grand final and has extra points, prize money and prestige associated with it, when a city bids to host the grand final it also bids to host many World Triathlon events such as the amateur Age-group world championships and the Paratriathlon world championship.

Year	Date	Location
2009	9–13 September	Gold Coast, Australia
2010	8–12 September	Budapest, Hungary
2011	10–11 September	Beijing, China
2012	20–21 October	Auckland, New Zealand
2013	14–15 September	London, Great Britain
2014	1 September	Edmonton, Canada
2015	17 September	Chicago, United States
2016	11-18 September	Cozumel, Mexico
2017	14-17 September	Rotterdam, Netherlands^[14]
2018	12–16 September	Gold Coast, Australia
2019	August 30–1 September	Lausanne, Switzerland
2020	Cancelled^*	Edmonton, Canada
2021	20-22 August	Edmonton, Canada
2022	22-26 November	Abu Dhabi, UAE
2023	23-24 September	Pontevedra, Spain
2024	17-20 October	Torremolinos, Spain

^*2020 Series was cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic. Champion was determined during a single sprint race event in Hamburg, Germany.

ITU Triathlon World Championship

The world champion was formerly crowned in the ITU Triathlon World Championship, a single championship race that was held annually from 1989, the same year as the formation of the International Triathlon Union (ITU), to 2008.

Results

Men's championship

Year	Gold	Silver	Bronze
1989	Mark Allen (USA)	Glenn Cook (GBR)	Rick Wells (NZL)
1990	Greg Welch (AUS)	Brad Beven (AUS)	Stephen Foster (AUS)
1991	Miles Stewart (AUS)	Rick Wells (NZL)	Mike Pigg (USA)
1992	Simon Lessing (GBR)	Rainer Müller-Hörner (GER)	Rob Barel (NED)
1993	Spencer Smith (GBR)	Simon Lessing (GBR)	Hamish Carter (NZL)
1994	Spencer Smith (GBR) (2)	Brad Beven (AUS)	Ralf Eggert (GER)
1995	Simon Lessing (GBR) (2)	Brad Beven (AUS)	Ralf Eggert (GER)
1996	Simon Lessing (GBR) (3)	Luc Van Lierde (BEL)	Leandro Macedo (BRA)
1997	Chris McCormack (AUS)	Hamish Carter (NZL)	Simon Lessing (GBR)
1998	Simon Lessing (GBR) (4)	Paul Amey (NZL)	Miles Stewart (AUS)
1999	Dmitriy Gaag (KAZ)	Simon Lessing (GBR)	Miles Stewart (AUS)
2000	Olivier Marceau (FRA)	Peter Robertson (AUS)	Craig Walton (AUS)
2001	Peter Robertson (AUS)	Chris Hill (AUS)	Craig Watson (NZL)
2002	Iván Raña (ESP)	Peter Robertson (AUS)	Andrew Johns (GBR)
2003	Peter Robertson (AUS) (2)	Iván Raña (ESP)	Olivier Marceau (SUI)
2004	Bevan Docherty (NZL)	Iván Raña (ESP)	Dmitriy Gaag (KAZ)
2005	Peter Robertson (AUS) (3)	Reto Hug (SUI)	Brad Kahlefeldt (AUS)
2006	Tim Don (GBR)	Hamish Carter (NZL)	Frédéric Belaubre (FRA)
2007	Daniel Unger (GER)	Javier Gómez (ESP)	Brad Kahlefeldt (AUS)
2008	Javier Gómez (ESP)	Bevan Docherty (NZL)	Reto Hug (SUI)

Women's championship

Year	Gold	Silver	Bronze
1989	Erin Baker (NZL)	Jan Ripple (USA)	Laurie Samuelson (USA)
1990	Karen Smyers (USA)	Carol Montgomery (CAN)	Joy Hansen (USA)
1991	Joanne Ritchie (CAN)	Terri Smith (CAN)	Michellie Jones (AUS)
1992	Michellie Jones (AUS)	Joanne Ritchie (CAN)	Melissa Mantak (USA)
1993	Michellie Jones (AUS) (2)	Karen Smyers (USA)	Joanne Ritchie (CAN)
1994	Emma Carney (AUS)	Anette Pedersen (DEN)	Sarah Harrow (NZL)
1995	Karen Smyers (USA) (2)	Jackie Gallagher (AUS)	Joy Leutner (USA)
1996	Jackie Gallagher (AUS)	Emma Carney (AUS)	Carol Montgomery (CAN)
1997	Emma Carney (AUS) (2)	Jackie Gallagher (AUS)	Michellie Jones (AUS)
1998	Joanne King (AUS)	Michellie Jones (AUS)	Evelyn Williamson (NZL)
1999	Loretta Harrop (AUS)	Jackie Gallagher (AUS)	Emma Carney (AUS)
2000	Nicole Hackett (AUS)	Carol Montgomery (CAN)	Michellie Jones (AUS)
2001	Siri Lindley (USA)	Michellie Jones (AUS)	Joanna Zeiger (USA)
2002	Leanda Cave (GBR)	Barbara Lindquist (USA)	Michelle Dillon (GBR)
2003	Emma Snowsill (AUS)	Laura Bennett (USA)	Michellie Jones (AUS)
2004	Sheila Taormina (USA)	Loretta Harrop (AUS)	Laura Bennett (USA)
2005	Emma Snowsill (AUS) (2)	Annabel Luxford (AUS)	Laura Bennett (USA)
2006	Emma Snowsill (AUS) (3)	Vanessa Fernandes (POR)	Felicity Abram (AUS)
2007	Vanessa Fernandes (POR)	Emma Snowsill (AUS)	Laura Bennett (USA)
2008	Helen Tucker (GBR)	Sarah Haskins (USA)	Samantha Warriner (NZL)

Medal table

Pos	National Team
1	Australia	17	15	13
2	Great Britain	9	3	3
3	United States	5	5	9
4	New Zealand	2	5	5
5	Spain	2	3
6	Canada	1	4
7	Germany	1	1	2
8	Portugal	1	1
9	France	1		1
9	Kazakhstan	1		1
11	Switzerland		1	2
12	Belgium		1
12	Denmark		1
14	Brazil			1
14	Netherlands			1

Host city

Year	Date	Location
1989	6 August	Avignon, France
1990	15 September	Orlando, United States
1991	13 October	Queensland, Australia
1992	12 September	Muskoka, Canada
1993	22 August	Manchester, United Kingdom
1994	27 November	Wellington, New Zealand
1995	12 November	Cancún, Mexico
1996	24 August	Cleveland, United States
1997	16 November	Perth, Australia
1998	30 August	Lausanne, Switzerland
1999	12 September	Montreal, Canada
2000	30 April	Perth, Australia
2001	22 July	Edmonton, Canada
2002	9–10 November	Cancún, Mexico
2003	6–7 December	Queenstown, New Zealand
2004	9 May	Madeira, Portugal
2005	10–11 September	Gamagōri, Japan
2006	2–3 September	Lausanne, Switzerland
2007	30 August–2 September	Hamburg, Germany
2008	5–8 June	Vancouver, Canada