Gomez returns to racing with doubleheader weekend

Aug 20, 2020

Javier Gomez will return to racing Super League Triathlon this weekend, albeit over a very different format than the last time he appeared in the race series in 2017. He will toe the line as one of 10 men and 10 women to race the SLT Arena Games happening in Rotterdam, the Netherlands on August 23.

This is an innovative hybrid of real-world and virtual racing. The athletes will be racing Super League’s Triple Mix format: three rounds of swim, bike, and run, but in different orders each round. The swim leg will be held in an Olympic-sized pool while the bike and run legs will be completed on the Zwift virtual race platform using smart trainers and self-powered treadmills.

After having trained for several weeks for the ITU European Championships, Javier was disappointed when their cancellation was announced. The SLT Arena Games will give him a platform to put that fitness to the test racing against the world’s best especially as he continues preparing for next year’s Tokyo Olympic Games.

He says, “I’m excited about this new format in Super League and getting to the start line again. As you know, it’s not my favorite distance. As a junior, we only raced Olympic distance and my whole life I trained for that. Now that I’m in my 30’s, the distances are starting to get shorter and shorter. But I really love Super League and that kind of racing. It’s going to be fun to be on the start line and feel the nerves of racing and put on a good show for the people watching.”

Javier will also be racing the French Grand Prix in Chateauroux just a day prior to the Arena Games for Triathlon Club Liévin, competing against Bahrain Endurance 13 teammate Kristian Blummenfelt who will be racing for the Valence Triathlon Club.

As parts of the world are cautiously reopening for sport, more racing is now on the horizon for the Bahrain Endurance 13 team. Kristian will start at Challenge Davos next weekend. Ashleigh Gentle and Lauren Parker have targeted Ironman 70.3 Sunshine Coast for the week after, on the same weekend Vincent Luis and Vicky Holland are set to race World Triathlon Series Hamburg.

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Lauren Parker led the campaign, winning two medals including her fifth paratriathlon world title.

The paratriathlon races opened the elite competition on Saturday, where Parker once again proved untouchable. She led from the front, exiting the 750-metre swim first, hammering the 20-kilometre handbike leg with the day’s fastest split, and then powering through the 5-kilometre wheelchair run to cross the line 70 seconds clear of her nearest rival.

Unbeaten all year, Parker’s home victory carried extra meaning as she reclaimed the crown she relinquished last season.

“Everyone was so supportive out there and it definitely made me push a little bit harder,” Parker said post-race. “I wanted to get back on top again and I really worked hard for this one and I’m just happy to get it done.”

She also revealed her next sporting ambition: to qualify for the Winter Paralympic Games, with ongoing training in cross-country skiing and biathlon.

On Sunday, Parker added to her tally with a silver medal in the Para Mixed Relay World Championships, helping the Australian team to a podium finish.

In the men’s elite race, Vasco Vilaça placed fifth to secure the overall World Triathlon Championship Series bronze medal, returning to the world podium for the first time since earning silver at the one-day championship in Hamburg in 2020.

Emma Lombardi also delivered a standout performance, claiming bronze in the women’s race – her best finish of the season – and vaulting seven places to 11th overall in the Series standings. She swam into the pointy end on the 1.5-kilometre swim alongside compatriot Cassandre Beaugrand, then attacked on the 40-kilometre bike to lead onto the 10-kilometre run where she battled against the eventual winner and series champion Lisa Tertsch and a hard-charging Bianca Seregni to hold onto the final spot on the podium.

Beaugrand, who had stayed in the lead pack throughout the swim and bike, was forced to withdraw on the run to conclude her season ranked seventh overall.

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