The World Triathlon Championship Finals Abu Dhabi will see a British contingent of 29 athletes prepped and ready to race for the prestigious title of World Champion across triathlon, paratriathlon and Under 23s.
The British team currently has three athletes sat at the top of the World Triathlon rankings as Olympic silver medallist Georgia Taylor-Brown, Commonwealth Champion Dave Ellis and Paralympic bronze medallist Claire Cashmore all lead the way in the fields.
Taylor-Brown has enjoyed a successful season with three gold and three silver medals from the World Triathlon Championship Series in individual and relay racing. The Brit is likely to face a tough race for the title in the form of Olympic Champion Flora Duffy who sits a close second in the rankings ahead of Abu Dhabi. The pair have enjoyed a number of memorable head-to-heads including in Tokyo and in Birmingham at the Commonwealth Games.
Alongside Taylor-Brown and Duffy is Beth Potter who sits third in the rankings after winning three medals in the series this year. The Scot secured an impressive bronze in the penultimate race of the series in Bermuda after Duffy dominated the field in her hometown. Sophie Coldwell and Sian Rainsley will also represent Great Britain in the women’s race and they both currently occupy top-15 spots overall.
In paratriathlon, Ellis, who will be competing with his guide Luke Pollard, has won every race he has entered in 2022 and is set for the World Triathlon Para Championships hungry to build on his win in front of the home crowd in Birmingham at the Commonwealth Games.
Also competing in the men’s PTVI will be Oscar Kelly and his guide Charlie Harding who won their first World Triathlon Para Series medal in Montreal earlier this year, where Finley Jakes (PTS4) also claimed his first WTPS medal and he will be part of the British team racing in Abu Dhabi.
Multi-Paralympic medallist Cashmore has been on the podium at her five races this season but will not have things her own way in the women’s PTS5 as Rio 2016 Paralympic Champion Grace Norman will be eager to put her mechanical from Swansea behind her.
On the men’s WTCS start line will be Olympic silver medallist and Commonwealth champion Alex Yee who heads to Abu Dhabi currently ranked second in the overall rankings after three World Triathlon Championship Series wins in 2022. New Zealand’s Hayden Wilde is currently top of the men’s rankings ahead of the world title deciding race.
Three-time Olympic medallist and 2012 world champion Jonny Brownlee joins Yee on the start list, alongside Sam Dickinson, Grant Sheldon and Jack Willis.
Katie Crowhurst, who is competing with her new guide Ella Beard, was sixth at her debut World Championships in the PTVI category in Abu Dhabi 12 months ago and returns to action ready for a tough challenge from Paralympic Champion Susana Rodriguez. Rio 2016 silver medallist Alison Peasgood and her guide Brooke Gillies will also be on the start line.
It’s a paratriathlon team which includes a mix of experience with Megan Richter (PTS4), Mel Nicholls (PTWC), Colin Wallace (PTS3) and Michael Salisbury (PTS5) all competing at their first World Triathlon Para Championships.
The paratriathlon races will take place on Thursday 24 November, followed by the final event in the World Triathlon Championship Series, along with the U23 races, on Friday 25 and Saturday 26 November.
There’s also Under-23 races taking place with six British triathletes racing for the title of U23 World Champion. The British representatives include this year’s British elite triathlon champions Jess Fullagar and Connor Bentley, along with Daisy Davies, Dan Dixon, Hamish Reilly and Kate Waugh.
Commenting on the team, Mike Cavendish, British Triathlon Performance Director, said: “The teams travelling to Abu Dhabi are a real mix of experience and youth and I am excited to see what they deliver at the biggest competition of the year. It’s great to have the triathlon, paratriathlon and under 23 teams together at this event where we can all learn from each other and it helps gel our programmes together.
“This year has had everything, but what has been particularly pleasing alongside the brilliant results and performances has been the development of athletes who are still new to this level of competition.
“We are all now focused on supporting the selected athletes and ensuring they are in the best possible position to deliver the best performances they can in Abu Dhabi.”
The full British team is below along with elite athlete profiles .
Triathlon
Jonny Brownlee, 32, from Leeds, trains Leeds
Sophie Coldwell, 27, from Nottingham, trains Loughborough
Sam Dickinson, 25, from York, trains Leeds
Beth Potter, 30, from Glasgow, trains Leeds
Sian Rainsley, 25, from Coventry, trains Leeds
Grant Sheldon, 28, from Hamilton, trains France
Georgia Taylor-Brown, 28, from Manchester, trains Leeds
Jack Willis, 25, from Middlesborough, trains Leeds
Alex Yee, 24, from London, trains Loughborough
Paratriathlon
Claire Cashmore (PTS5), 34, from Kidderminster, trains Loughborough
Katie Crowhurst (PTVI), 18, from Maidenhead, trains High Wycombe
Guide: Ella Beard, 19, from Nottingham, trains Nottingham
Dave Ellis (PTVI), 36, from Derby, trains Loughborough
Guide: Luke Pollard, 31, from Telford, trains Loughborough
Finley Jakes (PTS4), 22, from Eastbourne, trains Loughborough
Oscar Kelly (PTVI), 21, from Woodford Green, trains Loughborough
Guide: Charlie Harding, 19, from Carlisle, trains Nottingham
Mel Nicholls (PTWC), from Tewkesbury, trains Tewkesbury
Alison Peasgood (PTVI), 35, from Dunfermline, trains Stirling
Guide: Brooke Gillies, 24, from Gleneagles, trains Stirling
Megan Richter (PTS4), 21, from Birmingham, trains Birmingham
Michael Salisbury (PTS5), 35, from Bath, trains Newcastle upon Tyne
Colin Wallace (PTS3), 37, from Aberdeen, trains Aberdeen
U23 Triathlon
Connor Bentley, 21, from Shropshire, trains Loughborough
Daisy Davies, 20, from Somerset, trains Bath
Dan Dixon, 20, from Morpeth, trains USA/England
Jess Fullagar, 22, from Leeds, trains Leeds
Hamish Reilly, 20, from Eastbourne, trains Loughborough
Kate Waugh, 23, from Gateshead, trains Leeds
About British Triathlon
British Triathlon is the Governing Body for the sport in Great Britain. It is responsible for raising the profile and delivering elite performance for Triathlon, Paratriathlon, Duathlon and Aquathlon in Great Britain. Triathlon is a fast growing, dynamic and modern Olympic and Paralympic sport with talented world class athletes, coaches and support staff, focused around delivering world-class success and inspiring participation.
Great Britain is home to double Olympic Champion Alistair Brownlee, 2016 silver and 2012 bronze medallist Jonathan Brownlee and 2016 bronze medallist Vicky Holland. In addition, British paratriathletes returned from the Rio 2016 Paralympics with one gold, two silver and one bronze medal courtesy of Andy Lewis, Lauren Steadman, Alison Patrick (Guide: Hazel Smith) and Melissa Reid (Guide: Nicole Walters) respectively.
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