Stars Set To Collide As Super League Triathlon Heads To Malibu For Decisive Race

September 29, 2023

/ENDURANCE SPORTSWIRE/ – The stars of triathlon are set to collide at the stunning Zuma Beach in Malibu, USA, on Saturday, September 30, as Super League Triathlon’s Championship Series reaches a pivotal stage.

With the majority of the sport’s short course aces having raced in either London or Toulouse in a spectacular start to the Series, triathlon’s heavyweights are ready to assemble for a huge battle in California. And with the best two results from the first three races plus the Grand Final in NEOM counting for the Individual Leaderboard, there is much on the line.

In the men’s line-up Olympic gold medalists Jonny Brownlee, Alex Yee and Kristian Blummenfelt go toe-to-toe with 2022 World Champion Leo Bergere and Olympic bronze medalists Hayden Wilde and Henri Schoeman. There is also an appearance from Vasco Vilaca, who returns to the scene of his infamous seal attack while training for last year’s race.

USA stars Ben Kanute and Morgan Pearson are drafted in to bolster the RTS Warriors and add even more home flavour and star power to the event.

The women’s race sees Cassandre Beaugrand enter the fray for Bahrain Victorious Scorpions to take on newly crowned World Champion Beth Potter, Sophie Coldwell, Katie Zaferes, Emma Lombardi and London and Toulouse race winners Jeanne Lehair and Kate Waugh.

It is also a big race in the fight for the Team Leaderboard. The all-British RTP Sharks have given themselves a solid lead, but the Santara Tech Eagles and Bahrain Victorious Scorpions will have stronger line-ups for the final two races, while the American RTS Warriors look highly competitive for their home race in the USA.

Brownlee currently leads the men’s standings on 28 points after two second place finishes. Yee sits on 15 points with one win from one appearance after victory in London.

Waugh heads the Women’s Leaderboard with 26 points from two races, with Lehair having won in London but been disqualified in Toulouse.

Super League Triathlon Malibu utilises the Eliminator format, which features three rounds of swim-bike-run with a short break between each. The last three athletes at the end of each round are cut from the field, along with those falling 90 seconds behind the leader, with the accumulated times of the first two Stages setting the scene for a pursuit start in the third.

The sea swim at the iconic Zuma Beach is one of the most memorable parts of the Championship Series and delivers race changing dynamics for those with the skills to use the surf to their advantage.

The final race of the Super League Triathlon Championship Series takes place in NEOM on October 21 with the Individual and Teams Champions crowned and sharing between them a prize pool of $1.24m.

Super League Triathlon Malibu is also part of the Malibu Triathlon weekend, which sees more than 3,500 age groupers, corporate teams and celebrities race at Zuma Beach, all while raising vital funds for pediatric cancer research at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA). This year’s event has already raised more than $1m for CHLA.