Olympic champion Cassandre Beaugrand was forced to miss the opening World Triathlon Championship Series race of the season because of illness.
The French superstar set a new national record for 10km on the road with a 30:52 run in Lille recently and topped a stellar field in Samarkand in Uzbekistan for what was now the first WTCS event of the campaign after Abu Dhabi was postponed in late March because of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
She was up against Germany’s Lisa Tertsch, who succeeded her as world champion last year, as well as a host of other big names.
‘Health comes first’
But just an hour before the start, Beaugrand posted on Instagram: “I made it through the whole winter without getting sick – of course it had to hit last night 🥲
“I was still hoping I could race despite the fever, but together with the medical team we decided that health comes first and not taking any risks was the right call.
“It was a tough decision, and I’m really sad to miss out – but I’m reminding myself there are plenty more races ahead, and this is just the first of the season.”
Plenty more opportunities
As Beaugrand says there is a busy season ahead, with still another seven races – and possibly Abu Dhabi – to come before the Grand Final in Pontevedra.
And the Olympic qualifying period for LA2028 doesn’t start until towards the end of May.
