The iconic Challenge Peguera-Mallorca will take place once again this weekend, as a strong cast of international stars head over to the Spanish Mediterranean Island to tackle a challenging middle-distance course.
The second race of October’s Challenge Family triple header, coming after Challenge Barcelona last weekend and Challenge Vieux Boucau on October 21, the race in Mallorca is a favourite for many professionals looking to end their season in the sun.
Notable athletes racing this weekend in Mallorca are double Olympic Champion Alistair Brownlee, IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship podium place finisher Imogen Simmonds and IRONMAN 70.3 World Champion Rico Bogen.
Start times and how to follow
This weekend’s racing will take place on Saturday October 14. Racing will begin at 09:00 local time. This corresponds to 08:00 in the UK, 03:00 on the East Coast and 00:00 on the West Coast.
For live tracking updates to find out how your favourite athletes are doing on race day, you can click on this link.
Elite Men – Can Brownlee take the tape?
After making his return to racing following ankle surgery last weekend at Challenge Barcelona, where he finished a creditable second place behind Dutchman Youri Keulen, Brownlee will be gunning for his second consecutive podium on Saturday.
Facing fierce competition, the Yorkshireman will again be up against last week’s conqueror Keulen, who along with countryman Menno Koolhaas will be flying the flag for the Dutch out in Mallorca. Both men have won Challenge races this season and will be looking to add another victory to their resume.
Frenchman Mathis Margirier, who won Challenge The Championship back in May before going on to record a string of impressive results over the middle distance, culminating with fourth at the PTO Tour US Open and IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship, is another big name on the start list.
The Germans, led by IRONMAN 70.3 World Champion Rico Bogen, and the runner-up in Finland Frederic Funk, will believe they can clean up again in Mallorca. Bogen, who hasn’t raced since his Lahti win, will face stiff competition from Funk, who has been on a winning streak in Austria and Uzbekistan since they last raced.
Defending champion Jonathan Wayaffe of Belgium also starts, and after finishing fifth in Barcelona he will hope to get back on the podium here. Realistically, there are close to 10 men who could lay claim to a a spot on the podium and make this race a very exciting one to follow.
Elite Women – Simmonds chasing more success
In the women’s race, Challenge Barcelona winner Imogen Simmonds is the class of the field and is well placed to take a fourth Challenge Family win of the year after victories in Cagnes-Sur-Mer, Walchsee and Barcelona.
The Swiss athlete, currently sitting at PTO World #9, will again go up against Lucy Buckingham of Great Britain, who was second last weekend in Catalonia. The Olympian, aiming for a third straight podium, will again look to put pressure on Simmonds through the swim and bike if she is to reverse last week’s finishing order.
Elsewhere in the field, Italian Margie Santimaria and Dutch athlete Diede Diederiks are two professionals with Challenge Family podiums under their belts already in 2023, with Santimaria racing well following third in Samarkand and sixth in Barcelona.
Finally, Danish professional Sif Bendix Madsen could well shake up the field on the bike, as the young star races for only the fourth time this year, following second at Clash Miami, a DNF at the PTO Tour European Open and third at IRONMAN 70.3 Swansea.
