Reigning World Under-23 champion Ollie Conway will miss the WTCS Grand Final in Pontevedra after a scan revealed a grade 3 stress response in his fibula.

The rising British star, who won the Haikou World Cup and became European champion earlier this year, has endured a frustrating interruption to a season which has underlined both his potential and the challenges of stepping up to regular senior racing.

Having already sat out Supertri Jersey and WTCS Karlovy Vary, Conway confirmed that Pontevedra is also off the agenda – and that his season could be over.

Scan confirms injury setback

Explaining the sequence of events, Conway wrote on Instagram: “A few weeks ago I noticed some pain in my fibula so decided to deload and see if it would settle down.

“It still didn’t feel quite right so I decided not to race Jersey and went for a scan. Sadly it came back showing a grade 3 stress response.”

That means another major championship opportunity will have to wait for last year’s World U23 champion.

“Unfortunately due to injury I won’t be competing at Karlovy Vary, Pontevedra or possibly for the rest of the season,” he added in the announcement, made before the Czech race.

Two wins and a steep learning curve

There have been significant highs for Conway in 2026.

He opened his individual campaign with victory at the World Cup in Haikou before finishing an impressive fifth at WTCS Samarkand.

A 19th place in Alghero followed, then another landmark success as he claimed the elite European title in Tarragona in June.

July proved more challenging. Conway finished 33rd in the individual race in Hamburg before helping Britain to mixed relay world championship bronze the following day, after which he needed medical attention.

His most recent WTCS appearance brought 31st place in London.

For an athlete still early in his senior career, it has been a season packed with experience, even if it has not unfolded as he hoped.

“This season as a whole definitely hasn’t gone how I imagined it would,” he reflected.

“There have been some really good highs but also quite a few lows and it’s been a pretty steep learning curve.”

Looking towards next season

Conway’s breakthrough in 2025 included victory on his World Cup debut in Morocco, fourth on his first WTCS appearance in Karlovy Vary and those individual and mixed relay U23 world titles in Wollongong.

When we interviewed him earlier this year, improving his swim was already a priority as he sought to establish himself against the world’s best.

And that is where he hopes to make progress during his enforced break from running.

“On a positive note with the lack of running I should have plenty of time to hopefully improve my swim for next season,” he added.

He concluded: “Thank you to all the people who’ve supported so far this year, and wishing the best of luck to everyone for the rest of the season.”