This was a preview of the opening supertri race of the year – click on the names to read about superb wins for Alex Yee and Jeanne Lehair.
The newly-branded supertri season kicks off in Boston this Sunday with most of the biggest triathlon names from the Paris 2024 Olympics locking horns again – and both individual gold medal winners taking part.
We get the first meeting between Alex Yee and Hayden Wilde since that epic duel for the gold at Paris 2024, while it’s seconds out again for Cassandre Beaugrand vs Beth Potter in the women’s.
Boston is a brand new venue for supertri and the first of five races as we build up to the finale which is again in Neom in Saudi Arabia.
There are plenty of changes in supertri this season – with a streamlined format (now always Enduro), team franchise owners, massive prize money allocation alterations and even enhanced broadcast graphics to make the races easier to follow. Read on to find out more…
Start time and how to watch live
Racing takes place on Sunday 18 August 2024.
Women’s PRO race: 12:43 local, that’s 1743 UK and 1843 CET
Men’s PRO race: 13:56 local, that’s 1856 UK and 1956 CET
You can sign up to watch the races for free on the supertri website here and this page also gives full details of broadcasters in your region.
Pro women – Who is racing in supertri Boston?
The best short-course racers in the world will line up on Sunday, with that Cassandre Beaugrand vs Beth Potter dynamic an obvious headline.
It’s been the French star who has come out on top in their last three meetings, including the all-important one in Paris.
But Potter is the ‘queen of transitions’ – could that prove decisive in this short, sharp format?
And how will 16-year-old phenom Fanni Szalai stack up against the Olympic greats?
And a couple of changes to report: 21-year-old Dutch athlete Barbara De Koning, who already has a season of supertri experience under her belt, slots into a Crown Racing women’s line-up that features big hitters Beaugrand, Georgia Taylor-Brown and Kate Waugh.
De Koning is Crown’s under-23 athlete (each team must have one on their roster) and will gain huge value from working alongside such stars.
Meanwhile, Brownlee Racing have added a fifth woman to their roster as Jess Learmonth has been forced to miss the start of the season due to injury.
Alice Betto, the 36-year-old who raced for Italy at the Olympics in Paris, is a permanent signing and is expected to initially cover for Learmonth and then other scheduled absences over the League campaign.
Brownlee Racing: Beth Potter, Olivia Mathias, Jess Fullagar and Alice Betto
Crown Racing: Cassandre Beaugrand, Georgia Taylor-Brown, Kate Waugh and Barbara De Koning
Podium Racing: Jeanne Lehair, Fanni Szalai, Vittória Lopes and Léonie Périault
Stars & Stripes: Katie Zaferes, Taylor Spivey, Kirsten Kasper and Cathia Schär
Pro men – Paris 1-2 back in action
We haven’t had to wait long for the latest round in that absorbing Alex Yee / Hayden Wilde rivalry.
The pair were breathtaking on the course in Paris and as sporting as ever off it.
And it will be fascinating to see how Super League legend Vincent Luis goes alongside Wilde for Crown Racing after he missed out on Olympics selection.
There’s one late addition to the Crown Racing line-up too as they’ve confirmed that Vetle Bergsvik Thorn, who competed for Norway in the Olympics and is seen as a rising talent in the prolific Norwegian system, will join their roster alongside Wilde, Luis and Max Stapley.
Brownlee Racing: Alex Yee, Connor Bentley, Sergio Baxter Cabrera and Hugo Milner
Crown Racing: Hayden Wilde, Vincent Luis, Max Stapley and Vetle Bergsvik Thorn
Podium Racing: Matt Hauser, Dorian Coninx, Kenji Nener and John Reed
Stars & Stripes: Chase McQueen, Seth Rider, Vasco Vilaça and Tim Hellwig
More on the supertri teams
Each team consists of four women and four men, and must contain an under-23 athlete in line with supertri’s commitment to develop the future of triathlon.
The team managers are as follows:
Brownlee Racing – Non Stanford
Podium Racing – Tim Don
Crown Racing – Chris McCormack
Stars & Stripes Racing – Parker Spencer
And with nearly $1million up for grabs in the teams prize fund this year – more than three times 2023 – expect a growing emphasis on that aspect over the next few months.
The course
The format in Boston – and all supertri races this season – is ENDURO.
In simple terms, this is three back-to-back triathlons (all in swim-bike-run order), with no breaks in between.
Not everyone will make it to the finish either, because should an athlete fall more than 90 seconds behind the race leader at any point, they will be eliminated.
Part of the famous Boston Triathlon weekend, the event starts and finishes at DCR Carson Beach next to the historic McCormack Bath House, with the bike and run on a loop along DCR Day Boulevard.
Each stage will consist of a 300m swim (one lap), a 4km cycle (four laps) and a 1.6km run (two laps).
The rules – and quirks – of supertri
‘Normal’ rules do not apply in supertri and a small short cut, aka ‘Short Chute’, can be earned during the racing for being first across the line at various points.
You can earn a Short Chute in Boston as follows:
- the first athlete across the Mount Line after the swim on Stage 1,
- the first across the Mount Line after the bike on Stage 1 (i.e. after T2)
- the first across the Dismount Line after the run on Stage 1.
Short Chutes are won for a Team and awarded to an athlete during the race by their Team Manager. Short Chutes are to be taken on the first lap of the run in Stage 3. No team can win more than one Short Chute.
Triathlon’s mid-season report card: Tim Don on who’s raising the bar this triathlon race season
