France will host the third Word Triathlon Cup of the season in Lievin this weekend, as some of the best athletes in the world head to Pas-de-Calais to compete in this iconic event.
The race, which will be held exclusively indoors, is set to attract close to 5,000 fans and consists of heats, semifinals and a final over the super sprint distance.
In our preview below, we have all the information you need for the race this weekend, including start times, streaming and a rundown of the contenders in the men and women’s elite fields.
Start time and how to watch live
The race in Lievin will take place on Saturday March 30. For the Elite Women, the first qualifier will take place at 13:00 local time, with the repechage at 16:00, semi-final at 19:00 and finals at 21:20 and 21:40.
In the Elite Men’s competition, the qualifiers will kick off at 14:00 local time, with the repechage at 16:30, semifinal at 19:45 and the finals at 21:25 and 22:00.
The time zone in Lievin is CET, which is +1 hour ahead of the UK and +7 hours ahead of the West Coast. All the action will be available to watch live via Triathlonlive.tv
Race Format
In each round, athletes will swim 150 metres in a 25m swimming pool, before cycling 3km around the indoor track and then running 1km to the finish line.
There will be 72 men and women starting the race, with the qualifying rounds separated into 6 races of 12 athletes, from which the Top 4 in each race will auto-qualify for the semifinal.
Those who don’t finish in the Top 4 will have the opportunity to race the repechage. In the repechage, there will be four races of 12 athletes, with the Top 3 in each race qualifying for the semifinal.
In the semifinals, 36 athletes will start both the men and women’s events. There will be three races of 12 athletes, where the Top 4 qualify for the A final, the athletes in 5th to 8th qualify for the B Final and the rest of the field is eliminated.
On to the finals, there will be a straight race of 12 athletes in both the A and B final, with the winner and podium determined by the results of the A final.
Elite Women
In the women’s race, Britain’s Georgia Taylor-Brown is the top seeded athlete and will look to pick up some more silverware after a brilliant third place finish at the Quarteira European Cup in Portugal last weekend.
The Olympic silver medalist, who endured a difficult season with numerous injury setbacks in 2023, is chasing a spot on the team to Paris and will race for valuable Olympic points in Lievin.
Joining her on the hunt for Paris points are Americans Gwen Jorgensen and Gina Sereno, plus German duo Marlene Gomez-Goggel and Selina Klamt.
Other contenders include Hungarian Zsanett Kuttor-Bragmayer, plus Paris qualifier Laura Lindemann of Germany, as a number of strong European athletes look to make their mark in front of a big crowd.
Finally, joining GTB on the British team is Olympic bronze medalist Vicky Holland, plus rising star Jessica Fullager, who represented France until 2022 before transferring allegiances.
Elite Men
Fresh off the back of a big win in Quarteira, British star Hugo Milner will be one of the favourites leading into Lievin, especially if he is in contention coming off the bike.
Great Britain’s Samuel Dickinson and Jack Willis will also hope to do well in Northern France, having started the year with solid results in New Zealand and Portugal respectively.
From the home team, Vincent Luis will look to continue his return to form, having finished second behind Milner in Quarteira, as the two-time World Champion chases a spot with Les Bleus for Paris.
Other big names to look out for include German Tim Hellwig, who finished on the podium at the WTCS Grand Final last season, plus Norwegian Vetle Thorn, who is always competitive in these types of races.
Frenchman Aurelien Jem, third in Quarteira, will want to pick up another podium on home turf, as will talented teammates such as Yanis Seguin and Guillaume Hay.
