The first ever WTCS race in Alghero produced what has been a rare sight in recent times in the Series: a breakaway sweep of the podium. A few hours later, the trick was repeated in the men’s race. With a sea swim, a tough rolling bike course and a sun-drenched 10km run to round things off, this was not an event for the faint-hearted and it took a pair of truly special performances from Cassandre Beaugrand (FRA) and Miguel Hidalgo (BRA) to get the job done. Read on to find out some of the big talking points from yesterday’s action.
Two key players
In each race, the breakaway was galvanised by the presence of a crucial figure. In the women’s race, that was Maya Kingma (NED). Having won the Karlovy Vary World Cup last year from a breakaway, the Dutch woman was the perfect candidate to bolster the initial escape group. She rode up to the lead pack with Beaugrand and from there set the tone for the escapees by driving the tempo and organising the pack. Kingma has recently by focusing on cycling racing, and won a criterium in the build-up to Alghero, and her form on two wheels certainly showed.
Leo Bergere (FRA) played a similar role in the men’s race as he got through an inordinate amount of work on bike. The Olympic medallist came from seemingly nowhere after a swim that was nothing to write home about. Once at the front, though, he piled on the pressure and briefly looked as if he was going to ride away from the entire field. Notwithstanding that the other members of the respective breakaway groups played their parts, the roles of the two WTCS race winners cannot be overstated.
Two key moments
For both Beaugrand and Hidalgo, there was a key moment that defined their races. Beaugrand’s came in the second lap of the 1500m swim. For a moment she had looked caught in a sticky situation and at risk of missing the breakaway as the leading six women pulled away. As was the case at the WTCS Final last year, Beaugrand did not panic and summoned a turn of aquatic speed that propelled her back into contention. It was not enough to completely catch the leaders, but it was enough to limit the damage. She then applied the finishing touch with a swift T1 to catch Kingma, achieving what was beyond everyone else in the chase group.
Hidalgo’s key moment came later on. After riding hard alongside Bergere and his fellow leaders on the bike, the Brazilian unleashed a jaw-dropping first run lap. Over 7 frankly logic-defying minutes, he broke Matthew Hauser (AUS), the winner of WTCS Yokohama and the pre-race favourite, and Luke Willian (AUS) in brutal fashion. Hidalgo’s lead stood at 20 seconds as he passed through the first lap and from there the race was won. Such was the nature of the lap, he did not just win the race; he announced himself as an equal favourite for this year’s world title.
Two what ifs
As is often the case when breakaways are successful, the top running splits of the day came from the fresher legs in the chase pack that had not worked as hard on the bike. In the women’s race, Leonie Periault (FRA) recorded a time of 34:10, the best of the field by 14 seconds and a full 23 seconds better than Beaugrand, which was enough to lift her to 5th place. David Cantero del Campo (ESP) performed a similar role in the men’s race, taking 6th place after logging 29:59 for the 10km. Cantero was the only man under 30 minutes and 10 seconds quicker than the flying Hidalgo.
After he also logged the quickest run at WTCS Abu Dhabi in February from a chasing group, Cantero clearly has the speed to trouble the best. Yet the World U23 champion is running the risk of having a season of what ifs by losing position in the first two disciplines. The same applies to Periault, herself already a WTCS race winner. To be fair, she did try to get away from the chase group on the bike, showing more initiative than many of her fellow riders. But Alghero showed that, while they can win this year if the race unfolds in their favour, waiting for that day to come could result in a few more what ifs.
Two new medallists
While Beaugrand extended her winning run in the WTCS (of races she has finished) and reasserted her dominance, the women’s race also saw two new faces on the podium. For a while it has seemed a question of when as opposed to if Bianca Seregni (ITA) would earn a first medal. She had made a habit of winning at the World Cup level. Her memorable hat-trick of wins in 2023 stands out on that front. In addition, a strong case can be made that she is the best swimmer in WTCS, especially after her display at the season opener in Abu Dhabi. Yet in the Series, it had not quite clicked for her.
In Alghero, Seregni made the step up many had anticipated. She came into the race on the back of 8th place finishes in Abu Dhabi and Torremolinos, her best ever results in the WTCS. Once the race started, she set the early pace in the water before sharing the lead on the second lap. A strong showing in the breakaway and a measured 10km in which she only lost 33 seconds to Beaugrand then carried her to silver. Not only did her effort delight the home fans, it was Italy’s best showing at the top level of triathlon since Alice Betto starred at the Tokyo Olympic Test Event in 2019.
The second new face on the podium was Britain’s Olivia Mathias. Mathias was a tricky one to place coming into Alghero. On the one hand, she was somewhat of a known quantity as a World Cup medallist armed with a strong swim and a penchant for breakaways. Yet there was also a degree of the unknown after she rattled off multiple intriguing run performances earlier in the year, including personal bests over the 5km and 10km. These data points were especially important as, heading into Alghero, Mathias had lost almost 4 minutes on average to the best runner in her 2024 standard distance WTCS appearances. Her form said she would be better. And boy was she.
Mathias did not put a foot wrong in Alghero and, like Seregni, made the step up from World Cup medallist to WTCS medallist. In doing so, she helped to snap compatriot Beth Potter’s medal streak in the Series and has put a target on her back for the rest of the year. If Mathias swims, rides and runs like she did yesterday, though, only a select few will get near her at the finish line.
Two opportunities missed
As is the nature of elite sport, disappointment was always going to stalk much of the field in Alghero. In that regard, there are two who might feel theirs a little more keenly than others. Gwen Jorgensen (USA) arrived in Sardinia with the chance to lead the WTCS for the first time since securing the world title on home soil in 2015. Similarly, Vasco Vilaca (POR) sensed the opportunity to snatch the Series lead away from Hauser.
However it was not to be as Vilaca finished 31st and Jorgensen was lapped out after suffering a puncture. For both, Alghero will have been especially tough to take after their strong showings in Yokohama; Vilaca came 3rd and Jorgensen took 4th, the best result of her comeback. To not back that up and let their opportunities slip will be frustrating. Nevertheless, the season is long and there are four more scoring events ahead of the Series Final. Both will therefore dust themselves off from a bruising day in Alghero and set after Series leaders Hauser and Lisa Tertsch (GER).
