World Triathlon

It was one of the most iconic moments to be forever etched into Tokyo 2020 Games folklore. Having led for the entire women’s PTWC race, Australia’s Lauren Parker was caught right at the line by USA’s Kendall Gretsch. Parker’s seemingly unbreakable grip on the gold medal slipped at the final moment, Gretsch’s determined blue-carpet push proved decisive.

The men’s Tokyo race had been a more one-sided affair, Netherlands’ Jetze Plat taking the tape two minutes ahead of his nearest rival in a typically dominant display. Only once has he been beaten since, and that World Championships silver came having tackled much of the 5km final segment in Pontevedra with a flat tyre to his racing wheelchair.

And so the two defending champions will arrive in Paris for their big show on ready to do their all to write history, Plat as the first PTWC triple Paralympic champion, Gretsch as the first to defend her title. In their ways stand 9 men and 8 women respectively, with the start horn sounding on the men at 08:15am on Sunday 1 September, the women five minutes later.

Plat the unstoppable?

Since 2016, only one man has been able to stand in the way of the relentless charge of Jetze Plat H2 and his haul of golds: his teammate Geert Schipper H2. The circumstances of that silver in Pontevedra will be a constant reminder of why Plat will not want to let up for a moment despite his clear credentials as favourite, and why the rest of the field will know they need to be in the best possible position to pounce should the unexpected happen again.

The Dutchman will have been as meticulous as ever in his build up and is a powerhouse over all three segments. That is not to say he cannot be beaten. Schipper also boasts incredible speed on the handcycle and racing wheelchair but will need the race of his life, or possibly some good fortune, if he is to take the big prize in Paris. Fourth in Tokyo, missing out on a medal will have stung after silver at Rio 2016, and should be all the fuel he needs this time around.

Can anyone halt Gretsch and Parker?

The favourites for the women’s gold will again be Lauren Parker H1 and Kendall Gretsch H2. Fired up by that Tokyo finale, the Australian bullet hasn’t lost an individual race since, adding three more world titles to her impressive collection of prizes in the process. As an H1 athlete, Parker will go out 3m38s before Gretsch and the H2 athletes, and will need to be acutely aware of what is happening further back to stay away.

Gretsch was the runner-up in two of those World Championships and last won the title in Rotterdam in 2017. A narrow win over Canada’s Leanne Taylor H1 in Montreal two months ago set the 32-year-old on her final preparations for Paris in the best possible fashion, and summoning all of the spirit she showed in Japan and more will be needed if she is to reel in her rival once again.

Achenza and Brungraber ready to vie for medals

The fastest final segment split of the day earned Austria’s Florian Brungraber H2 the silver in Tokyo, and he will need all that speed if he is to hold off the experienced Giovanni Achenza H1 again this time around. The Italian won his first Para Series gold in Devonport in March and followed it with a Para Cup win in Taranto to underline his form.

Fourth in Taranto but silver medallist at WTPS Montreal, the USA’s 2024 Continental Champion Howie Sanborn H1 makes his Paralympic debut after a decade of racing and Australia’s Nic Beveridge H1 will be aiming to improve on his previous finishes of 7th place at Tokyo 2020 and 9th in Rio 2016.

Spain and Brazil in the women’s medals chase

It was the Spaniard Eva María Moral Pedrero H1 who completed the podium back in Tokyo, taking bronze some eight minutes behind the fireworks up ahead. Crowned European Champion in 2023, wins in both Para Series and Para Cup races so far in 2024 hint at what may be to come in Paris.

Meanwhile, Brazil’s Jessica Ferreira H1 has been on a run of her own in 2024, hoovering up back-to-back bronze medals at the Series level in Yokohama and Montreal. Fourth in Tokyo, she missed out on the podium by around 90 seconds and will want a better swim this time around to help maintain a solid challenge.

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