Can lightning strike twice? The last time Luke Willian (AUS) won a World Cup, he went on to claim a maiden WTCS medal two weeks later in Yokohama. Fresh off his latest win in Chengdu, he is primed for his first WTCS appearance of 2026. And where will that just so happen to be? Yokohama, of course.
“I’m really excited for Yokohama and this weekend was a good showing of the form that I’m in,” said Willian. “I’ve been focusing on the 10km run so to have the speed over 5km was a pleasant surprise.”
His speed over 5km went hand-in-hand with a commensurate tactical performance, both of which bode well for Yokohama. “I tried to test the legs of the group early in the run but could sense that it had no impact. I just tried to go with every move but knew if it came down to a sprint I was going to make sure I was first into the final corner and just go for it from there.”
In his post-race interview, Willian had also noted the Chengdu-Yokohama double had been on his radar over the winter. When asked for his rationale behind that, he explained, “I tend to always race better the second time around, so the plan was to use Chengdu as a hit out in preparations for Yokohama and make changes depending on how I go so fortunately I won’t have to make many changes this week.”
By contrast, one athlete that has been forced to adjust their plans in recent times is Sara Guerrero Manso (ESP). Four days before travelling to the Haikou World Cup in March, she suffered a minor calf tear in a running session. She nonetheless decided to make the trip anyway in the knowledge she would not be able to complete the run. A DNF followed.
“Mentally, it was not too hard for me because I had already accepted it before travelling, and I just enjoyed what I was still able to do.”
Since then, “Training has not been exactly what we planned, because I spent four weeks without running, but I was able to do many hours of cycling and swimming, which helped me stay fit.”
Her otherwise productive winter shone through in Chengdu, however, as she came away with 4th place, narrowly missing out on the podium in the final sprint. “Even though I arrived a bit short on training, I just went with the flow and it worked out pretty well in the end!”
“It was a very tactical race where saving every bit of energy was really important, so my main focus was just to stay with the group and save as much energy as possible for the finish. I usually like final sprints a lot, but this time I arrived there feeling a bit too tired. I would have liked to have a little bit more energy for the last 200 metres, but tactically I entered the final turn in last position, so after that there was not much more I could do.”
“To be honest, in the final kilometre I was so tired that I was not thinking too much. It was a big shock for my body after so many months without competing and then running such a fast 5km. But I was also very excited with how the race was going, so overall I’m very happy with the result!”
Guerrero will not be heading to WTCS Yokohama this weekend. Instead, she will open her Series campaign in Alghero later this month. “From the beginning of the year we marked Alghero as the first big target of the season,” she said. “I haven’t done many World Series races so far, and in the ones I’ve done I haven’t had standout results or the results I was hoping for, but my goal this year is to start racing well in them and to do the full circuit. I’m very motivated, and after this hard training block of swimming and cycling I hope things go well.”
Meanwhile, Pan American Games Junior champion Braxton Legg (USA) left Chengdu with the best World Cup result of his young career so far, placing 14th. This came after a string of recent appearances at this level, including in Lanzarote and Haikou back in March. For Legg, the result was a positive stepping stone. As with his previous outings, though, there were lessons to take away.
“Even though it was my best result and I’m proud of it, I still made some mistakes that cost me some valuable seconds. Something that I’ve learned on this circuit is that every second you lose is about a position in the race so I’m just working on minimizing the seconds lost in controllable situations.”
While Willian will be heading to Yokohama this weekend with hopes of matching his 2024 podium, Legg will travel to Japan to make his Series debut.
“I am feeling really good for my WTCS debut. Obviously the body is beat up from this race and I have the mixed relay to do tomorrow (where he anchored Team USA to 4th place, missing the bronze by milliseconds), but after the relay I’ll just be focused on recovery and turning the body around for the biggest challenge yet in Yokohama.”
In the women’s field, another athlete who impressed in Chengdu will likewise go on to make her WTCS debut this weekend. Mariana Vargem (POR) overcame a difficult swim to rise to 5th place on Saturday, visiting the top-5 of a World Cup for the first time in her career.
“I’m very happy with this result. It’s my first top-5 finish in a World Cup, so it ends up having a special meaning for me. I feel that it is also a reward for all the work that I've been doing in training and for the consistency I’ve been trying to build throughout this season. There are still many aspects to improve, but leaving here with this result gives me a lot of motivation and confidence to keep evolving.”
“This result gives me a lot of confidence for my WTCS debut next weekend. Above all, it shows me that I’m able to stay competitive even when the race doesn’t start in the best way.”
In addition to her placing, Vargem clocked the best run of the day (16:21) to rise through the pack. She had this to say of her third discipline effort:
“I started the run in the back of the front group in 45th position or so, but I managed to catch the front on the first lap. When I reached the front group, I saw there were athletes I know are very strong in this segment, but at the same time I was feeling good and confident in my run. I stayed focused on keeping calm and making the most of the good sensations I was having. In the final metres, I believed a medal was possible and gave everything I had until the finish. Even though I didn’t manage to reach the podium, I'm very satisfied.”