2019 Târgu Mureș ETU Middle Distance Triathlon European Championships

The final day’s racing of the 2019 ETU Transylvania Multisport Festival will be this weekend with the Middle Distance Triathlon and the Aquabike.

For many athletes, this middle-distance event is the one they have been focusing on. For the many Age-Group athletes, the chance to claim a place on the podium after racing this pretty tough course is within their grasp. For the Elite, there is a really exciting line-up.

With Great Britain’s Ultra star, Alice Hector, a 6-times winner at Israman and with a bronze in Ibiza at this distance and with a kick-started 2019 ETU season that saw her with a podium finish in the ETU Powerman Middle Distance Duathlon Championships in Viborg only in May, not racing now, Poland’s Ewa Bugdol as 2016 ETU Champion, from her race at the ETU Challenge Long Distance event in Poznan, will face the challenge from Gitta Arany HUN. After a promising early career on the ITU and ETU circuit, she moved to the longer races and comes here race fit after a solid victory at the Röcksee-Triathlon in Steiermark, Austria. A strong swim and bike gave her just enough advantage to hold onto the lead.

Bugdol's disappointing race in Pontevedra, where the swim was significantly reduced in distance, will be forgotten in the non-wetsuit race here in sunny Transylvania, where the full 1.9k is ready for all. Marta Bernardi ITA, had a top ten finish in the Walchsee ETU Challenge Middle Distance Triathlon European Championships and could well find herself on the podium here. Some younger athletes from Ukraine and Great Britain are thrown into the mix who could spring a surprise or two.

GB's Katrina Rye, moving up to middle distance racing, has impressed at her recent races. Watch out for her too.

For the start list, please click here.

For the Elite Men, the top name racing is Russia’s Andrey Bryukhankov. More regularly seen on the WTS and World Cup circuit, he is no stranger to the long distance races, with a 9th place earlier this year in Pontevedra. It will be a close call between him and the 2016 ETU Challenge Middle Distance Champion, Denis Šketako from Slovenia. A 5th place in Zofingen last year and a faster closing run than the Russian in Pontevedra and on paper at least, it could be quite intense at the front end. Denmark’s Miki Taagholt took time out of Bryukhankov on the bike in Spain and this is where his strength lies. Between then and now, no doubt the training on two wheels has been upped on the Russian Steppes and with Taagholt in the mix, the battle is now up to at the very least, three.

For the start list, please click here.

There will be another chance for a medal for Spain’s Joaquin “Kini” Carrasco in the PTS3 category. Gábor Czene HUN in the PTS4 category will of course be there to celebrate at the end with his long-time friend from Spain. The pair have raced at every opportunity here; Cross Triathlon, Cross Duathlon, Sprint Duathlon and Aquathlon. Now it’s time for the big one.

In the PTVI Category, with a gold yesterday in the Aquathlon, it will be a chance for Italy’s Alberto Ceriani and his guide, Claudio Pellegri to see if the 2017 title that they won at the ETU Herning Challenge Middle Distance Championships can come back once more to Italy.

There will of course be a huge number of Age-Group athletes racing. In our oldest category; the Men’s 70-74 and with only the gold, silver and bronze medals up for grabs, you can expect some excitement as there are 5 athletes on the start list. At the other end of the scale, in the 18-19 category, only having to finish will secure a title for the Romanian athlete.

For the whole set of start lists, please click here.

Throughout the day the organisers will be providing updates. Follow them here.

ETU will be updating on Twitter.

Alongside the Middle Distance Championships will of course be the Aquabike. Again a sizeable number of athletes will be racing. Athletes aged from 19-19 up to 70-74 (both male and female) will swim and bike the same course as the Middle Distance event, before finishing in the town centre.

For the whole set of start lists, please click here.