There’s something so satisfying about discovering something before everyone else, be it a future hit single, a new acting prodigy or a future Olympic champion. Cove Beach, Wollongong, may be the scene at which we get to make such a discovery as the stars of tomorrow compete for gold at the 2025 World Junior Championships.
The action will take place over the sprint distance, with a one-lap 750m swim preceding a four-lap 20km bike and a two-lap 5km run. The junior men’s race will be on Friday 17th October at 14:15 (local time; 05:15 CEST) while the junior women’s race is set for the same day at 16:15 (local time; 07:15 CEST). Be sure to catch it all live on TriathlonLive as this is the chance to see the future, now.
Junior Men
Achille Besson (FRA) is among the headline acts in the men’s field. Last year’s bronze medallist is the top returning finisher and he is clearly in fine form; he scooped the silver medal at the European Junior Championships in Melilla earlier in the summer. Besson is also the top male finisher from Melilla racing, and as such the signs are favourable for another high finish.
Bradon Pye (GBR) was the bronze medallist at the European Junior Championships. He also impressed by winning the Quarteira Europe Junior Cup. Then there is Tristan Douche (FRA), the 2023 European Youth champion, who also has logged an impressive Europe Junior Cup medal strike rate, including a win in Holten this year. Hector Tolsa Garcia (ESP), who placed 5th at the World Junior Championships in 2024, is another European name to note.
Of course, with the best in the world competing, Wollongong will be so much more than a European story. Antony Clayton (RSA) comes in as the Africa Junior champion and the World Junior Cross Triathlon champion. With multiple Africa Junior Cup successes under his belt, he has made clear his ability to get to the finish line first.
Daniel Ubilla Sababa (CHI) also arrives as the Americas Junior champion and is armed with a wicked turn of pace. In addition, Blake Bullard (USA) heads to Wollongong in piping hot form after taking the silver medal at the recent Pan American Junior Games.
Zahn Spies (AUS), the 2nd place finisher at this year’s Oceania Junior Championships, looks to be the top contender from the home team. Being born in 2008, this year might be a tad early for him compared to his older rivals. Nevertheless, the home crowd could bring out the best in him.
Elsewhere, Carol Popa (ROU) will be confident after wins at both a Europe Junior Cup and the Europe Balkan Championships this year. Zalán Trungel-Nagy (HUN) is another to consider having been a consistent medal threat at Europe Junior Cups.
Finally, we cannot ignore Isaac Lamprecht (USA). An age-grouper last year in Torremolinos, he finished 4th at the Americas Junior Championships and earned two Europe Junior Cup silver medals earlier in 2025. Perhaps his rapid upward trajectory could take him all the way in Wollongong.
Junior Women
In contrast to the wide open men’s field, the women’s race will be the fifth instalment of what may well become the rivalry that defines triathlon well into the 2030s.
Ambre Grasset (FRA) comes into the race as the defending champion and the European Junior champion. She is the woman to beat and will look to make it three straight championship triumphs over Fanni Szalai (HUN). The silver medallist in Torremolinos and Melilla, Szalai was the 2024 European Junior champion (at which Grasset placed 9th) and beat Grasset into silver at the 2023 European Youth Championships. As such, their rivalry stands all square at two wins apiece.
Both are phenomenal all-round athletes. Grasset, who raced at the 2024 World U20 Cross Country Championships, may be the slightly better runner, Szalai the better swimmer. But the margins between them are so fine. Can the Hungarian turn the tide, or will the French athlete make it three titles on the bounce?
It would be remiss to act as if no one can disrupt the Grasset-Szalai axis. Anouk Danna (SUI) finished 3rd behind Grasset and Szalai in Melilla and, in a dizzying season, has notched four Europe Junior Cup golds and brought home the European Youth title. Moreover, she finished 5th at last year’s World Junior Championships and so knows all about racing when the pressure is at its highest.
Likewise, Anouk Rigaud (FRA) enters as the 2024 European Youth champion and the 4th place finisher in Melilla. Her record shows two Europe Junior Cup wins this year; crucially, at her win in Caorle she beat Grasset.
Diana Dunajska (SVK) will be flying high after a stunning 6th place at the Rome World Cup and wears the number 1. Jimena Renata De La Peña Schott (USA) was the silver medallist at the 2023 World Junior Championships and took this year’s Americas Junior title. Kadence Ribbink (RSA) has also proven herself Africa’s best with her African Junior crown.
From the home team, Aspen Anderson (AUS) is yet another impressive runner. Like Grasset, she has raced internationally in cross country. She also stormed to gold at this year’s Oceania Junior Championships. Another Australian to watch will be Addison Houslip (AUS) who won the Tiszaujvaros Europe Junior Cup in dramatic fashion after finishing 2nd in Holten.
With Léa Houart (FRA) and Kira Ellis (PHI) also primed to go after Europe Junior Cup victories this season, this is a field with contenders scattered all over the place. Grasset and Szalai will be the ones to watch, but no one can take their eye off their numerous rivals.
The medal counts
Only a select few countries have won multiple gold medals at the World Junior Championships since 2009. On the men’s side, France leads the way with four victories, including Nils Serre Gehri’s 2024 triumph. France also have the most minor medals (five), highlighting the consistency of their talent pipeline. Spain follows with three golds while the United States and Portugal each have two wins.
On the women’s side, France, Germany and the United States are tied with three golds apiece. Perhaps Grasset or De La Peña Schott could lift their respective country into the outright top spot, or maybe there will be a first-time winner like Hungary.
Lastly, would it surprise you to learn that Great Britain has not won a junior world title in the period since 2009? The country has produced an array of senior world champions and WTCS gold medallists, yet has not won at the World Junior Championships in quite some time. Look out for such trends being smashed, either by Britain or other countries, in Wollongong this week.
