Rachel Klamer will attempt a unique double this weekend when she competes in the ETU U23 European Championships in Holten.
The newly-crowned European Champion, fresh from her thrilling victory in Alanya just a fortnight ago, is on home turf and amongst the favourites to claim another title.
If her recent form is enough to make her one of the favourites, her form in Holten will give her rivals even more cause for concern.
She has won an ITU Premium European Cup race in 2012 and 2011 and in 2009 was runner up as a Junior athlete in the European Junior Championships. It is a formidable record.
Behind Klamer, Russian duo Elena Danilova and Alexandra Razarenova finished on the podium in Aguilas last year and will hope to at least match their performance. Razarenova won the U23 title in 2011 in Eilat and if she could reclaim the title here it would confirm her dominance at this level.
Carolina Routier (ESP) has excelled in the swim discipline in Madrid and Alanya recently and will hope to add more to her bike and run to give herself more of a chance at the podium.
In the Men’s U23 Championship, Igor Polyanskiy (RUS), Davide Uccellari (ITA), Andrey Bruykhankov (RUS) carry the main threat and are three of the more experienced campaigners in this competition.
Polyanskiy and Bruykhankov have both posted two top ten finishes in the last two years including a bronze medal for Polyanskiy in 2011 in Eilat. In that race, Uccellari claimed a silver medal so the pedigree is there amongst these three.
It will be interesting to see how Britain’s Thomas Bishop fares as this will be his first International race in 2013. But 2012 was a stellar breakthrough year for the Brit, with a silver medal in the same competition in Aguilas last year. He also won a silver medal at the European Cup in Holten so he knows how to perform on this course.
Dorian Coninx (FRA), reigning European Junior Champion following his victory in Alanya, is one of the exciting Junior athletes who will make the step up and compete for the U23 title.
The European U23 Championship is an Olympic Distance race and the athletes will complete a 1500m swim (2 x 750m laps), 40km bike 5 x 8km laps) and 10km run ( 4 x 2.5km laps.)
COVERAGE
Live streaming and live timing will be available at www.triathlonholten.nl
