Arena Games Triathlon powered by Zwift is back and ready for another stellar season of cutting edge esports action.The award-winning hybrid format has been at the forefront of a new way of competing in and watching sport, and the 2023 World Championship Series is set to take it to a whole new level. Montreal will host this Saturday the first leg of the Series. Get ready to watch it on TriathlonLIVE.tv!
There is little doubt who the most talked about athlete has been coming into Arena Games Triathlon Montreal – and it’s not even somebody tipped to win. Lionel Sanders, a legend of Ironman and one of the most iconic triathletes of all-time, has taken a seemingly shock decision to race the quickest race format of them all. He has plenty of doubters given that the swim is crucial in Arena Games and it is his weak point, but that has not deterred Sanders from taking on the challenge. While getting the win might be a stretch, if Sanders can be competitive he will have proved so many wrong. Whatever the outcome, as is typically his way, he has people talking, and that’s part of his enduring appeal.
He will have to face another legend of the sport: Henri Schoeman. The South African has had a really rotten run of injuries over the past couple of years. It has been one disaster after another for the 2016 Rio Olympic bronze medallist and former Super League Triathlon Championship Series runner-up.
Finally, he is ready for a serious return to action as he attempts to get himself back in shape just in time for Paris 2024. Nobody other than Schoeman himself really knows what shape he’s in, but if anywhere near his best then he could make the most dramatic of returns and win the event.
His swim is huge, which is significant in this format, his transition slick, and his power to weight ratio could be very competitive. His battle with Aurelien Raphael, another huge swimmer but a totally different size and stature to take on the bike and the run, will be thrilling.
Another athlete that will have a great opportunity to step up on the podium and grab some valuable points on the World Triathlon rankings is USA’s Chase Macqueen, who delivered great performances in this format last year and is ready for a second chance.
Other long course athletes also preparing to put their necks on the line in Montreal are fellow Canadian and four-time 70.3 winner Jackson Laundry and South African Jeanni Metzler, who has multiple 70.3 wins, a second place at the 2021 Ironman 70.3 World Championships and full distance podiums to her name.
Super League Triathlon has gained an enviable reputation for developing the next generation of talent and that is set to continue with an incredible eight athletes stepping up from the SLT junior ranks to the seniors when Arena Games Triathlon powered by Zwift kicks-off in Montreal.
That line-up of developing stars includes two athletes from Great Britain and six from Canada, who are getting a truly unique opportunity to perform in front of a home crowd. One who won’t be fazed by the experience is Dan Dixon, who raced all five SuperLeague Series events on the circuit in 2022 and is becoming increasingly established at this level. In addition, Dixon also had Arena Games experience last year.
The same cannot be said for the others. The second Brit is Jack Stanton-Stock, who now lives and trains in the USA alongside his friend Dixon, while the Canadian athletes are also stepping somewhat into the unknown.
Other athletes who have taken on the Super League challenge as juniors, either overseas in the likes of Jersey or on home turf in the Ottawa event are Filip Mainville, Nicholas Harvey, Leo Roy, William Nolet and Mathis Beaulieu.
Women’s race
While the line-ups for Switzerland and London’s legs of the Arena Games Triathlon Series are stacked, the female field in Montreal is more sparse. That opens up the opportunity for somebody to step out of the shadows and make a name for themselves.
The organization has always prided itself on delivering new talent – there are eight athletes racing in Montreal who previously competed in youth and junior SLT races – and the federation-based entry system thanks to its partnership with World Triathlon allows another perfect platform for exactly that.
The USA’s Gina Sereno, possibly the world’s brainiest triathlete by virtue of her job at NASA, has a real chance having already proved she can compete in this format. Meanwhile, there has been a lot of talk about Noemie Beaulieu as a massive star of the future.
The Montreal Arena Games Triathlon Series will take place at the Parc Olympique, an historic venue in Montreal, on Saturday 25 February at 17.30h local time. .
Check the full start lists HERE
Last tickets are available HERE.
And remember you can watch the event live and on demand on TriathlonLIVE with English commentary, and for the first time in this format, also with Spanish commentary.