After the format’s successful debut last year, Winter Duathlon returns to the schedule of the World Triathlon Winter Championships this weekend, with Skeikampen, Norway, hosting the world’s fastest run-skiers on Friday.

There will be two repetitions of the course, making it a run-ski-run-ski for the medals starting with a two-lap run course of 3km in total and 500m of steady climb to get the legs burning. The two-lap, 5km ski course begins with a faster downhill portion and each lap ending with another steady climb, making for a gruelling final few hundred metres up to the line and only the second winter duathlon titles in history.
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It was Italy’s Franco Pesavento who stormed to the first men’s title 12 months ago in Andorra, the Russian Federation’s Anna Medvedeva claiming the women’s gold, and it will be the Italian who returns as favourite to defend his title. Pesavento will once again face a stiff challenge from Romania’s Viorel Palici, silver medalist last year, and ski specialist Hans Christian Tungesvik, no doubt eager to repeat 2021’s golden run-bike-ski triathlon success, this time on home soil.

Germany’s Sebastian Neef continues his strong return to the winter sport in 2022 with a first duathlon appearance, and no fewer than four Norwegian newcomers will be wanting to establish themselves on the circuit.

Allan Daniel Corona Rodriguez becomes the first Mexican athlete to compete for the Winter Duathlon world title, while Sweden’s national silver medallist in the summer, non-snow format Albert Askengren also debuts.

Austria’s vastly experienced 2022 Cross Duathlon World Championship runner-up Carina Wasle makes the latest of her regular switches back to the slopes with a first crack at the format on the snow, but she will face Norway’s impressive runner Ine Skjellum, hoping to go one better than her second-place in Andorra.

Another Romanian talent Marina Luisa Rasina is no stranger to the winter podiums and should also press for a medal spot once again, and Mexico’s versatile Adriana Fabiola Corona will make her first appearance on the snow after a long career on the blue carpet reaching back to 2002.

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