A first appearance for the Cross Duathlon format at the World Triathlon Multisport Championships will get the 2022 Targu Mures edition of the annual swim-bike-run festival underway in the beautiful Romanian countryside on Monday morning.
An undulating two-lap, 7km run will transition to four 5.8km laps of technical mountain biking, including 200m of testing twists and climbs. A one-lap, 3.5km run will then see the titles wrapped up (the distances are halved for the junior races), and you can watch it all unfold exclusively on TriathlonLive.tv.
Men’s preview
The versatile Alessandro Saravalle will wear the number one in the inaugural men’s Cross Duathlon World Championships. A former European U23 Winter Champion and XTERRA European Cross Triathlon silver medallist, the 25-year-old will want to seize the opportunity of becoming the first Cross Duathlon World Champion on Monday.
Among those standing in his way will be Slovakian national cross champion Ondrej Kubo, looking to continue the fine form he showed in Viborg last year when he scooped the Powerman Middle Distance Duathlon title.
The home crowds will be getting behind former national champion Bogdan Damian, who knows the region well after competing here in the European Duathlon Championships last year, as well as compatriots Alin Mihai Cuspa, former U23 European Champion Szabolcs Kovacs and Mihail Chindris.
Netherlands’ former national champion Wouter Dijkshoorn, Belgian Sebastien Carabin and the vastly experienced 2021 XTERRA Europe Champion Giuseppe Lamastra all have the potential to podium. Croatian Champion Silvije Tomac and the 31-year-old former footballer Joep Staps (NED) could make a name for themselves as the format makes its Multisport World Championship debut.
Frederick Webb (GBR) will be among the favourites for the U23 title after his cross triathlon silver last year in the same level, along with Romania’s promising 20-year-old talent Gabriel Boca, while Calym Greet represents South Africa in the Junior race.
Women’s preview
The women’s race sees Austria’s former winter triathlon specialist Carina Wasle wearing the number one. The 37-year-old will want to pick up on a solid 2021 that saw her win the national cross title and finish 12th at the Cross Triathlon World Championships in Extremadura.
Slovakia’s Kristina Lapinova was a European Champion in Ibiza four years ago and can almost match Wasle for experience, racing over a range of formats and distances reaching back to 2005.
Italy’s Eleanora Peroncini powered to the Cross Triathlon world title in Pontevedra three years ago, but was off the pace on a soggy multisports return in Spain last year. The 37-year-old took European bronze on this course in 2019, and will be looking for some redemption in the Transylvanian countryside this time around.
The sole Romanian in the women’s Elite field is the 2021 XTERRA European Age Group Champion Agnes Tuzson, while Netherlands’ Noor Dekker makes her World Triathlon debut.
Stepanka Bisova (CZE) and Willemijn Fuite (NED) will do battle for the U23 title, Romania’s Ilona Ana Loan the youngest competitor in the Junior race at the age of 16.
For the full start lists, click here.
