COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- The third stop of the ITU World Triathlon Series is set to take place this Sunday in Cape Town, South Africa, with seven Americans on the start list, including 2016 U.S. Olympic qualifier Sarah True. U.S. paratriathletes are also in action this weekend at an ITU World Paratriathlon Event in Australia.
Sarah True has already qualified for her spot on the 2016 U.S. Olympic Triathlon Team. (Janos Schmidt/ITU)
ITU World Triathlon Cape Town features a sprint-distance 750-meter swim, 20-kilometer bike and 5-kilometer run, and the action begins with the elite women at 8 a.m. ET on Sunday, April 24. The elite men are scheduled to start at 10:30 a.m. ET. The races will be broadcast live online at triathlonlive.tv. In the United States, the races will also air on NBC Sports Group on Universal HD from 5-7 p.m. ET on April 25. Visit NBCSports.com for a complete schedule of Olympic sports broadcasts and channel information.
Kirsten Kasper (North Andover, Mass.) leads the U.S. women into Cape Town and will wear No. 8 following a 10th-place effort two weeks ago at ITU World Triathlon Gold Coast. Kasper also has three podium finishes under her belt so far this season, with back-to-back bronze medals in ITU World Cups in New Plymouth, New Zealand, and Mooloolaba, Australia, and a silver medal at a continental cup event in Wollongong.
True (Hanover, N.H.) is also on the start list, having qualified for the U.S. Olympic Triathlon Team last summer in Rio de Janeiro. She looks to add to her collection of WTS podium finishes, including three earned in 2015. Lindsey Jerdonek (Brecksville, Ohio) and Taylor Spivey (Redondo Beach, Calif.) round out the start list for the U.S. women. For a complete start list, visit WTS.Triathlon.org.
Kevin McDowell (Geneva, Ill.) enters the men's race as the top U.S. athlete, with two top-20 finishes so far this season. He earned a career-best 16th place last spring in Cape Town. Joining McDowell will be Robby Webster (Seattle, Wash.), making his WTS debut, and Alex Libin (Colorado Springs, Colo.), who is toeing the line in his third career WTS start. A complete men's start list is available at WTS.Triathlon.org.
While the final U.S. Olympic Triathlon Team qualification event will take place on May 14 in Yokohama, top-placing U.S. athletes can earn valuable points to secure team quota spots for the U.S. leading up to the qualification period closure on May 15. The current standings in the ITU Rio 2016 Olympic Qualification List are available at Triathlon.org
Triathlon fans can feel like part of the action with TRIFECTA, the official triathlon fantasy game of the ITU World Triathlon Series. Registration for TRIFECTA is open now at Trifecta.USATriathlon.org and podium picks must be submitted prior to the start of the first race. More details on the game are available at USATriathlon.org.
U.S. paratriathletes will compete this Sunday at the Penrith ITU World Paratriathlon Event in Australia, at the Sydney International Regatta Centre. The sprint-distance event will allow athletes to earn points toward the Paralympic Games qualification process, which helps secure team quota spots for the U.S.
Twelve U.S. paratriathletes have already provisionally qualified for the first-ever U.S. Paralympic Triathlon Team, and four of them - Geoffrey Kennedy (PT1, Rio Grande, Puerto Rico), Brian Norberg (PT2, Chicago, Ill.), Jamie Brown (PT4, Carlsbad, Calif.) and Elizabeth Baker (PT5, Signal Mountain, Tenn.) - are among the eight Americans on the start list for Sunday's race. Learn more about this event at Triathlon.org.
| About USA Triathlon
USA Triathlon is proud to serve as the National Governing Body for triathlon, as well as duathlon, aquathlon, aquabike, winter triathlon, off-road triathlon and paratriathlon in the United States. Founded in 1982, USA Triathlon sanctions more than 4,300 races and connects with nearly 500,000 members each year, making it the largest multisport organization in the world. In addition to its work with athletes, coaches and race directors on the grassroots level, USA Triathlon provides leadership and support to elite athletes competing at international events, including International Triathlon Union (ITU) World Championships, Pan American Games and the Olympic and Paralympic Games. USA Triathlon is a proud member of the ITU and the United States Olympic Committee (USOC).
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