This weekend starts the World Series in Sydney

The absence of Javier Gómez Noya and the Brownlee brothers stands out

For the third consecutive year, the Australian city of Sydney will host the inaugural event of the ITU Triathlon World Series. A year in which the first dates will be marked by the struggle for the Olympic classification.

Last year's edition featured one of the most spectacular competitions, with Javier Gómez Noya as the main protagonist in the men's event. The Galician managed to overcome a fall on the cycling route and achieved victory after a memorable comeback.

Despite not being able to count on some of the great figures on the current scene, the Australian event promises to be exciting as many triathletes continue to seek their Olympic classification. Among them will be in the elite female category Zuriñe Rodríguez accompanied by Ainhoa ​​Murua. While in the male elite category we will have the participation of Josemi Pérez and Iván Raña.

The absences of Javier Gómez Noya and the Brownlee brothers open up a whole range of options in the elite men's event. Among the favorites to victory are the Russian Alexander Bruykhankov, the French David Hauss and Laurent Vidal, the Canadian Simon Whitfield, the Australians Brad Kahlefeldt and Brendan Sexton, the New Zealander Bevan Docherty, the British William Clarke and the German Steffen Justus.

For their part, the New Zealander Andrea Hewitt, the Swedish Lisa Norden, the Chilean Bárbara Riveros Díaz, the Swiss Nicola Spirig and the locals Emma Moffatt, Emma Jackson, Emma Snowsill and Erin Densham start as favorites. Joining them will be the reigning champion of the 2011 Series, British Helen Jenkins. All of them will fight to get to the top of the podium.

The test will begin with a 1.5 km swim through the bay of Farm Cove. This will be followed by 40 km of cycling through some of the most emblematic streets of the Australian city. To finish, the triathletes will run a 10 km run with the finish line located on College Street.

The Sydney event will be joined by San Diego in the coming months (May 10-12); Madrid (May 26-27); Kitzbühel (June 23-24); Hamburg (July 21-22); Stockholm (25-26 August), replacing the previous headquarters in Lausanne, and Yokohama (29-30 September). While the Grand Final will be held in Auckland, between October 20 and 21. A total of eight tests that will bring the maximum emotion to a season that promises to be unrepeatable.

Schedule start tests - Spain:

Women's elite: Friday 23:30 pm
Men's Elite: Saturday 02: 25

Departure List: http://sydney.triathlon.org/event_information/start_lists/

FETRI