IT is the elite tier of triathlon — 60 men from around the globe racing for the title of world champion and now that field includes Albury’s Jesse Featonby.
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The 26-year-old athlete was yesterday named among the Australian entries for the Gold Coast round of the World Triathlon Series next month.
It is the first time in three years that a round of the series has come to Australia. It’s also the first time Featonby has been part of the super-elite action that includes Spain’s world champion Javier Gomez Noya and England’s Olympic Games heroes the Brownlee brothers.
Featonby said it came out of the blue.
“Obviously this is massive for me as I have been striving the represent Australia at Elite World Championship level since I began racing,” he said.
“I have had a realistic chance for probably four years but never quite been able to gain selection.
“To be honest, it’s out of the blue but with two top-10 finishes in ITU World Cup events and 5 ITU international wins over the past 18 months I knew I was getting close.
“I represented Australia as a junior in duathlon (bike and run), aquathon (swim and run) in the U23 category but now I have finally gained the honour at a World Championship level.”
This weekend he contests the Mooloolaba World Cup, then heads to New Zealand before re-focusing on the Gold Coast.
The third of the 10-race series includes a 1500 metre swim, 40-kilometre bike ride and 10-kilometre run.
“The World Cup events over the next two weekends are basically seen as the qualifiers, the second tier, but the WTS is as big as it gets,” he said.
“The Gold Coast event is the third in the series but being the only event on Australian soil it is massive to be able to have gained a start.
“To win the international events is one thing, to do well at World Cup another but this just goes to a whole new level.”
