World Triathlon Cup can ‘revolutionise’ the sport in Hong Kong, Central Harbourfront will be ‘best venue in the world’
- Head coach Andrew Wright says March 2024’s ‘world-class event’ will ‘revolutionise’ the sport in the city and create a lasting legacy
- ‘Where else do you have a backdrop like Hong Kong’s? Where can you swim in the harbour, and race in front of Central?’ he adds
Head coach Andrew Wright hailed news that Hong Kong would host a World Triathlon Cup [WTC] event next year, and claimed the event could “revolutionise the sport” in the city.
The proximity of the WTC races over the weekend of March 23-24 to the May cut-off for banking Olympic qualification points all but guarantees the world’s pre-eminent triathletes will descend on the city.
Confirmation of the global competition came days before Sunday’s Asia Triathlon Cup, which will feature a swimming leg in Victoria Harbour, and cycling and running stages along Central Harbourfront.
“When you bring a big race, and put a spotlight on the sport, it pushes the athletes, without me having to do anything,” Wright said. “They will train harder and smarter.
“It will help revolutionise the sport. A World Cup leg will gain interest from age-group athletes, and schools and parents, and could kick-start an evolution.
“The course will be similar to this weekend’s, and when we pull this off, it will be the best venue in the world. Where else do you have a backdrop like Hong Kong’s? Where can you swim in the harbour, and race in front of Central? It will be a genuine world-class event … and do wonders for triathlon.”
News of the city’s World Cup coup capped a fabulous few days for Wright and Hong Kong triathlon, after Jason Ng Tai-long and Bailee Brown claimed medals at last weekend’s Asia Triathlon Sprint Championships [ATSC] in Saudi Arabia.
Brown’s bronze represented Hong Kong’s first female ATSC medal, while Ng, who won silver, became only the second man from the city, after Oscar Coggins in 2019, to manage a podium finish.
Wright attributed the twin-success to a combination of factors, all resulting from a revitalised “culture and environment”, created after the Hong Kong Triathlon Association did away with the biannual overhauling of its committee around six years ago.
Additionally, performance requirements are more stringent than back when Wright’s own eighth-placed finish at the 2010 Asian Games preserved triathlon’s elite status at the Hong Kong Sports Institute [HKSI].
“Over the past 20 or 30 years, triathletes in Hong Kong have not done the right level of training,” Wright said. “Consequently, they did not achieve the results they should, then they quit.
“Now, Jason is 23, and Bailee 24, and they can see they are talented enough to take the sport a long way. Building endurance and changing your physiology is a long process, and the training we have done over the past four years is now showing.
“As athletes get older, they become more experienced and emotionally intelligent, and understand race tactics. Those qualities add up to consistency.
“We have changed the environment and culture in which they train. With a settled committee, we have a clear structure, communication has improved and we are all aligned.
“The bar has been raised. Previously, to retain elite support from HKSI, you needed results from one athlete, so the focus was on pushing one person’s development. You cannot do that now.
“The future is pretty bright, we have to keep the talent in the programme, and convince them to train at the right level, so they can be competitive on the Asian and world stages.”
Wright said the medals for Ng and Brown, coupled with an Asian Games mixed-relay bronze, alleviated pressure ahead of this week’s ATC harbourfront races.
“The athletes are excited about racing at a new venue, especially knowing it has been awarded the World Cup event,” he added.
“Everyone will be very professional, but the pressure is much lower than for previous races.”
