Top athletes set to compete at Triathlon

The bright lights of South African triathlon will all be assembled at Germiston Lake on November 2, for the Ekurhuleni 5150 African Championship.

Both the men’s and women’s fields boast some of the best talent in the country, with the likes of Henri Schoeman, Wian Sullwald, Andrea Steyn and Kate Roberts headlining the professional field.

The big news is that defending champion Henri Schoeman is back to mount a title defence.

The 23-year-old represented South Africa at the Commonwealth Games, in Glasgow, and was part of the 4x mixed relay team, which won the silver medal.

It is already a given that Schoeman will blaze a trail in the water, being an exceptional swimmer, but the improvement in his cycling and running has seen him emerge as a formidable competitor on the international stage.

By his own account he was not able to create momentum throughout the season, due to disruptive injuries, but since his return from the WTS circuit he started to pick up some consistency, which saw him win the ITU Triathlon World Cup, in South Korea, recently.

The Durban-based athlete will be buoyant coming into the Ekurhuleni 5150 African Championship after this win.

Schoeman will have to be up for the challenge with the likes of Sullwald, Travis Johnston and Wikus Weber also on the starting line.

Sullwald was also part of Team South Africa at the Commonwealth Games and beat Schoeman by one position in the men’s race, in Glasgow, also pipping him to the post at the ITU World Triathlon, in Cape Town, earlier this year.

At 21, two years younger than Schoeman, he is definitely an athlete on the rise, being a former junior world champion.

The battle between the two will be exciting, as they’ve never gone head-to-head at a 5150 race in South Africa, but both won separate titles in 2013, when Sullwald won the 5150 Bela Bela Triathlon but did not race at the Ekurhuleni 5150 African Championship, where Schoeman won.

Johannesburg-based Travis Johnston has been nursing an injury in recent times but, despite racing with discomfort, he managed a second place in the 5150 Bela Bela Triathlon, in August.

Johnston is the elder statesman in the group, at 28, so he will be using his experience and strong cycling ability to negate the advantage the aforementioned athletes will gain during the swim.

Johnston also holds the distinction of being the first ever 5150 winner in South Africa and became the first South African to qualify for the Hy-Vee 5150 US Championship, in 2012.

Local boy Wikus Weber will also be among the front runners, having shown real consistency over the past few seasons.

His 15th place at the Hy-Vee 5150 US Championship, this year, proved that he can race with the best.

Hailing from Boksburg, Weber will have strong support in Germiston.

On paper, the women’s field looks like it could be a showdown between defending champion Andrea Steyn and Olympian Kate Roberts.

However, in triathlon, things are never that simple, as veteran athlete Lucie Reed and the consistent Lauren Dance will also have a say in proceedings.

Steyn proved to be a dominant force during 2013, winning both the 5150 Bela Bela Triathlon and the Ekurhuleni 5150 African Championship, after second place finishes at 5150 Kansas and 5150 New Orleans.

It was thought that 2014 would be the year this immensely talented triathlete would push on in the longer distance events, but this was derailed by an unfortunate bike accident which ruled her out for early 2014.

Steyn comes into the race with a strong pedigree, but it remains to be seen how she will perform after such a lengthy comeback period – especially with the likes of Roberts and Reed in the hunt for the title.

After competing against the best in the world on the WTS circuit and a strong showing at the Commonwealth Games, Roberts is one of South Africa’s most recognisable names in South African triathlon.

Roberts, like Schoeman, was part of the silver medal winning 4x mixed relay team, in Glasgow.

She will be competing in her first 5150 event, where the dynamic is slightly different, due to the race being non-drafting.

Roberts will have to have a strong game plan coming into this event, as her opponents, the likes of Steyn and Lucie Reed, have been regular 5150 participants.

The Czech veteran, Reed, is a phenomenal athlete.

At 40 she continues to defy age barriers by consistently achieving podium finishes at the highest level.

Most recently, Reed dominated in Bela Bela, to win the 5150 Bela Bela Triathlon, while, in January, she placed second at Ironman 70.3 South Africa, with strong performances in Europe and Brazil in between.

An exceptional swimmer, strong on the bike and run, if Reed has a good day she could add yet another title to her CV.

Lauren Dance provides yet another reason for the locals to cheer, as the Boksburg native looks set to achieve her first 5150 win, after a string of near misses.

Three second place finishes at the 5150 Bela Bela Triathlon and a third place at the Ekurhuleni 5150 African Championship shows why she can be considered a dark horse for the title in Germiston.

A field of 1 219 athletes from 17 nations will take on the 1.5km swim, 40km cycle and 10km run on November 2, at Germiston Lake.

With such a strong professional field on display, the 2014 Ekurhuleni 5150 African Championship should throw up some enticing individual battles on race day.