CHALLENGETURKU is ready to welcome an amazingly strong field of athletes. The race takes place on 12th August and has over 30 pros, both men and women, at the starting line. ,,We are thrilled to see such a world class roster of pro athletes, but just as thrilled about all those competitive age groupers showing up in Turku”, says Race Director Heikki Jaatinen.
Probably the biggest contender at the men’s race will be Sebastian Kienle. It’s the first time the German winner of CHALLENGEROTH will travel to Finland and it goes without saying that he will be giving his all. ,,I expect an amazing race and was thrilled by the video on the website of CHALLENGETURKU. The place looks absolutely perfect for triathlon. When I put a bib number on, it’s race time. I’m going to give my absolute best.”
It’s a busy week for Kienle, because his sister will be getting married this Friday and it’ll be quite a journey from his training location. He has high expectations of Pablo Gonzalez Dapena. ,,It’s a strong pro field but I was expecting this because the Challenge Family World Bonus attracts more and more good athletes hunting the ‘jackpot’. Pablo especially is definitely one to watch for. He is a very good swimmer and an amazing runner, so I’ll have to put some pressure on him on the bike. It’s going to be a really tough one.”
Besides Kienle and Gonzalez Dapena there will be a lot of other strong guys out there to win. Ivan Kalashnikov (RUS), Per van Vlerken (GER) and Marc Unger (GER) just to name a few.
In the women’s race there is a lot to expect from Yvonne van Vlerken and Ewa Komander, who came 2nd and 4th respectively last year. They’ll be getting serious competition from women like CHALLENGEROMA winner Sarah Lewis, Frankie Sanjana and Bianca Steurer.
As stated by the CHALLENGETURKU race director Jaatinen, the race is much more than just a pro field. ,,Our race is not aiming to be the biggest in the world, but it is, and will be one of the best in quality. The amazing volunteers in Turku and it’s welcoming citizens will guarantee that the spirit of Turku will be transmitted to our athletes along the courses. We are happy to see so many athletes taking part in all our races including Junior Challenge, Challenge4All and sprint races. This year we will also host the National Student Championships.”
It’s the combination of all these events that turn CHALLENGETURKU in to an all weekend triathlon festival and family friendly vacation with activities for all kinds of support teams. On top, the fast racecourse is going to make sure we see some new personal best split times and overall race results.
