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Crack endurance squad, Abu Dhabi Triathlon Team, is set to make its mark in Germany this weekend, as it looks to maintain its impressive run of form at the 9th Quelle Challenge Roth and at the ITU World Championship Hamburg.
Leading the charge is Faris Al Sultan, captain of the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA)-backed outfit, who recently notched up three first place finishes in Europe. He is being joined by team-mates, Pete Jacobs, Swen Sundberg, Jan Van Berkel and honoury member, Christof Wandratsch.
Van Berkel - winner of this year’s inaugural Abu Dhabi International Triathlon short course - will be aiming for a good result at the ITU World Championship Hamburg on July 17, as he continues to push for an Olympic place.
"I had high altitude training in Switzerland and I definitely feel good about it. I have really worked hard especially for the run stage. My strategy in Hamburg would be to try to come out of the water in a good position so that I can get on the bike in the first group, which should assure me a top 20 finish. If everything goes perfectly, a top 10 finish would be possible,” said Dutchman Van Berkel, a short course expert.
“Hamburg has the world’s biggest short distance race field and attracts more than 250,000 spectators. As such, I am definitely looking forward to being a top place finisher as this would be a great result for the team.”
At the Challenge Roth race on July 18, Australian Jacobs – the Bavarian event’s runner-up for the last two years - will be gunning for an elusive win together with Sundberg, who notched up a 7th place finish in 2008. Both Jacobs and Sundberg will individually tackle the full triathlon course, which boasts a lung-bursting 3.8kms swim, 180kms bike race and a 42kms run.
Al Sultan and Wandratsch are also participating in Roth as part of relay teams. Wandratsch - an endurance swimmer and holder of several world records, including one for crossing the English Channel in 2005 - will be doing the swim leg for a team that includes Philipp Goergen and three-time Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge winner, Elina Ussher.
Al Sultan – widely regarded as one of the world’s top endurance cyclists - will be in a celebrity relay cycling team. This race will also serve as part of Al Sultan’s preparations for the upcoming Ironman Regensburg on 1st August, where he is a favourite to win.
"There are a number of reasons why I have decided to participate. First, I believe it is a perfect way of preparing, under race conditions, at the end of my training block for Ironman Regensburg, which is happening in a little more than two weeks,” said Al Sultan, the 2005 Ironman World Champion. “This will serve as a venue for me to try and test everything - from equipment to nutrition - so that I am fully prepared for the Ironman event.
“Also, at an event with high media interest and coverage, it is a good chance for me to build awareness of our team and Abu Dhabi.”
Abu Dhabi Triathlon Team, created by the ADTA to further the emirate’s performance athletics’ credentials globally, will compete in more than 40 top international events this season, including Ironman, 70.3 and the French Championships.
The outfit got off to a winning start in 2010 after team members, Ina Reinders and van Berkel, made a clean sweep at the debut Abu Dhabi International Triathlon in the UAE capital. Since then, the team has taken part in a number of events in Australia, Europe and the US.
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