In the triathlon world, Holten is no longer an unfamiliar name. Many international athletes have found their way to the Salland village. This year, too, the battle for that coveted first place rages fiercely among elite men and women.
First, a quick refresher. In 2019, the Triathlon Holten resulted in two German victories. Lasse Nygaard Priester and compatriot Lisa Tertsch won the Holten race among elite men and women. Tertsch will not be competing in Holten this year and will have a successor three years after her victory.
The competition is fierce. Especially among the elite women, the field of participants is strongly filled. No fewer than six triathletes from the top twenty of the World Triathlon Rankings will appear at the start in Holten.
German Laura Lindemann is one of the contenders to succeed her compatriot Tertsch. Lindemann, ranked third in the world rankings, is the highest-ranked athlete participating in the Holten competition. She will face competition from the British athletes Sophie Coldwell (5th in the world rankings), Georgia Taylor-Brown (7th), and Jessica Learmonth (9th).
The British are traveling with a strong team to Holten as Non Stanford, 13th in the world rankings, will also start in Holten. German Marlene Gomez-Göggel (16th) completes the list of participants from the top 20 of the world rankings participating in the Triathlon Holten.
The name of Rachel Klamer should not be missing from the list of contenders. The triathlete from Twente’s Beuningen, currently ranked 35th in the world rankings, has already claimed victory in ‘her’ Holten six times. Moreover, Klamer finished 4th at the Tokyo Olympics last year.
In the elite men’s field, Nygaard Priester hopes to prolong his title. The 2019 winner will also start in Holten this year. The world number 21 will have to contend with the competition, including Brit Alex Yee (6th in the world rankings) and Germans Tim Hellwig (12th) and Jonas Schomburg (18th).
