Dubai [UAE], November 7: Hayden Wilde, the reigning T100 World Champion, is coming to Dubai, and he is bringing the world's best male triathletes with him. The Professional Triathletes Organisation (PTO) has added a men's professional race to the Dubai T100 Triathlon, putting the men and women on the course at Al Mamzar on the same morning, Saturday 14 November.
The men will start at 10:03, five minutes ahead of the women, and both races will be shown live on the PTO's global broadcast network. Apart from December's World Championship Final in Qatar, Dubai is now the only stop on this year's T100 Triathlon World Tour to stage both professional races. It is also the final regular-season race for both fields before the world titles are decided.
The change follows this week's confirmation that the Saudi Arabia T100 in Jeddah, which was due to host the men's race on 27 November, will now take place on 16-17 April 2027.
Double Olympic medallist Hayden, who leads the T100 Race to Qatar standings and was crowned IRONMAN 70.3 World Champion in Nice in September, knows the UAE well. Last year he based himself in Abu Dhabi to prepare for the Qatar final, where he won the world title.
Australia's Jake Birtwhistle and Germany's Lasse Nygaard Priester, second and third in the standings, lead the chase. Also on the start list are a returning Mika Noodt, on the Dubai podium last year, and Wilde's compatriot and training partner Kyle Smith, who finished third behind him at the French Riviera T100 in September.
Wilde, who is also planning to race the World Triathlon Championship Series (WTCS) Abu Dhabi Sprint distance race less than 24 hours before on the Friday afternoon, said: "I'm looking forward to getting back to racing. I enjoy coming to Dubai to train and race, so next week will be no different. If there's a chance to have a crack at both the WTCS Abu Dhabi and Dubai T100, then I'm all in. Doing the shorter race first should actually help. On the French Riviera last year it was the other way around. But we'll see how we go."
Sam Renouf, CEO of the PTO, added: "We're thrilled that Dubai will now host both our men's and women's professional races, and we're grateful to our partners at Dubai's Department of Economy and Tourism and Dubai Sports Council for making it happen at such short notice.
With the Saudi Arabia T100 moving to April, it was important that our men had a fourth race before the World Championship Final, and Dubai was the natural place for it. Having the world's best men and women at Al Mamzar during the Dubai Fitness Challenge is a fantastic opportunity for residents and visitors to see the sport at its very best."
The Dubai T100 Triathlon Weekend runs from 13-15 November at Al Mamzar as one of the flagship international sporting events of the 10th Dubai Fitness Challenge. Alongside the professional races, amateurs can take on Sprint, Olympic and T100 distances, plus Sprint and Olympic relays.
Source: Emirates News Agency
