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It was the last World Triathlon Cup of the 2024 season and it finished with a bang. The men’s race at the Brasilia World Cup was a brilliant display of running legs, especially for Brazil’s Manoel Messias, who took victory on home soil with an impressive run. Behind him, Australia’s Callum McClusky rounded his season with yet another World Cup podium in second, while Spain’s Sergio Baxter Cabrera proved that he has overcome the injuries that kept him out of the blue carpet for months to finish in third place.

Forty-six men lined up at the start, ready to tackle the final World Cup of the 2024 season, beginning with a 750m swim in the warm, calm lake waters of Brasilia. Diego Moya (CHI) led the field out of the water, but with no significant gap, as a long line of athletes exited closely behind him, keeping the race wide open.

Out of the water and onto the bikes, Sergio Baxter of Spain launched an early attempt to break away, pulling along Moya, Callum McClusky (AUS), John Reed (USA), Miguel Hidalgo (BRA), and Igor Bellido (ESP). However, the effort was quickly countered, with Portugal’s Joao Nuno Batista and Messias working together to close down the attack and pull the field back together.

After several attempts to create a gap, including solo surges from Hidalgo and Bellido, the lead group arrived at the second transition as a single pack. As they hit the run, Messias wasted no time, bursting out of transition and immediately opening a gap on the field, not even glancing back as he charged up the bridge for the first time. Behind him, a chase group formed with Hidalgo, McClusky, Baxter, and Andree Buc (CHI) working to bridge the gap, but Messias looked unbeatable.

By the halfway point, Messias had built a comfortable lead, running with the confidence of an athlete who knew victory was his. He crossed the finish line to grab the tape with tears in his eyes, celebrating his first win of 2024 in front of a home crowd—a bittersweet triumph after a challenging season that included a 45th-place finish at the Paris Olympics and multiple DNFs in WTCS races. “This has not been my best year and I am extremely happy to close it with a win here, at home”, said Messias. “I felt really good today during the run and went for it”, he explained.

Behind him, a fierce battle unfolded for the remaining podium spots. McClusky made a decisive move with 500 meters to go, securing second place. After his victory in the first world cup of the year in Napier, and his silver in Valencia, the Aussie was eager for more today. “My world cups this year have been really solid, but it is bit disappointing not being able to perform at WTCS level, so I guess that will come next year. I tried to go with Messias but he was way too fast today. I knew that I have a good sprint finish so I just waited to the end”, he said.

Baxter followed closely, digging deep in the final stretch to clinch third place, replicating his podium finish from the Valencia World Cup two months earlier. “It feels like this year is all about third places, but I am super happy with my performance today, especially after this long season. Messias was no another level today, so when it was just us fighting for the podium, I thought one was gonna leave without a medal and I didn’t want to be that one so left it all on the line. Which was surprising cause I didn’t feel well at all on the run and I’ve had stomach problems all week, but really happy with my performance. I wanna thank my family, girlfriend and all my team for their support all year long.

Hidalgo, despite a strong effort, finished fourth, with Buc in fifth and Reed completing the top six.

Messias’s victory was a fitting end to the 2024 World Triathlon season, showing resilience and pride on home soil, while McClusky and Baxter rounded out the podium in a closely contested finale.