San Francisco T100 Triathlon pits PTO world number ones Sam Long and Ashleigh Gentle
The San Francisco T100 Triathlon will see PTO World #1 Ashleigh Gentle take on World #2 Taylor Knibb for the first time this season. The Men’s race promises also to be one for the ages, with the men’s PTO World #1 Sam Long in action on home soil.
The 100km T100 race (2km swim, 80km bike, 18km run) will be set in the stunning San Francisco Bay area, who will start in time-honored fashion by plunging into the icy water adjacent to Alcatraz Island.
Since the first race in 1981, the Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon has hosted top professional and amateur triathletes to attempt the impossible – Escape from Alcatraz Island. The infamy of Alcatraz Island is part of the attraction that draws more than 2,000 triathletes to San Francisco year after year. The mystique of the island and technicality of the course, most notably the challenging open water swim in the San Francisco bay, continue to draw competitors for the chance to make their Escape. The challenging course has continued to be a bucket list race for triathletes for more than 40 years.
Women’s Preview
The Australian winner from Singapore will line up against the American Olympic medallist on the Mixed Relay in Tokyo on Saturday 8 June, in what promises to be an explosive 100km encounter for the third T100 race of the new 8-leg T100 Triathlon World Tour.
Gentle versus Knibb is just one of the intriguing head-to-head’s that will take place in the City by the Bay over the legendary Escape From Alcatraz Triathlon course.
Laura Philipp makes her first T100 start line and athletes like India Lee (GBR), Paula Findlay (CAN), Lucy Byram (GBR) or Imogen Simmonds (SUI) are also ready to toe the start line this Saturday.
You can check the full start list HERE:
Men’s Preview
The current PTO #1, Sam Long, is enjoying a blockbuster of a season, with two wins [Ironman 70.3 Pucon & Ironman 70.3 St. George] and a hat-trick of second places already [Miami T100, Ironman 70.3 Oceanside & Singapore T100], taking him to the summit of long distance triathlon for the first time. It’s also the first time any American male has been #1 since the PTO Rankings were formally introduced in 2019.
Long will line up against a stacked men’s field which sees 16 of the contracted T100 athletes towing the line, including Denmark’s Magnus Ditlev, a strong cohort of Americans featuring Jason West, Rudy von Berg and four-times Escape From Alcatraz winner Ben Kanute. As well as Double Olympic Champion from Great Britain Alistair Brownlee and Olympic silver medalist from Spain Javier Gomez.
The race will also see the introduction of Belgium flier Marten Van Riel for his first T100 race, before his Olympic date in Paris later this summer.
You can check the full start list HERE.
Both races will take place on June 8, and you will be able to watch them LIVE on TriathlonLIVE.org (please, note some restrictions in certain territories might apply) or here.