Big purse draws top triathletes

As the sporting world comes to grips with the credit crunch, the best Kiwi triathletes are bidding to cash in on a more lucrative world championship concept.

New Zealand's leading women will be the first on the start line of the International Triathlon Union's global series which starts today in Korea's southern coastal city of Tongyeong.

The buzz of a bigger prize purse and increased television coverage have attracted the cream of the triathlon stable for the seven world championship events which culminate in a grand final on the Gold Coast in September.

It seems only injury will keep the premier athletes away with Beijing Olympic silver medallist, Portugal's Vanessa Fernandes, ruled out of the first round with a broken collarbone. Men's gold medallist Jan Frodeno is also absent.

Some pundits are predicting the leading athletes could earn US$100,000 (NZ$175,000) for a five-month season.

Each world championship event will feature a US$150,000 (NZ$265,000) prize purse the winner rewarded with US$20,000 (NZ$35,000) with the grand final offering US$250,000 (NZ$440,000).

The numbers add up for the athletes although New Zealand's top female, Sam Warriner, who finished last season ranked No1 in the World Cup series, still has mixed feelings about being in South Korea for the start of the new competition.

Warriner won the cup race in Tongyeong in April last year which was the springboard to her top ranking.

But she returned to South Korea in the build up for last year's Olympics.

"I totally cooked myself just weeks out from the Olympics, ruining my chances," she said. "So South Korea has been good to me but it's also been a hard place for me to return to."

Warriner is joined by Andrea Hewitt, Nicky Samuels and Debbie Tanner in today's 1.5km swim, five-lap 40km cycle and a four-lap 10km run.

Hewitt, who has not raced in Tongyeong before, was looking forward to the demanding cycle leg and fast, flat run.

The first leg of the new series has attracted one of the strongest women's field including Beijing bronze medallist, Emma Moffatt from Australia, Helen Jenkins from Great Britain, and Canada's rising star Kirsten Sweetland.

Meanwhile, New Zealand's top two men, Bevan Docherty and Kris Gemmell, will have to find form early in the season against a demanding men's field.

Frodeno and Javier Gomez will not be on the start line tomorrow due to injury, but the Kiwi duo will face double Olympic medallist Simon Whitfield of Canada and Australian pair, Brad Kahlefeldt and Courtney Atkinson. Three-times European champion Frederic Belaubre from France and Britain's Tim Don are also challengers.

Docherty was confident he could start the season in good form and hold it through to the "big double points" race on the Gold Coast.

"I want to get off to a good start though and know that if I am fit at the start of the season, I can hold that form pretty much all the way through," he said.

- © Fairfax NZ News