Commonwealth Games: Concerns over water quality for triathlon dismissed

TRIATHLON Australia has moved to dismiss fears this week’s multi-sport race could become a duathlon due to poor water quality.

TRIATHLON Australia has moved to dismiss fears this week’s multi-sport race could become a duathlon due to poor water quality.

The recent cancellation of the Luke Harrop Memorial Triathlon swim-leg in January — scheduled to be completed on the same stretch of broadwater at Southport as the Games — had officials on edge leading into the sport’s biggest race of 2018.

The looming threat of an intensifying Cyclone Iris off the coast of north Queensland and the deluge of rain it usually brings for the southern areas of the state threatens to impact a seaway sensitive to rain events due to traffic from watercrafts and its proximity to the ocean.

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But Triathlon Australia national performance director Justin Drew said they were expecting to race all three legs of the triathlon on Thursday.

“My understanding is that the water quality is a non-issue,” Drew said.

Australian triathlete Ashleigh Gentle.

“They are not forecasting any type of contingency and we are preparing to race.

“We have had updates and everything is positive. The course familiarisation went ahead (on Tuesday) as planned and people swam as normal.”

Drew revealed all six of the team’s able-bodied athletes would forgo tonight’s opening ceremony in order to avoid any risk of fatigue hours before they race.

The women are schedule to race at 9.30am and the men at 1pm. The Australian paratriathles, who race on Saturday, will attend.

“Our paratriathletes will march,” Drew said.

“Our able-body team, given the proximity to the race, will rest.

“That decision has been made with buy-in from the athletes. They understand that is the right decision for them.

“It’s a fairly tight schedule and a relatively early start for the women.”

Four members of the six-person able-bodied team will compete in the mixed relay on Saturday and Drew said selecting their team wouldn’t be as simple as taking the top two performers from each of the individual events.

Drew said a decision wouldn’t be made until Saturday.

Jake Birtwhistle, Matt Hauser, Ashleigh Gentle and Charlotte McShane were all part of the team that won last year’s mixed relay world championships while Luke Willian and Gillian Backhouse will both be looking to put their hands up for selection for this weekend’s race.

Originally published as Commonwealth Games: Concerns over water quality for triathlon dismissed