It’s the Final countdown. (Not that one.) In 26 days, we will know the identity of the 2025 world champions and the races to the WTCS crown hang on a knife-edge. In the men’s field, the challenge will be for Miguel Hidalgo or Vasco Vilaca to knock Series leader Matthew Hauser from his perch, an almighty task given he has the most WTCS wins of any athlete this year and has the benefit of home advantage. Yet Hauser underwhelmed at the last round in Karlovy Vary, potentially giving a glimmer of hope to his rivals. The only other realistic contender is Henry Graf, who will need at least a podium finish in Weihai this weekend to close the gap ahead of Wollongong.
All we know at this stage is that the race is shaping up to be a battle for the ages and it may just be round one of a set of clashes that carries all the way to LA 2028. Before you catch the action on TriathlonLive, find out who will be on the start line and some of the main talking points below.
Who’s there?
One aspect that could define the world title bout is the support of teammates. Hauser will lead the Australian team and can call upon WTCS medallist Luke Willian, World Cup medallist Callum McClusky and Oceania champion Brandon Copeland for support. On the Portuguese team, Vilaca lines up alongside Ricardo Batista and Miguel Tiago Silva, both of whom have the swimming and cycling ability to assist their compatriot. However, Hidalgo races alone for Brazil. Then again, the absence of a domestique has not really impacted his charge this year.
Graf will start with Valentin Wernz and Chris Ziehmer for company in the German team. At this stage, he really needs a spectacular run of results to take the world title, but a spot on the overall podium is very much up for grabs.
As is to be expected, the WTCS Final has attracted large squads from multiple teams. WTCS gold medallist Morgan Pearson heads up an American quintet that also contains John Reed, Reese Vannerson, Darr Smith and Chase McQueen. Britain will have a five-man contingent of their own. The former U23 world champion Connor Bentley will be racing, as will Ben Dijkstra, Jack Willis, Max Stapley and Harry Leleu. Another large team can be found in the Japanese camp. Asian champion Takumi Hojo will be present, as will Kyotaro Yoshikawa, Kenji Nener, Ren Sato and Aoba Yasumatsu.
Not to be forgotten is the season’s other WTCS gold medallist. Hayden Wilde goes again for New Zealand as he seeks to recapture the WTCS form that saw him win the season opener in Abu Dhabi. Since his crash in Tokyo, he has struggled in the Series, although he has remained dominant in the T100. With another month under his belt, maybe he will be closer to his top form. Joining him for New Zealand will be Dylan McCullough – who has not raced since dominating the Tongyeong World Cup last autumn – and Saxon Morgan.
France will be represented by two former world champions – Dorian Coninx and Leo Bergere – as well as Tom Richard, who comes into WTCS Wollongong off the back of a best ever WTCS finish in the French Riviera.
Another formidable trio can be found in the Spanish set-up. Reigning World U23 champion David Cantero del Campo starts alongside Roberto Sanchez Mantecon and Alberto Gonzalez Garcia. Other three-man teams include Switzerland – who are led by an in-form Adrien Briffod plus Max Studer and Simon Westermann – and Netherlands – who will send Mitch Kolkman, Ian Pennekamp and Gjalt Panjer.
WTCS Karlovy Vary medallist Csongor Lehmann starts for Hungary alongside Márk Dévay, while Canada will send a strong duo of Tyler Mislawchuk and Charles Paquet. Racing for Norway will be Vetle Bergsvik Thorn and Sebastian Wernersen.
Among the lone starters, WTCS medallist Alessio Crociani goes for Italy, Olympic medallist Henri Schoeman for South Africa and Tjebbe Kaindl is raring to go again after lighting up the bike course in Karlovy Vary.
Jermey Quindos makes his Series bow for Uzbekistan as a series of World Cup medallists also serve as solo acts for their countries; they are Diego Moya (CHI), Arnaud Mengal (BEL), Maciej Bruzdziak (POL) and Aram Michell Peñaflor Moysen (MEX).
Who’s not there?
We will have a full house of the top-25 men in the Series in Wollongong. Only Hugo Milner (ranked 30th) is missing from the top-30. Meanwhile, Alex Yee is back on marathon prep after his decision to tackle the Valencia marathon and WTCS race winner Pierre Le Corre is injured. In addition, Oliver Conway is focusing on the World U23 Championships after his 4th place finish at WTCS Karlovy Vary.
Four talking points
Home hopes
The last time Australia hosted the WTCS Final was in Gold Coast in 2018. Back then, Ashleigh Gentle got the party going with a thrilling win in the women’s race and the home team will be banking on somebody playing a similar role this time round. Step forward Matthew Hauser.
For months, the stars seem to have aligned for Hauser. A maiden world title on home soil looks to be on the cards and he has his destiny in his own hands. What better way to seal the deal than to win in front of a crowd of fellow Australians. Having claimed three wins already this year, win number four could prove the sweetest yet.
Double duty
Last year, Sebastian Wernersen turned heads by taking on the unconventional challenge of racing the WTCS Final and the World U23 Championships in quick succession. The Norwegian squad has long been renowned for its strength, but tackling two standard distance triathlons in the matter of days, against world class fields no less, was certainly a choice. Nevertheless, it went well enough for Wernersen for him to repeat the trick this year.
Furthermore, Wernersen will not be alone in his double duty. World Cup winner Reese Vannerson is currently pencilled in to race both events. So too are the Dutch pair Mitch Kolkman and Gjalt Panjer. As a returning U23 medallist, Kolkman could be particularly interesting to watch. With his experience and with the U23 race coming first, he has arguably the best shot of showing up to the senior race as the U23 world champion.
Cantero’s time to shine
Last year’s U23 world champion David Cantero del Campo will make the transition to his first senior Final and if the way he raised his game at the big show last year is anything to go by, he will have something special in store. Already this year, Cantero has cracked the top-10 at all four of his WTCS appearances (including one 4th place finish). He could even head to Wollongong as a medallist should a wide open WTCS Weihai go his way.
There are few, if any, men on the start list that can go toe-to-toe with him on the run. His challenge will therefore be to put himself in a position to maximise his strength out of T2, something he has not always done this season. But it only takes one door opening, one race going right. For all the talk of the world title contenders, it could be the rising Spaniard that defines the Final.
Been there, done that
In the opposite position of youngsters like Cantero are those that have already prevailed at a WTCS Final. The past three winners of the Final will all be present: Bergere (2022), Coninx (2023) and Wilde (2024). Looking back further, Henri Schoeman (the winner in 2016) is ready to go too.
These men have a surfeit of experience and know exactly what they have to do to get the better of the current top crop. Interestingly, each of the past three men’s Final winners did so on the back of a breakaway; might that be the template for this year too? The more important question their attendance poses is simple, though. Will the new guard of Hauser-Hidalgo-Vilaca taste a first Final win? Or will the establishment show them how it’s done?
You can see the full men’s start lists here. Don’t miss a thing by staying up to date across World Triathlon channels and tune in to WTCS Wollongong on TriathlonLive on 19th October.