Super League Triathlon Singapore: Heat is on in Feb 23-24 finale

SINGAPORE – Henri Schoeman has finished behind Vincent Luis at all three stops of this season’s Super League Triathlon, but the South African Schoeman believes he holds the advantage ahead of this weekend’s finale at One°15 Marina.

Schoeman told The Straits Times on Friday (Feb 22): “I love living in the heat; I come from Durban, very similar to this (weather), maybe not as humid but it’s certainly quite hot.

“I know the other athletes who are coming from winter in Europe are going to struggle, hopefully that’s where I can come through.”

The 2016 Olympic bronze medallist was speaking at One°15 Marina after the media launch and draw of the event, which has a series-total prize purse of US$1.5 million (S$2.03 million).

Frenchman Luis, having won the three previous legs in Jersey, Malta and Mallorca, will enter the finale at One°15 Marina with 75 points, while Schoeman has 63 points.

But with double points on offer for this weekend’s finishers, Schoeman has a chance to win the series.

Quietly confident, the 27-year-old said: “I just have to have my best race. Vincent’s an incredible athlete so to beat him it’s going to take something special, especially if he’s feeling good and ready to race.

“I’m just going to focus on my own race and have the best race that I can, and we’ll see what happens when racing starts.”

But Luis is also confident of holding his own in the heat, of the weather and of Schoeman’s chase.

“Henri will be good, he’s a skinny guy and I’m sure he’ll be great under the heat, but I have to keep an eye on him,” said Luis, who considers his sprint-finish victory over Schoeman in Malta as one of his toughest moments of the season.

Then, Luis had started the race 11 seconds behind Schoeman as the start was staggered.

“We’ve had sprint finishes for two or three races and it’s been really close,” added Luis.

“He really pushed me to the limit – several times after (crossing) the finish line, I had nothing left so he really helped me push hard and I think we provide people a great show with these battles.”

The eliminator race on Saturday (Feb 23) has three stages, each comprising a 300m swim, a 5km bike ride and a 2km run, with a 10-minute break between each stage.

The top 15 in the first stage advance to the next stage, where they will compete to be among the top 10 for the third and final stage.

Women’s series leader Katie Zaferes will be “more conservative than normal”, in part because of the heat and humidity.

“It’s not going to be a slow race, it’s still going to be hard and fast,” said the 29-year-old American. “But I’m trying to balance that with what little bit I might be able to hold back… to make sure I can keep doing what I’ve been doing the past races, where I get better as I go.”

Spectators will also get to see some familiar faces on Sunday (Feb 24), with Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Grace Fu teaming up with synchronised swimmer Lee Mei Shuang and Thaslim Hajanajubudeen from SportCares in the Relay Enduro category. The category involves a team of three people swimming 300m, cycling 4km and running 1.6km. The cycle is repeated with a change of competitor after each event.

Said Ms Fu: “I look forward to completing the triathlon with my teammates and supporting one another throughout the relay.

“Singapore is hosting this event for the first time; it will add to our vibrancy as an international sporting destination. I hope that events such as this will encourage Singaporeans to get active and lead healthy lifestyles.”

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