The first stage of the World Series of Triathlon ITU 2017 was completed in Abu Dhabi

This spectacular event gathered 2500 athletes from 52 counries. Alongside the elite race, thousands of amateur triathletes participated in this big event.

The youngest participant was 5 years old, and the eldest one was 72 years old.

Among Elite Men, Spaniard Javier Gomez Noya raced first by covering the whole distance in 01:52:31. The five-time ITU World Champion returned to competition after almost a year break from the Series. This 13th career WTS win he earned on his 50th WTS race.

Great Britain’s Tom Bishop claimed the silver medal, his first WTS medal of his career. The bronze went to France’s Vincent Luis, who made a comeback after not having raced the WTS circuit for nearly 15 months.

Among Elite Women, New Zealand’s Andrea Hewitt took the gold. She dedicated her victory to her fiancé, triathlete, the late Laurent Vidal.

Earning the silver medal was Great Britain’s Jodie Stimpson, who was edged out by Hewitt by just an inch. Third place went to Austria’s Sara Vilic, who stepped onto the WTS podium for the very first time.

Among ITU age group participants were traithletes from Kazakhstan, as well as Assylzhan Dostiyarov, Executive Director of Kazakhstan Triathlon Federation.

“First of all, overseeing the professional arrangement of such event by our foreign colleagues enabled us to acquire invaluable experience. As a race participant, I can only say that when crossing the finish line you realize your achievement is a result of hard work” – noted Mr.Dostiyarov.