There may have been no Cassandre Beaugrand or Beth Potter, the last two WTCS world champions, but Lisa Tertsch – top ranked in their absence – could have done no more than beat the women in front of her at the season opener in Abu Dhabi.
The 26-year-old notched her first WTCS win in Weihai last year and replicated many of those aspects with her victory in the UAE.
She was decisive from the start in Abu Dhabi, choosing the left side on the beach start and putting herself to the fore from then on.
It’s becoming increasingly clear that if she’s in the mix after the bike then very few can match her on the run, especially at the ‘sprint’ 5k distance we had on Saturday.
A fantastic transition at T2 meant she led the run from the start and in what turned into a four-way battle it was Tertsch who had the decisive kick as she led home a German clean sweep ahead of Nina Eim and Laura Lindemann, with France’s Leonie Periault fourth.
‘Cat and mouse’ on the run
Speaking afterwards to World Triathlon’s Doug Gray, Tertsch said: “I knew I’d prepared really well and I’m happy with how I executed my race.
“It was a cat and mouse game over the last lap but that’s racing and everyone has to play their cards. I knew what I wanted to do at the end so I went with my plan.
“2024 was a very good year for me with many firsts but I learned a lot from it to