World Triathlon Cup: Zaferes, Holland line up in Hong Kong, as local pair get ready for hardest race of their lives
- Jason Ng and Bailee Brown will line-up against Asian Games gold medallists and Olympic bronze medallists on Sunday
- The pair are chasing Olympic qualification points, and head coach Andrew Wright says they are ‘the fittest they’ve ever been’
In a field stacked with global talent, Hong Kong’s triathletes are not carrying much expectation on their shoulders heading into Sunday’s World Cup race in the city – and that’s despite being “the fittest they’ve ever been”.
In the elite men’s category, Jason Ng Tai-long will line up alongside the likes of Asian Games gold medallist Kenji Nener and world top 20 pair Lasse Priester and Antonio Serrat Seoane.
Bailee Brown, meanwhile, has to contend with the likes of Olympic bronze medallists Katie Zaferes and Vicky Holland in the elite women’s competition.
And that is before either Brown or Ng contend with their real rivals, Kazakhstan’s Ekaterina Shabalina and Ayan Beisenbayev, who they are battling for a spot at the Paris Olympics.
The quartet are all racing to claim the ‘new flag’ qualifying berth, and while there are ranking points on the line this weekend, the greater opportunity comes at the Asian Championships next month.
Which is why, with points on Sunday likely to be hard to come by, Hong Kong head coach Andrew Wright is already looking ahead to that race in Hatsukaichi, Japan, on April 21, and the Asian Sprint Championships in mainland China on April 6.