HUNDREDS of duathletes gear up for a fierce showdown in their side of the battle as they share center stage with the elite pros in the Xterra Off-Road Triathlon set tomorrow in Legazpi City.
While focus will be on the likes of reigning world champion and back-to-back reigning men’s titlist Bradley Weiss of South Africa and Aussies Penny Slater and Leela Hancox in the women’s division, the duathletes wage their own fight in trail running and mountain biking and back in the 2-km run 14-km bike 4-km run with the majestic Mayon Volcano as backdrop.
Also on tap is the Xterra Lite, a 750-km swim/14-km bike/4-km run race featuring the future of Philippine off-road triathlon.
Action fires off tomorrow at 7 a.m. for the Xterra full, while the Lite and Duathlon are set at 8 a.m. and 8:30 a.m., respectively.
Weiss is all primed up for another crack at Xterra glory as he banners the compact men’s cast that includes New Zealand’s Sam Osborne and Kieran McPherson, 2016 Xterra Asia-Pacific titlist Ben Allen of Australia, Japanese Takahiro Ogasawara, the 2016 Xterra Saipan winner, Akihiro Maeda, also of Japan, Kiwis Alex Roberts and Olly Shaw and local ace Joseph Miller.
Weiss is also eyeing a sweep of Xterra races after ruling the Danao stop in April, although he expects a tougher challenge from the rest of the pack in the premier off-road triathlon.