How to watch the World Triathlon Championship Series Abu Dhabi

No, really, we’re almost at the start of another World Triathlon Championship Series (WTCS)! The first race on the seven-event calendar is set to take place in Abu Dhabi on 15-16 February… hopefully!

As you may recall last year’s event was cancelled due to adverse weather. But, if Mother Nature plays ball then here’s what we can expect…

What happened in the 2024 series?

Abu Dhabi was set to kick the season off on 8-9 March 2024, but unfortunately the event had to be cancelled. Yokohama instead started the racing in May, and saw first-time wins in both events – Morgan Pearson for the men and Léonie Periault for the women.

Next up was Cagliari at the end of June, where several federations made their final team selections for the Paris Olympic Games. Alex Yee set his stall out with a convincing win over Hayden Wilde, while home favourite Cassandre Beaugrand took her first Olympic-distance win when it mattered.

In the final race before Paris in Hamburg, Germany, it was a repeat podium from Cagliari in the women’s race as Beaugrand once again got the better of Beth Potter. Matt Hauser, meanwhile, chalked up his second WTCS victory.

The penultimate race of the season saw dominant displays from both Yee in the men’s event and Lisa Tertsch in the women’s, the latter also marking the young German’s first-ever WTCS victory.

At the Grand Final in Torremolinos towards the end of October, both Olympic champions, Yee and Beaugrand, were able to convert solid race performances into world-championship victories, becoming only the second male and female triathletes to win Olympic and world titles in the same season (Kristian Blummenfelt and Flora Duffy were the first to achieve the feat in 2021).

When and where is the next WTCS taking place?

The first round of the 2025 WTCS takes place in Abu Dhabi, UAE, on 15-16 February.

Which events are taking place in Abu Dhabi?

Abu Dhabi will be hosting the Paratriathlon World Cup, elite men’s and women’s sprint-distance WTCS races, and a mixed team relay.

Which athletes are racing in Abu Dhabi?

Well, as you’d expect from the first race in a post-Olympic year, not many of the big names are on the start lists. However, Paris silver medallist and 2024 supertri champion Hayden Wilde is down for the men, and currently in Abu Dhabi, so he’ll probably be treating this as a bit of a leg-shaker before he commits to the T100 series in April.

For the women, keep your eyes on GB’s Kate Waugh, the USA’s Taylor Spivey (also a T100 athlete for 2025), Germany’s Laura Lindemann and Lisa Tertsch, Luxembourg’s Jeanne Lehair and France’s Léonie Périault.

To see the full start lists head here.

The 2025 WTCS Abu Dhabi elite course

The 2025 WTCS Abu Dhabi Paratriathlon course

The 2025 WTCS Abu Dhabi Mixed Team Relay course

How can I watch the 2025 WTCS Abu Dhabi race?

You can watch all races live on TriathlonLive.tv, while UK audiences can also stream live coverage via BBC Sport, the BBC Sport app and the BBC Red Button.

When do the 2025 WTCS Abu Dhabi events start*?

*All times are local (GST), which is 4hrs ahead of the UK (GMT).

Saturday 15 February

8:15 am – Para Triathlon World Cup

2pm – Elite women’s sprint distance

4pm – Elite men’s sprint distance

Sunday 16 February

1:30pm – Elite mixed team relay

2025 World Triathlon Championship Series

The 2025 series will have visited seven different locations during the season, culminating at the Grand Final in Wollongong, Australia, in October.

WTCS 2025 overview

15-16 February: WTCS Abu Dhabi, UAE (sprint and mixed relay)
17 May: WTCS Yokohama, Japan (Olympic)
31 May: WTCS Alghero, Sardinia, Italy (Olympic)
12-13 July: WTCS Hamburg, Germany (sprint and mixed relay)
31 August: WTCS French Riviera, Saint-Raphaël – Fréjus, France (sprint)
14 September: WTCS Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic (sprint)
26 September: WTCS Weihai, China (Olympic)
15-19 October: World Triathlon Grand Final Wollongong, Australia (Olympic)

How much can athletes win at the World Triathlon Championship Final?

Paratriathlon

14-15 February: Para Triathlon Cup Abu Dhabi, UAE
14-15 March: Para Triathlon Championship Series Devonport, Australia
17 May: Para Triathlon Championship Series, Yokohama, Japan
24-25 May: Para Triathlon Cup, Samarkand, Uzbekistan
7-8 June: Para Triathlon Championship Series, Taranto, Italy
12-13 July: Para Triathlon Cup, Magog, Canada
19-20 July: Para Triathlon Championship Series, Montreal, Canada
TBC: Para Triathlon Cup, Tata, Hungary
TBC: Para Triathlon Cup, Alhandra, Portugal
15-19 October: World Paratriathlon Championships, Wollongong, Australia

About

Former 220 deputy editor Liz Barrett started work on the magazine in 2007 as staff writer. During her 18 years with the brand, she reported live from almost every major triathlon across the globe, including the Ironman World Championship, the 70.3 World Championship, six World Triathlon Grand Finals, Challenge Roth, the 2014 and 2022 Commonwealth Games, the London and Paris Olympics and the Rio Paralympics, to name but a few. Name a pro and chances are she’ll have interviewed them, so, unsurprisingly, she’s still our go-to pro-athlete expert. She now works as a freelance journalist, copywriter and editor.