Abu Dhabi: Six of the best Emirati triathletes will sweat it out against 11 leading UAE-based expatriates in a bid for ProFIELD glory at this year’s TriYAS by Daman’s ActiveLife triathlon.
Taking place at Yas Marina Circuit on February 16, this year’s TriYAS will feature a ProFIELD made up predominately of locally based athletes for the first time in its eight-year history.
The local hero expats and Emiratis will face off against two-time champion Ruedi Wild from Switzerland, who has been invited back to TriYAS and is aiming for this third victory.
Emiratis Faris Al Zaabi and Abdullah Alqeti, from Abu Dhabi, Mohsen Al Ali, Nabil Al Ali, Saif Al Samahi, and Ghanem Al Saadi, all from Fujairah, will also compete against each other in the event’s first ever Emirati ProFIELD category.
Despite having only started competing in triathlons recently, Al Zaabi is a natural athlete and one of the favourites to win the Emirati ProFIELD along with Alqeti, who was the standout athlete in Abu Dhabi Police’s triathlon team.
The pride of Fujairah, Mohsen prefers longer distance competitions but is a fiery racer with lots of confidence and a big heart. He will have his work cut out for him when it comes to beating fellow Fujairah athletes Nabil, Al Samahi, and Al Saadi if he wants to take the TriYAS trophy home to the east coast.
The Emirati pro field rewards the commitment of the local population and aims to encourage more Emiratis to follow in the footsteps of these seven sports stars.
The UAE-based expats competing in the ProFIELD are Filipe Azavedo and Pedro Gomes from Portugal, Ryan Christian from Australia, Ben Parnell, Matt Dewhurst, Andy MacRae and Andy Edwards, all from the UK, Peter Weiss from Denmark, Spain’s Oscar Marquez and German Christian Henn.
Swiss athlete Wild will complete the ProFIELD expat contingent and is favourite to win this year’s TriYAS.
The event is open to all members of the community with a series of shorter courses aimed at first-timers as well as younger athletes. Local sports clubs are also encouraged to take part with teams allocated F1 villas usually reserved for the Formula One race stars and their cars.
The Super Sports Triathlon Championship will offer three shorter categories: T1, which involves a 100-metre swim, 3-kilometre bike course and a 1-kilometre run; T2 includes a 200-metre swim, 6-kilometre cycle plus a 2-kilometre run; T3 involving a 300-metre swim, 9-kilometre bike race and a 3-kilometre run.
