Triathlon: Austrian tune-up for Olympians

Nicky Samuels (pictured), Kate McIlroy, Andrea Hewitt and Bevan Docherty will race in Kitzbuhel. Photo / Getty Images.

All but two of New Zealand's London-bound triathletes will race in the Austrian Alps this weekend, using the latest round of the ITU World Triathlon Series as a tune-up for the Olympic Games.

Nicky Samuels, Kate McIlroy, Andrea Hewitt and Bevan Docherty will race in Kitzbuhel, along with Olympic reserves Debbie Tanner and Clark Ellice. They will be joined by non-Olympic athletes Bryce McMaster, Tony Dodds and Simone Ackermann.

For New Zealand's top-ranked athlete Andrea Hewitt, Austria signals her final serious hit-out before London.

"I raced and placed fourth last Sunday in the Banyoles World Cup race, so these five days in between have been focused on resting my legs but, of course, this has included the travel from Spain back to France and then to Austria. Surprisingly, though, I feel more ready for this weekend after training at a snail's pace all week.

"I am happy to be training well for London and racing at the highest level at the same time. This is my last race before the Olympic Games ahead of six weeks of final preparation."

A number of London-bound international athletes will also race this weekend, meaning the Kiwi contingent can get a good gauge on how their Olympic preparations are coming along. Many have been in heavy training, including two-time medallist Docherty. He moved from his US base to Europe for this weekend's race and has an eye on the calendar with London in mind.

"Training has been going very well," he said. "My form seems to be coming on at the right time. I know there are a lot of the big hitters in this event, and it's a great opportunity to gauge how things are coming along.

"It's around five weeks until the men's triathlon in London. A lot can happen over that time which can make or break your Olympic result."

Tri NZ coach Greg Fraine said all of the athletes were tracking well towards London but he wasn't necessarily looking for top results this weekend.

"In Olympic year, events such as this weekend are approached with a slightly different perspective," he said. "Athletes are still looking to secure good points towards the world championship but the main focus is London and continuing to work towards peaking at the Games."