UIPM 2019 Biathle/Triathle World Championships: Achterberg (USA) and Sousa (POR) sign off with Biathle gold

Samantha Achterberg of the USA completed a clean sweep of gold medals and Tiago Sousa of Portugal won his first world title on the final day of the UIPM 2019 Biathle/Triathle World Championships in Saint Petersburg (USA).

Tokyo 2020 Olympic qualifier Achterberg (USA) had already won both Mixed Relay titles alongside Amro Elgeziry (USA) and the Individual Triathle, and on day four she demonstrated her supremacy again in the Individual Biathle, winning by 16sec from silver medallist Nadezhda Bekmaganbetova of Kazakhstan. Heidi Hendrick (USA) claimed bronze.

In the Men’s Individual Biathle, Sousa added to his Individual Triathle bronze with a commanding performance, claiming victory by 11sec from Arman Kydyrtayev (KAZ) with Gregan Clarkson of Great Britain picking up bronze.

The other gold medals were shared among numerous nations, with individual world titles going to Great Britain, Egypt, Japan, France, Germany, Guatemala, Spain, Portugal, USA and South Africa.

More than 420 athletes from 33 countries took part across Biathle (Run-Swim-Run) and Triathle (Swim-Run-Shoot) from October 24-27.

Competing on the Florida beach were people with an age span of more than 60 years. The age categories in Biathle ranged from Under-9 to Masters 70+ while Triathle spanned Under-11 to Masters 60+. 

UIPM Executive Board Member for Sport, Janusz Peciak, said: “The UIPM 2019 Biathle/Triathle World Championships was a wonderful showcase for two of the most important development sports in our movement.

“We saw high levels of skill, dedication and commitment across all age categories – and not just from the countries with established development programmes.

“It was great to see athletes from countries like Singapore winning medals, and Japan continued to enjoy good results thanks to their increased focus on UIPM Sports through hosting the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

“Biathle and Triathle, like Laser Run, play a vital role in giving young athletes an entry point to UIPM Sports and a chance to develop their multi-sport abilities.”

All results are available at the UIPM website.