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Top triathletes to swim, bike, and run around Big Apple

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Posted: Saturday July 18, 1998 06:59 PM

Great Britain's Simon Lessing captured the men's triathlon gold medal in the 1994 Goodwill Games in St. Petersburg (Phil Cole/Allsport)

NEW YORK (CNN/SI) -- Australian teammates Emma Carney, Jackie Gallagher and Michellie Jones swept the 1997 World Championships' top three women's placements to secure positions in the Goodwill Games triathlon field.

Australian Chris McCormack, along with Hamish Carter of New Zealand and Simon Lessing of Great Britain earned their respective spots in the men's field at the ITU World Championships, November 16, in Perth, Australia.

Also qualifying for the 1998 Goodwill Games line-up are Erika Molnar from Hungary and Greg Bennett of Australia.

Both have earned entry as the highest-ranked ITU athletes who did not finish among the top three at the World Championships.

Molnar holds the No. 2 ITU ranking solely behind standout Carney, the number one ranked female triathlete in both 1996 and 1997.

Bennett, ranked number three behind McCormack and Carter, finished fifth in Perth and is credited with the 1997 ITU World Cup title in Monaco.

"The results of the ITU Worlds indicate that we will have an excellent showing for the 1998 Goodwill Games," said Les McDonald, president of the ITU.

"We are confident that the Triathlon at the Goodwill Games will be a preview of what is expected in Sydney in 2000. Manhattan will bring its own energy to the event, and we look forward to a highly competitive race."

Triathlon will make its Olympic debut during the Sydney Olympics.

The Triathlon, viewed by television industry professionals as one of the best sporting events to highlight the skyline and landmarks of a city, will be held with many of New York's landmarks as the backdrop.

The swim will be held in the North Cove of Battery Park.

The bike course begins traveling east on Liberty Street then heads south on Broadway and continues past some of the Big Apple’s most famous landmarks through lower Manhattan.

The course travels past Trinity Church, the Custom House, Fraunces Tavern, Federal Hall, City Hall, and the Brooklyn Bridge.

The course then heads north on 42nd Street past the United Nations, into Times Square then loops back onto Avenue of the Americas and enters Central Park.

The entire three lap run course (1.8 mile loop) is inside Central Park.  

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