Sian Rainsley excited for home fans to see mixed relay at AJ Bell 2022 WTCS Leeds

Last year competing in Leeds was a memorable experience for elite triathlete Sian Rainsley, not only was it her first time competing at a World Triathlon Championship Series event, but it was also a chance to race in the city she calls her ‘second home’.

Fast forward 12 months and Rainsley will once again be one of the British athletes to watch in Leeds when the European bronze medallist returns to Roundhay Park for AJ Bell 2022 World Triathlon Championship Series Leeds (11-12 June).

“It was my first ever World Series, and I call Leeds home now as I’ve been here for years, so to do it in front of a home crowd in my home city, in front of all my family and friends it was incredible,” Rainsley said.

“It was my favourite race of the year so I’m hoping it will be the same this year. People would perhaps see it as extra pressure, coming here in front of everyone and delivering on your first one, but I found it took the pressure off because I knew whatever happened I would have my family and friends to help get me around the course. Just hearing your name cheered along the sidelines it pushes you to go harder than you realise you can.

"The home crowd does make such a difference. I was in a five person sprint finish at the end and I think having the home advantage is definitely the reason I won that sprint finish. It’s going to be an amazing experience and we’re really fortunate to be able to get this opportunity.”

Rainsley had never competed at a World Triathlon Championship Series event before last year’s Leeds event. Since then, the Leeds-based athlete has been a regular at World Series events, racing at all five events held since Leeds last year, including a fifth place finish in the elite women’s race in Hamburg last September, where she was also part of Great Britain’s mixed relay team.

AJ Bell 2022 WTCS Leeds will provide spectators with the chance to see the mixed relay for the first time in Leeds, where nations from across the world, including Olympic champions Great Britain, will go head-to-head over the relay format for what promises to be a fantastic spectacle on Sunday 12 June.

Having had mixed relay medal success at junior, U23 and senior level, Rainsley is excited for the British fans to see the relay in Leeds.

“GB always have a really strong team so you always know you can go out there and put on a good show, get in the race and inspire each other on in each leg,” Rainsley said when asked about her mixed relay experiences. “In a way, there’s more pressure because you don’t want to let your teammates down. You’ve seen how hard they’ve worked, and you want to deliver for the team as well as yourself.

“I’ve quite often gone on the first leg so it’s always kind of felt like a normal race and then knowing you’re tagging onto your teammates you just want to get them in the best position you can so they can deliver their best race as well. I’ve definitely pushed myself really hard in those runs in the past just to stay in a group so second leg can get the draft.”

With mixed relay taking place in Britain for the first time since 2019, there’s a lot for spectators to look forward to when Roundhay Park welcomes elite international quartets.

“I think GB are going to go out and put the strongest team out we can, so we’ll be out cheering hopefully, I think it’s going to be a pretty impressive race,” Rainsley commented. “It will be interesting with there being a hard hill on the course so it could be quite split up, but I think the cheers will help the team get round.

“As a youngster, they were some of my only championship medals, so it was quite an important thing for me to deliver as a team. Being in a strong team is always really fun and because it’s been a big thing for us since we were racing youth we’ve been brought up with the team aspect, even though it’s an individual sport. They were definitely some of my favourite events and I think it gets the best out of each other.”

Fans of the sport will have become used to seeing the mixed relay following a female-male-female-male format, including during Great Britain’s Olympic success in Tokyo last year. But, after changes for the Paris 2024 Olympic cycle, Leeds will be the first World Triathlon Championship Series event to see a switch in the athlete order where a female athlete will now cross the finish line.

“It’s all changed around now, the guys are going first, the women will be second and fourth leg so that will be a completely different experience, but we’ve got a strong women’s team so hopefully we can finish it off,” Rainsley commented.

“I think it’s really important to have women now crossing the line and it’s quite a cool thing that’s going to happen because we’re so used to it being the other way round. For a female, to be able to do that will hopefully be inspiring for other younger girls.”

Come and watch the world’s best in action live from the park at AJ Bell 2022 World Triathlon Championship Series Leeds.

There will be free general admission areas around Roundhay Park, but if you want to experience the best seats in the house grandstands tickets are on sale for the elite racing on each day.

The grandstand will provide a great location from which to view the transition area and finish line for the elite action. Find out more and secure your seats here.