2026 World Triathlon Junior Championships: Fanni Szalai in a class of her own, Thibault Rivier wins men's sprint in Pontevedra

Hungary's Fanni Szalai left nothing to chance at this morning's World Triathlon Junior Championships in Pontevedra, Spain. The overwhelming favorite, who has already won the Tiszaujvaros World Cup round this season, dominated the field to claim her first junior world title after back-to-back silver medals in 2024 and 2025. In the men's race, Switzerland's Thibault Rivier pulled off a surprise sprint victory for the biggest win of his career. The French team could not extend its run of junior world titles, which dates back to 2023.

Sometimes the best way to win a race is to leave your rivals with no chance. After taking consecutive silver medals at this level, Hungary's Fanni Szalai made no mistake this time, taking control of the women's race from the opening seconds and attacking her way to the 2026 world title.

I'm still trying to take in what happened and process the race. I wasn't sure until the end that I could do it. I just reminded myself how much I wanted this title and of all the work I had put in this year. I always had this title in the back of my mind. I came here wanting to leave happy, and I can finally say that I am.
Fanni Szalai 2026 Junior World Champion

From the starting gun, which sent around 60 young women into the water for a 750-metre swim, Fanni Szalai's strategy was about as subtle as a sledgehammer. Her pace through the opening lengths looked more suited to a 50-metre freestyle than a 750-metre swim. After an extraordinary display of power in the water, she already held a 25-second lead over her nearest challenger. It was hardly a surprise from an athlete who has already topped the swim splits at WTCS races and World Cup events this season.

Anouk Rigaud makes the right bike group before crashing

With the field still reeling, a group of four broke clear to form the first chase pack. Poland's Martyna Gajda and Luxembourg's Linda Krombach joined the two Germans, Carlotta Bülck and Jara Banka. Despite their numerical advantage, reeling Szalai back in looked like a particularly tall order.

Swiss junior European champion Anouk Danna and France's Anouk Rigaud joined the second chase group after the first transition, then quickly made it across to the leading quartet, along with Britain's Lauren Mitchell and around a dozen other athletes.

Danna and Rigaud had been among the pre-race favorites tipped to make Szalai work, but they were soon powerless to stop the gap continuing to grow over the 20-kilometre bike course, four laps featuring a demanding climb in the middle of each one.

The gap to the breakaway settled at around 40 seconds. By halfway, the script already seemed written: the title race was over, leaving only the silver and bronze medals to fight for behind Szalai over the remaining 5-kilometre run. No one looked capable of catching an athlete who, last July in Hamburg, had already taken on a WTCS-level field alone on the bike.

Fanni Szalai also runs the fastest split

The lead gradually melted to 26 seconds by the second transition. But none of the chasers could match Szalai's speed over the 5-kilometre run. Despite the effort she had expended on the bike, Szalai posted the fastest run split of the day.

Behind her, Danna secured second place, while the bronze-medal battle came down to another Swiss athlete, Kimey Casanova, Germany's Carlotta Bülck, Hungary's Jázmin Kropkó, and local athlete Candela Sanchez Touza. On the final lap, Casanova found another gear to give Switzerland third place.

For France, Anouk Rigaud crashed on the final bike lap, ruling her out of the battle she could have joined. The time lost in the crash dropped her to 55th at the second transition, more than five minutes behind the leader. She fought back to an unremarkable 45th place on the run, well short of her initial goals.

France therefore hands the women's world title to Hungary, having held the keys to it since 2023 through Ilona Hadhoum, the 2023 champion, Ambre Grasset in 2024 and Léa Houart in 2025.

Top 5, Women's U20

1) Fanni Szalai (Hungary): 59:21

2) Anouk Danna (Switzerland): 59:58

3) Kimey Casanova (Switzerland): 1:00:39

4) Candela Sanchez Touza (Spain): 1:00:54

5) Jázmin Kropkó (Hungary): 1:00:58

A far more open men's race

The men's junior race looked far more open. The presence of the five reigning junior continental champions, along with a sixth contender who already had the rare experience of an international senior victory, added to the uncertainty.

At the start of the Sprint-distance race, 750 m / 20 km / 5 km, at 11:45 this morning, Namibia's Nathan Max Centlivres Chase, Japan's Konosuke Uchida and Australia's Zahn Spies lined up as the respective African, Asian and Oceanian continental champions. Their main challenge was finding a second peak in their season: Chase had won his African title in February, while Uchida and Spies had taken gold in March.

By contrast, Canada's Robi Racine, the junior champion of the Americas, had won his title in July, while Luxembourg's Sebastian Ziekman, Europe's top junior, had triumphed in August.

Austria's Jelle Kaindl had one asset none of the five continental champions could claim: a senior victory this year. Kaindl caused a surprise at the Rzeszów Elite European Cup in Poland. A 2026 junior European bronze medallist, he deserved his place among the six main contenders for the junior world title.

A Frenchman chasing a third straight title

Spain's Damian Suarez Couto, winner of the Quarteira Junior European Cup in Portugal, looked like one of Spain's best hopes of a home medal. New Zealand's Caleb Wagener, the 2025 junior duathlon world champion, arrived in strong form after recently winning the Derry Junior European Cup in Ireland.

Finally, France's Leni Remer-Mancini, winner of the 2026 Caorle Junior European Cup in Italy, was the only French athlete on the start line. He faced the considerable task of extending France's long tradition of success in this event and helping the French men's team claim a third consecutive junior world title, after Tristan Douche in 2025 and Nils Serre Gehri in 2024.

No gaps opened in the swim or on the bike

After the 750-metre swim, Germany's Henry Haag was the fastest, with a five-second lead over Spaniards Damian Suarez Couto and Jonay Alvarez Almazan, followed 30 seconds later by a group of around 30 athletes. By the time they had stripped off their wetsuits, Almazan was first onto his bike, three seconds ahead of Couto, five ahead of Haag and 18 ahead of Jelle Kaindl.

At the end of the first of four bike laps, a group of eight triathletes had formed, with a second group of 10 just 10 seconds back. It included the eventual winner and France's Leni Remer-Mancini. The breakaway did not last long: on the third lap, the field came back together, forming a main pack of around 30 athletes who would now settle the race over the final 5 kilometres on foot.

The top six are separated by 23 seconds

Jelle Kaindl led onto the final leg, with Remer-Mancini six seconds back. At the end of the first of two laps, a trio had formed: Germany's Christian Ache, Kaindl and Switzerland's Thibault Rivier. France's Remer-Mancini, Portugal's Ferreira, New Zealand's Wagener and Spain's Couto were chasing one second behind the leaders.

On the second lap, France's Léni Remer-Mancini faded and lost his chance of a podium finish.

The victory would be decided in a sprint over the final metres, and Switzerland's Thibault Rivier proved the strongest, taking the biggest win of his young career ahead of Portugal's Dinis Ferreira and Austria's Jelle Kaindl. Léni Remer-Mancini finished sixth at these junior world championships.

Top 6, Men's U20

1) Thibault Rivier (Switzerland): 54:05

2) Dinis Ferreira (Portugal): 54:07

3) Jelle Kaindl (Austria): 54:17

4) Caleb Wagener (New Zealand): 54:19

5) Reuben Wadey (Great Britain): 54:20

6) Leni Remer-Mancini (France): 54:28

Full results