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Grand Final to decide triathlon world champions this weekend

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After five months of racing on five different continents the ITU World Triathlon Series winners will be decided this weekend in Edmonton at the TransCanada Corp. World Triathlon Grand Final.

Jonathan Brownlee arrived in Canada having won the penultimate round in Stockholm. However, the points difference between him and Javier Gomez means the Spaniard needs only to finish fourth on Sunday to win the 2014 world title.

Brownlee, who is ranked second overall in the Series, said: “Stockholm was the first time I’d won a World Series race for a long time. That was incredible, I enjoyed the race.”

He added: “Hopefully this will be a year of two halves for me. The first half of the season wasn’t too great. Then before the Commonwealths I went and trained hard for five weeks and hopefully I’m a different athlete now.”

Alistair Brownlee is out of contention for the Series win, but will be a strong contender on Sunday. He and Jonathan broke well away from the rest of the field during the bike leg and finished well ahead of everyone else.

Asked whether another break away might be possible here, Jonathan Brownlee said: “I think it’s a fast course. It’s either going to go one of two ways. One pack’s going to get away and get two or three minutes and going to miles clear, or it’s going to be one big pack rolling round. No one knows what will happen, so we’ll wait and see. The run is fast as well.”

Gwen Jorgensen (USA) appears to have the women’s title within easier reach than any of her rivals, including Jodie Stimpson, who lies in third place overall. However, triathlon and the weather in Edmonton in late summer can be unpredictable.

The technical course, and potentially the weather, could be factors that help Stimpson end the season on a high.

She said: “It’s going to be a fast swim again and I’ve got to make sure I’m there on the bike. This course is a cyclists course and I’m hoping it’s a hard bike and there are some dedicated girls in there.”

Commenting on her goal for the overall Series conclusion, she added: “If I finish third, if I finish second [I’ll be happy], obviously I’d prefer to finish second. My main goal is just to go out there and have a solid race.”

The team for Great Britain includes six men and two women. The Brownlee brothers are joined by Aaron Harris, who was sixth at the Commonwealth Games, Adam Bowden, David McNamee and Matt Sharp. Stimpson is joined by Lucy Hall, who will add strength to a lead bike group if there is the opportunity to form one after the swim.

The women’s race takes place at 12pm local time on Saturday followed by the men’s race at the same time on Sunday. Both races are being shown live on the BBC Red Button and triathlonlive.tv at 7pm in the UK. For full TV viewing information click here.

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