Flora Duffy will be going in search of her third successive ITU Triathlon World Cup gold medal when she takes to the start line in Valencia today.

Bermuda’s two-times world champion will once again be among the favourites at the ITU Triathlon Valencia World Cup event having won on her previous two outings.

Building on her triumph at the first rescheduled World Cup event, the Karlovy Vary ITU Triathlon in the Czech Republic in September, Duffy led from start to finish to storm to another victory in Arzachena, Italy last month.

Duffy’s hopes of victory will also be boosted by the fact the Elite Women’s field does not feature quite the same depth of World Triathlon Series talent as in previous races.

However, she will still face stiff competition from the likes of Switzerland’s Nicola Spirig, an Olympic gold and silver medallist, Great Britain’s Beth Potter who finished second to Duffy in Italy last month and Germany’s Lisa Tertsch who won the Under-23 European Championship in Valencia in 2019.

Meanwhile, Duffy’s compatriot Tyler Smith will also be competing among the Elite Men’s field, where he’ll be aiming to build on promising previous performances.

The 22-year-old claimed an encouraging 26th-place finish at the ITU Triathlon Arzachena World Cup, before battling away to a 22nd-place finish in a field of 58, competing in the 2020 Barcelona ETU Sprint Triathlon European Cup last month.

He will once again be up against stellar competition in Valencia with the top-three finishers in Italy, Vincent Luit, Kristian Blummenfelt and Alistair Brownlee all among the entry list for today.

However, It is far from a three man field, with Ironman 70.3 World Champion Gustav Iden, Spain’s Jelle Geens, Commonwealth Champion Henri Schoeman and former European Champion, Pierre Le Corre all adding considerable depth to the late season World Cup event.

Ahead of the event, Smith remains content about his progression in the sport as he is determined to once again prove his credentials among the world’s elite.

“The past two races have further built on my confidence that I can compete at this level,” he said. “I will be all guns blazing in Valencia.

“I can’t wait. I’ve got nothing to lose and I’ll be giving it my all.”