Some of the world's top female athletes are finalising their plans for the season-opening Abu Dhabi International Triathlon.
The women's race takes place on Saturday over a 223-kilometre course and seems wide open, particularly with the double champion Julie Dibens from Great Britain sidelined with injury.
Caroline Steffen of Switzerland may be the one who will most likely to take advantage of the absence of Dibens. Steffen will compete in Abu Dhabi for the third time and will hope to better her second-place finish last year. In 2011 she overcame injury to win six events in five countries and has been a top-five finisher at the Ironman World Championships in both 2010 and 2011.
Also looking to make her mark in Abu Dhabi is Melissa Rollison, a relative newcomer to triathlon, having taken up the sport in 2010 after a successful athletics career.
The Australian has been dominant on the world's Half Ironman circuit winning seven events and breaking course records for each.
"I've heard great things about this race and the location; I can't wait to compete as well and see the amazing Abu Dhabi," Rollison said. "I'm particularly looking forward to the long, hot bike leg. It will kind of give me a feel of what I'm in for if I step up to the full Ironman."
Several other athletes hope to be in contention on race day, including Leanda Cave from the UK.
Cave won her first Ironman gold at the end of 2011 and is fit after a season of 13 races, five of which she won.
The Abu Dhabi Triathlon Team's newest addition, Jodie Swallow from England, is another aiming to make her mark. "This event has become one of the most coveted titles to win in the professional triathlete world," Swallow said.
The women will join an impressive male field. The 50-plus world-class athletes will lead nearly 1,700 amateurs in the largest line-up for the Abu Dhabi event.
The increased participation this year has much to do with the race offering a selection of distances to accommodate athletes of all abilities. The 223km course boasts a 3km swim, a 200km cycle and 20km closing run, but newcomers can choose to tackle the "short" course at half the length, with a 1.5km swim, a 100km cycle and a 10km run.
The sprint course offers a 750m swim, a 50km bike and 5km run. Both the short and sprint distance also offer the option of a relay entry, encouraging like-minded friends, families and colleagues to take up the triathlon challenge.
The course offers picturesque settings; a swim in a blue lagoon, biking on the Yas Marina Circuit and a finishing run on the Corniche.
