British Triathlon has announced the addition of eight new athletes to its Olympic and Paralympic World Class Programme (WCP), building momentum towards the LA 2028, Brisbane 2032, and future Games.
The new additions join an elite squad of 25 retained athletes, which includes Olympic individual medallists Alex Yee and Beth Potter, and Paris Paralympic gold medallists Dave Ellis and Meg Richter. The programme is supported by UK Sport and the National Lottery.
Paralympic World Class Programme (WCP)
PTWC athlete Josh Landmann and PTVI talent Rachael Elliott join the Paralympic WCP following successful seasons.
Landmann claimed three podiums in quick succession: bronze at the European Para Championships in Besançon, gold at the World Triathlon Para Cup in Magog, and silver at the Montreal Para Series. Elliott earned her spot with a series of late season podium standard performances.
Josh Landmann said “Starting paratriathlon in 2018 with no background in any of the disciplines, I’ve had to learn everything from the ground up. That journey has taught me resilience and a constant drive to improve.
“Joining the World Class Programme is an incredible step, and I’m committed to pushing my performance further as I target Paralympic success in LA and beyond. I hope to help grow the visibility of paratriathlon and inspire future athletes to follow a pathway of equal opportunity.”
Eight-time World Champion Dave Ellis (PTVI) and guide Luke Pollard, along with Paralympic medallists Meg Richter (PTS4), Claire Cashmore (PTS5), Lauren Steadman (PTS5), and Hannah Moore (PTS4) headline the retained squad.
They are joined by Alison Peasgood and Oscar Kelly (both PTVI), as well as rising star Henry Urand (PTS3) after he clinched his second World title in Wollongong. George Peasgood is retained following his return to the sport in the PTS3 classification, while Ryan Taylor is also confirmed on the programme after an impressive comeback to paratriathlon earlier this year.
Alongside Luke Pollard, guides Brooke Gillies and Jack Hutchens are also retained.
Mike Cavendish, British Triathlon Performance Director, said “Our Paralympic World Class Programme looks stronger than ever as we retain all our Paralympic and World Championships medallists and welcome Josh Landmann and Rachael Elliott to the team.
“Those stellar performances we saw at the Paralympics in Paris 2024 have continued this year with Dave Ellis gaining his eighth World title and Henry Urand further making his mark on the sport as he retained his World title for a second year. Ryan Taylor’s return to triathlon has also been impressive as he took second place, behind Henry, in the PTS3 category at the World Championships.”
Olympic World Class Programme (WCP_
Oliver Conway, Alex Robin, Brandon Pye, Michael Gar, Jack Willis, and Sian Rainsley join the Olympic WCP after impressive results across the season.
Conway struck gold twice at the World Triathlon Grand Finals in Wollongong in October, winning the Under-23 men’s race and the mixed relay. Robin added silver in the Junior men’s event, while Pye earned his spot with a podium at the European Junior championships in Melilla.
Gar impressed with his first World Triathlon Cup in Miyazaki, whilst Willis and Rainsley return to the programme after ending the year with strong world rankings – placing them well to add depth to the push for quota places in LA.
Retained stars include Olympic gold medallist Alex Yee, following his detour into marathon running, and bronze medallist Beth Potter. They are joined by mixed relay medallists Sam Dickinson and Georgia Taylor-Brown, plus Kate Waugh, who has had success in the T100 this year.
Olivia Mathias, Sophie Coldwell, Jess Fullagar, Tilly Anema, Sophie Alden, Hugo Milner, and Connor Bentley also remain, adding depth, experience, and future potential to the squad.
Oli Conway said “Being added to the World Class Programme is a really exciting opportunity and I’m excited to take advantage of it and see how it can help me.
“Growing up it was Jonny and Alistair Brownlee who inspired me, it was watching them at the London Olympics in 2012 that got me into the sport and long term I’d love to follow in their footsteps and make the Olympics in 2028 or 2032 if I can.”
Sian Rainsley said “It feels really good to be back on the World Class Programme. I feel like I’m in a good place and with the support behind me from British Triathlon, I’m ready to hit the ground running next season.
“I was very consistent in the top fifteen last year, so I’d like to nudge back to being top ten, top eight, if not better. My hopes for the 2026 season are to keep progressing and get my world ranking going in the right direction.”
Mike Cavendish at British Triathlon said “With the addition of six new athletes, the Olympic World Class Programme adds an even greater depth of talent as we plan for LA2028, Brisbane and beyond.
“Introducing emerging talent such as Oliver Conway, Michael Gar, Alex Robin and Brandon Pye alongside our hugely successful established triathlon stars, such as Alex Yee, Beth Potter, Georgia Taylor-Brown, Kate Waugh and Sam Dickinson gives me great confidence for medal success in the coming years as we get ever closer to the next Games.”
Four athletes will be leaving the programme – Dan Dixon and Barclay Izzard on the Olympic programme, and Finley Jakes (PTS4) and Michael Salisbury (PTS5) from the Paralympic team.
Mike Cavendish added “Making decisions on who to support via the World Class Programme is always really hard, especially when we have such great strength in depth across the Olympic and Paralympic disciplines.
“Unfortunately, this means that we can’t support everyone and we have had to make the difficult decision to begin the process of transitioning Dan, Barclay, Fin and Michael off the programme. They have contributed significantly in their time on the WCP, and I hope to see them continue competing for Great Britain in 2026 and beyond.”
