Lovely Slovakia was the setting for this year's World Championships, and the athletes were greeted by fair weather, and a testing course on the first competition day of the 2005 ITU Winter Triathlon World Championships. However, due to heavy snowfall in the previous 24 hours, the competition jury made a decision in the morning to alter the course to just a 3 lap Run leg, 5 lap Bike leg, and 5 lap cross-country ski leg.

All the big names started the race. Carina Wasle (AUT) took an early lead and maintained it through the open 3 laps. Following close behind was Marianne Vlasveld (NED), and a further 15 seconds back was in third was race favourite Sigrid Lang (GER), with Sabka Grabmullerova and Jutta Schubert (GER) fourth and fifth.

Though transition 1 (Run to Bike), Vlasveld took the lead, and led out onto the mountain track, with Sigrid Lang gaining on her as the Bike leg progressed. Lang then took the lead around halfway, and had built herself a 1 minute lead by Transition 2. Behind her, the battle for second place was coming down to three athletes – Schubert, Maria Kalnes (NOR) and Vlasveld – and they reached ttransition 2 within a couple of seconds of each other.

Lang then built on her lead through the cross country ski, and so went on to defend her World Championship title, and make it a clean sweep of titles for her n the 2005 season. Vlasveld pushed hard to take, second place, with Kalnes coming in third..

In the U23 competition, Lubomira Kalinova (SVK) won, with Lydia Weydahl (NOR) in second and Wasle third.

Full results, and more race details at www.triathlon.org