Nineteen-year-old Blake Bullard Breaks Through in Yokohama

On May 16, 19-year-old Blake Bullard stepped onto the start line at the World Triathlon Championship Series Yokohama facing two challenges: this was his first-ever World Triathlon Championship Series race and his first-ever Olympic-distance triathlon. 

The morning of race day, Bullard woke up in Japan with both nerves and excitement.  

“I live for the nerves and the excitement of racing,” Bullard said. “I viewed this as a huge opportunity for me to show that I can perform on the big stage.”  

Before the race, Bullard’s coach, Parker Spencer, gave him one clear instruction: do not lead the swim. 

Bullard, who grew up swimming, dove into the water and immediately put himself at the front of the race.  

Oops. Blame it on youthful enthusiasm and nerves.  

Three-hundred meters into the swim, Bullard found open water around him and started working his way to his right to get on the feet of the lead athlete — none other than 2025 world champion Matt Hauser of Australia.  

Welcome to the world’s highest level of draft-legal racing.  

After the first lap, athletes completed an Aussie exit before diving back in for the second lap. It was that moment when Bullard realized the race was beginning to split apart.  

“I snuck a look around before diving back in and realized that a breakaway group was forming,” he said. “That added extra motivation.” 

Midway through the second lap, Bullard had settled into the lead pack.  

“I was pretty comfortable in the group, so I was able to look around and I knew I was swimming well,” he said. 

Bullard exited the swim with the third-fastest swim split of the day, leading out of the water alongside some of the biggest names in the sport, including Hauser and Brazil’s Miguel Hidalgo. For a teenager making his debut at the sport’s highest level, it was the kind of performance that turned heads across the triathlon community. 

“When we got out of the water, I looked back and realized I was in a small group and we had a big gap on the field,” he said. “It was surreal running into T1 at a WTCS with Hauser and Hidalgo.” 

Yokohama still demanded plenty from Bullard beyond the swim. The Olympic-distance format doubled the distance of any race he had previously completed, creating both physical and mental challenges throughout the day. 

“[The race] challenged my mental strength by pushing me out of my comfort zone,” Bullard said. “At 25 kilometers into the bike, I realized I was already farther than I had ever ridden in a race, and I still had to run a 10k off it.” 

But Bullard never faded from the fight. 

He crossed the line 20th overall — an impressive result for a 19-year-old competing in both his first WTCS race and first Olympic-distance triathlon. More importantly, the performance reinforced his belief that he belongs at the highest level of the sport. 

“This race showed me that with a bit more experience and development, I can be very successful at this level,” Bullard said. “My physiology is built for the longer distances, and I really enjoyed doing it.” 

World Triathlon

Bullard’s performance served as another major step forward, but his path to the WTCS start line began years earlier through the support of the USA Triathlon Foundation and the USA TRI Mallow U25 Development Team, named in honor of Michael and Audra Mallow, who fund the team. 

Bullard says making the team at 16 years old helped shape the direction of his athletic career at a critical moment.  

“I was really debating between dedicating myself to triathlon full time and swimming or running track and cross country in college,” Bullard said. “Making the team helped me realize that there was a viable path in triathlon.” 

That support extends beyond race opportunities and funding. It reinforces the belief that athletes like Bullard could develop into future international contenders. 

“I was able to spend time with the Mallows last November and shared with Audra how much their support impacted my decision to focus on triathlon,” Bullard said. “The impact donor support has on our development pipeline is huge, and the athletes are truly grateful for the opportunity it provides us to represent our country internationally while growing the sport at home.”  

Bullard now looks ahead to the next stages of his development with his long-term goals firmly centered on representing Team USA at the Olympics. 

“My goal will always be to make the U.S. Olympic Team and represent my country,” he said. “Every six months over the last few years, I feel like I’ve taken steps forward in the swim, bike and run. I’m excited for what’s ahead.” 

The pathway that helped bring Bullard to the World Triathlon start line is the same pathway the USA Triathlon Foundation continues to build for the next generation of U.S. elite triathletes. 

The USA Triathlon Foundation helps support youth participation, access and inclusion initiatives, and Olympic and Paralympic development opportunities through grants and athlete programs like the USA TRI Mallow U25 Development Team. 

Through Elevate28 — the Foundation’s movement to support U.S. athletes as they prepare to compete on home soil at the LA28 Olympic and Paralympic Games — donor support is helping athletes like Bullard pursue international racing opportunities while inspiring the next generation of Team USA athletes. 

As Bullard’s breakthrough performance in Yokohama showed, those investments are already helping shape the future of U.S. elite triathlon. 

Learn more about how to get involved with Elevate28 here and follow USA TRI athletes throughout the 2026 season.