Gwen Jorgensen Wins Third-Straight World Cup Gold in Tongyeong

TONGYEONG, South Korea — In her first showing in South Korea, Gwen Jorgensen (Boulder, Colo.) claimed her third consecutive 2023 World Cup victory after a come-from-behind performance at the 2023 World Triathlon Cup Tongyeong on Saturday, Oct. 21. 

Despite being down in the swim and losing time after the bike in transition, Jorgensen tracked down multiple competitors on the run to win the sprint-distance (750-meter swim, 20-kilometer bike, 5-kilometer run) hilly course in a time of 58 minutes and 16 seconds. 

The gold medal adds to her collection of World Cup wins this season — she also won gold in Valencia, Spain and Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic last month. The medal in Tongyeong is also her fourth World Cup podium in 2023.  

“I was happy to get up to the front, I had a few mistakes today. I am not really thrilled with my process today, but always happy to come away with a win,” Jorgensen said of her win. 

She added of her performance, “I had pre-run this course a few times, so I knew what angles to take and what the best line was and really just tried to work my way up. I feel like I had a horrible swim, I am really disappointed with my swim. And then on the bike I think it was a little like all the way on or totally easy. And then I got into transition my hands were so cold I couldn’t get on my shoes, I felt like it was really crazy. I just tried to stay in the moment, stay present and not think about what happened in the past and just make my way up.” 

In the water, Jorgensen exited the swim down by 23 seconds, which caused her to miss getting into the leading bike pack. However, with only a three-lap short bike course, as a part of the chase, the group managed to merge with the front group and enter the second transition together.  

However, the cold weather caused a transition snafu and she was last to start the run. But in true Jorgensen form, she plowed down the field one-by-one to take the lead. The silver medal went to Yuko Takahashi of Japan, who followed four seconds back (58:20), followed by Tereza Zimovjanova of Czech Republic in third (58:23). 

USA’s Erika Ackerlund (Helena, Mont.) finished 10th, crossing the line in 59:00, earning her third top-10 World Cup finish of the year. 

In the men’s race, Matt McElroy (Huntington Beach, Calif.) took the top spot among the six U.S. men on the roster. After claiming the overall victory in Tongyeong last year, McElroy returned and put forth another top performance, finishing 10^th with a time of 50:56, just 21 seconds from the leader. 

Tongyeong marked the 12^th stop of the 2023 world cup season. There are only two events left in the World Cup season, with athletes heading to Miyazaki, Japan, next weekend followed by Vina Del Mar, Chile in November.  

Replays of both races are available on Triathlonlive.tv. 

2023 World Triathlon Cup Tongyeong 
750m swim, 20km bike, 5km run 

Elite Women’s Podium – Complete Results 
1. Gwen Jorgensen (Boulder, Colo.), 58:16 
2. Yuko Takahashi (JPN), 58:20 
3. Tereza Zimovjanova (CZE), 58:23 

U.S. Women Finishers 
1. Gwen Jorgensen (Boulder, Colo.), 58:16 
10. Erika Ackerlund (Helena, Mont.), 59:00 

Elite Men’s Podium – Complete Results 
1. Tim Hellwig (GER), 50:25 
2. Ricardo Batista (POR), 50:29 
3. Samuel Dickinson (GBR), 50:33 

U.S. Men Finishers 
10. Matthew McElroy (Huntington Beach, Calif.), 50:56 
21. Darr Smith (Atlanta, Ga.), 51:14 
28. Brent Demarest (Charleston, S.C.), 51:29 
30. Ka’eo Kruse ( Kaua’i, Hawaii), 51:31 
37. John Reed (Virginia Beach, Va.), 51:55 
55. Griff Morgan (N.J.), 57:22