🥉 A first WTCS podium for Hayden Wilde since he won this same race in February 2025 and, importantly, his legs saved for Saturday’s T100 Dubai. A career-best WTCS result for Brea Roderick. A welcome return to form for Tayler Reid and a memorable top-flight debut result for Auckland teen Caleb Wagener.
New Zealand had ample to celebrate following the final individual races under the World Triathlon Championship Series (WTCS) moniker in Abu Dhabi overnight.
The headline was Wilde’s bronze, while the other topline results saw Reid finish 13th, Saxon Morgan 32nd and Wagener 38th in the men’s sprint. Earlier on Hudayriyat Island, Roderick had snared 22nd ahead of Ainley Thorpe in 40th in a women’s race where Gwen Jorgenson turned back the clock, the 2016 Olympic champion claiming her first WTCS podium since the 2016 Grand Final.
The detail showed Wilde making up 40 seconds out of the 750m swim with a strong ride and measured run to claim bronze behind Brazil’s Miguel Hidalgo and Aussie Matt Hauser.
The Kiwi No.1 ran 14:52 for the closing 5km run leg (compared with Hidalgo’s winning 14:20), opting to save his legs for Saturday’s tight turnaround to T100 Dubai, which takes the gun at 7:03pm (NZT) live on YouTube.
“I made sure I was swimming as right as possible and came round into a nice position, and on the bike you just had to put your head down and get aero,” Wilde said of the windswept 20km bike leg.
“We got a nice group of four and working so well together but it wasn’t quite enough. Matty and Hidalgo were just too far off the front but happy to be back on the podium for the first time since here last year and save the legs for the T100 tomorrow.”
Reid was eighth out of the water and scrapped his way to 13th place, his best WTCS result since a brilliant 7th over the standard distance at the WTCS Finals in Torremolinos-Andalucia in October 2024.
The world and Olympic rankings boost is timely for the Gisborne 30-year-old and will undoubtedly assist his cause for starts in next year’s rebranded WTCS, the T50 Triathlon World Tour.
“It feels so good to be back 😤,” Reid wrote on social media after the confidence boost that comes a week out from World Triathlon Cup Tauranga.
“13th against the best in the world in Abu Dhabi WTCS. At times this year finding form has felt as hard as a blind man trying to find Where’s Wally. Grateful to finally turn it around.”
Morgan’s 32nd was his second-best WTCS result of 2026, following his 27th in Alghero to open the top-flight season. The Cantab ran a 15:19 5km split after being 20th out of the water.
Wagener made the most of his late call-up to the Abu Dhabi start list with a solid all-round performance, closed out with a 15:55 run with the sting in his legs from last weekend’s World Cup 19th in Hong Kong and the travel to Abu Dhabi. As he has already shown at continental and World Cup level, the 18-year-old is a quick learner, so count on him banking this unexpected experience and cashing in on further T50 opportunities in 2027 and beyond.
WOMEN
Russia’s Diana Isakova and Luxembourg’s Jeanne Lehair repeated their 1-2 from World Cup Hong Kong a week ago, with Jorgensen third on the back of the fastest women’s run of 16:26.
Roderick, meanwhile, made up two places out of the water to finish 22nd overall, eclipsing her previous best WTCS result of 24th at the 2024 Paris Olympic test event.
The Cantab closed with an 18:06 5km run split. Thorpe continued her comeback to the top flight with a 19:15 run for 40th.
MIXED RELAY
While Wilde will look to win his third T100 race of the season in Dubai on Saturday, attention in Abu Dhabi turns to the Mixed Relay and the fight for LA28 Olympic Ranking points.
Thorpe, Reid, Roderick and Morgan are scheduled to race for NZ, with Wagener and Phoebe Carter in the wings as reserves. Coverage of the Mixed Relay is on Triathlonlive.io from 1:15am Sunday NZT.
WTCS Abu Dhabi – Selected Results
November 13, 2026
Hudayriyat Island (Sprint Distance)
* MEN *
🥇 Miguel Hidalgo (BRA) – 00:49:02
🥈 Matthew Hauser (AUS) – 00:49:20 (+18s)
🥉 Hayden Wilde (NZL) – 00:49:43 (+41s)
Also NZL
13. Tayler Reid (NZL) – 00:50:25 (+1:23)
32. Saxon Morgan (NZL) – 00:51:25 (+2:23)
38. Caleb Wagener (NZL) – 00:52:05 (+3:03)
** WOMEN **
🥇 Diana Isakova (RUS) – 00:55:55
🥈 Jeanne Lehair (LUX) – 00:55:58 (+3s)
🥉 Gwen Jorgensen (USA) – 00:56:23 (+28s)
ALSO NZL
22. Brea Roderick (NZL) – 00:57:59 (+2:04)
40. Ainsley Thorpe (NZL) – 01:00:55 (+5:00)
📷 @wags.photo (Wagner Araújo) / World Triathlon
