Reigning World Champion Matt Hauser will headline Australia’s charge at the 2026 World Triathlon Championship Finals in Pontevedra, Spain, on September 23-27. Triathlon’s in-form superstar will headline a 28-strong Australian team announced by AusTriathlon on Wednesday morning.
Hauser is one of three Australians looking to defend their world titles with Para athletes Anu Francis and Lauren Parker also hoping to secure back-to-back world championships. Hauser has won every WTCS race he has finished in 2026, claiming victories in Yokohama, Hamburg and London. His only blemish came in Alghero, where a crash on the bike ended his race. This weekend he heads to Weihai, China for one final WTCS event, before heading to Pontevedra, where the elite men’s world championship race will be held on September 27, with a chance to defend the title he won famously on home soil in Wollongong last year.
“This year has been good to prove to myself I can perform at the highest level when I do have a target on my back, the results have been really encouraging,” Hauser said.
“I always think about LA, it’s always in my mind, without overexposing my thoughts. It would be silly not to think about it.
“It’s a process and journey we’ve been on since Paris, I’m really focused on performing well at those Games. The World Championships are really important to get that experience and that exposure to high level competition.
“I’d love to defend my world championship, I think it is harder to defend a world championship than it is to win it, but that is the challenge I’m looking forward to.”
Hauser will be joined in the elite men ranks by Luke Willian and Callum McClusky. Willian heads to Spain with a season built on consistency, a World Cup win and several big performances against the world’s best.
Willian opened his 2026 campaign with victory at the World Triathlon Cup in Chengdu, winning a sprint finish. He followed that with a third-place finish at the WTCS event in Yokohama before backing it up with 11th in Alghero. He then finished seventh in London, continuing a run of results that has kept him firmly among the leading men in the sport. The consistency has been reflected in the rankings, with Willian currently sitting fourth in the World Triathlon Championship Series standings and seventh in the world rankings.
Queenslander Sophie Malowiecki will contest the women’s elite event.
“It’s been a rewarding season, highlighted by a breakthrough race in Haikou and valuable exposure at the WTCS level,” Malowiecki said.
“I think my results so far this year is really a testament to years of consistent training, as well as to the patience required to overcome injuries and setbacks. Continuing to work towards a goal that has felt out of reach at times.
“Lining up for my first WTCS Championship event is a special moment, and one I won’t take for granted. I’ve aspired to race in the elite grand final since my first World Junior Championships in 2013, so although it has taken much longer than my younger self could have imagined, reaching this point means a great deal to me. I’m looking forward to embracing the experience, racing with confidence and giving everything I have while representing myself and everyone who has supported me throughout this journey.”
Australia will be looking to have a strong performance in the Para triathlon, with two reigning world champions and a men’s World No.1 looking to cement their place on the global stage.
Lauren Parker has a busy month ahead, competing in the UCI Para cycling Road World Championships in Alabama, before landing in Pontevedra to defend her Para triathlon world title. The reigning world champion has won both of her World Triathlon Para Series races this season, taking gold in Yokohama before backing it up with another dominant performance in Hamburg. Those results continue a remarkable run for Parker, who has now won five Para triathlon world titles and claimed Paralympic gold in Paris in 2024.
“I’m really looking forward to this year’s World Triathlon Championships in Pontevedra,” Parker said.
“I’ve had a decent preparation and I’m feeling confident. It’s not a course that 100% suits me from when I raced there in 2023, although I still won, because I like more of a hilly bike course and the run is partly technical which is my weakest leg.
“The swim can be cold as well which I struggle with but I always get through these challenges and keep pushing, believing in my preparation and rise to the occasion. My expectations are always high and I will be out there defending my World Championship Title.” With LA 2028 now on the horizon, Parker’s 2026 campaign is also another marker of her continued dominance at the top of Para triathlon.
Anu Francis proved to herself she belonged when she won in Wollongong, and now has unfinished business at the Paralympics, the World Championships shape as a crucial testing ground under the global spotlight and pressure of the defending championship.
“It’s a real honour to head into World Championships as World No. 1 defending World Champion for the first time,” Francis said.
“There’s definitely a different kind of pressure that comes with that, but I’m trying to see that pressure as a privilege and as confidence to back myself.
“My ultimate goal is to chase my first Paralympic medal in LA in 2028, so these next two seasons are really about building the platform to be ready for that. Refining my processes, equipment and mindset, and continuing to learn what I need to perform at my best are my current focus, so I’m trying not to get too caught up in the outcome of individual races and instead focus on the process, the learning and, importantly, enjoying the journey.
“If I can do that, I know I’ll give myself the best chance of seeing where that takes me on race day and what I need to refine leading into LA qualification next season.”
World No.1 in the highly competitive PTS5 classification, Jack Howell is another Para athlete looking to cement his position as the best, with a maiden world championship title on the line.
Australia will also be well represented in the U23 category, with rising Queensland stars Briana Mow and Aspen Anderson looking to perform strongly, while in the men’s category, Oscar Wootton and Toby Powers will look to test themselves on the world stage.
“This is my first in U23s, and I think I’ve proved some people wrong.” Anderson said.
“Pontevedra is a great place, I got to train there for six weeks last year, I love the place. I really hope to be up there in the front group and be competitive and show my strength in the run.
“Success would be a whole performance, a good swim that hopefully lands me in the front group, I’m pretty strong on the bike and make some big moves there and then my run is where I find my sparkle, so I’m hoping to finish in the top 10, that would be an unreal experience and show all the hard work that has gone behind the scenes.”
AusTriathlon Team 2026 World Triathlon Championship Finals
Elite
Men
– Matt Hauser (QLD)
– Luke Willian (QLD)
– Callum McClusky (ACT/VIC)
Women
– Sophie Malowiecki (QLD)
Under 23
Men
– Oscar Wootton (QLD)
– Toby Powers (QLD)
– Brayden Mercer (QLD)*
*Selected, withdrew due to injury.
Women
– Aspen Anderson (QLD)
– Briana Mow (QLD)
– Tara Sosinski (QLD)*
*Selected, withdrew due to injury
Juniors
Men
– Kyle Mason (NSW)
– Zahn Spies (QLD)
– Jack Woodberry (TAS/QLD)
Women
– Addison Houslip (QLD)
– Piper Anderson (QLD)
– Hannah Pollock (QLD)
Para
– Anu Francis (PTS2) – (SA) 2025 World Champion
– Lauren Parker (PTWC H2) – (NSW) 2025, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2019 World Champion
– Jack Howell (PTS5) – (VIC)
– Grace Brimelow (PTS5) – (QLD)
– David Bryant (PTS5) – (WA)
– Sam Harding (PTVI 2) – (ACT) / Guide – Aaron Royle (QLD)
– Thomas Goodman (PTS2) – (QLD)
– Matthew Engesser (PTS4) – (NSW)
– Jeremy Peacock (PTS4) – (VIC)
– Caroline Baird (PTVI 3) – (QLD) / Guide – Sophie Walker (QLD)
– Maggie Sandles (PTVI 3) – (VIC) / Guide Lauren Sprague (NSW)
The 2026 World Triathlon Championship finals (23-27 September) can be watched on TriathlonLive.TV. For the full event schedule click here.
