How to Watch the 2023 Super League Arena Games
This article originally appeared on Triathlete
Buckle up – the Super League Arena Games are returning this weekend, and it’s going to be a wild ride. This weekend in Montreal will be the first of the unique three-race series, which blends virtual racing and in-person swimming in one massive Olympic-pool sized arena. Last year, it was Britain's Alex Yee and Commonwealth Games Bronze medallist Beth Potter who claimed the inaugural Arena Games Championship titles. Who will take the honors this year?
The series kicks off this Saturday, February 25 in Montreal, with the final women’s and men’s heats broadcasted at 5:30 p.m. ET and 6:30 p.m. ET, respectively.
What are the Super League Arena Games?
Born of pandemic ingenuity when most races were canceled and social distancing strictly enforced, the Arena Games is an virtual/in-person hybrid event taking place in an arena using a pool, plus stationary bikes and treadmills connected to Zwift. This creates a fast-paced and exciting race that can all be watched from the stands and followed remotely with in-game data screens. There’s also fire pyrotechnics to announced the arrival of each athlete. Just because.
Last year, Super League has teamed up with World Triathlon to make the Arena Games the official arbiter of the first-ever esports world title in triathlon, meaning the Super League Arena Games crowned an official world champion and awarded official World Triathlon points towards athletes' overall World Triathlon ranking (about on par with Continental Cups). That partnership will continue this year, with World Triathlon president Marisol Casado saying “Innovation has always been at the core of World Triathlon, and this partnership proves once again that we are investing in new formats and events that attract both fans and athletes alike.”
There will be three Super League Arena Games events: Montreal on February 25, Sursee on March 12, and the grand final in London on April 8. The world title will be awarded via a cumulative points total from the three events, with the grand final counting for double the amount of points.
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Super League Arena Games format
While Super League events are always exciting, they can also be slightly confusing.
Unlike traditional triathlons, Super League utilizes various formats to keep people guessing and to keep the stakes high--rounds of short 200m swim/4km bike/1km runs, changing up the order of the legs, equalizer formats, pursuit formats, etc. In these Arena Games this weekend, there will be heats earlier in the day. Each heat will have two stages of swim-bike-run. The top three in each heat, plus the two fastest losers overall, will move to the final.
The final will then have three stages. The first two stages will be swim-bike-run and then run-bike-swim. Times will be accumulated and the last round (swim-bike-run) will be done in pursuit-style, with athletes starting based on their times from the previous two rounds; the first person to finish wins. The final will also feature a repechage round, where the best-placed of those who failed to win heats will compete for a place in the final.
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Super League Arena Games 2023: Who to watch
The Super League matches typically bring together the best in short-course, and the 2023 Arena Games are no exception. There will be between 16-20 female athletes and 16-20 male athletes racing the events in Montreal and Sursee. The Finals, in London, will see that number grow to 30 female and 30 male athletes. For now, we only know the roster for Montreal, and judging by the looks of things, it’s going to be a fast (and fun) day of racing.
In the men’s event, look for American speedster Chase McQueen, who has been making his mark on the Super League circuit lately. He’ll be joined by the likes of Olympic medalist Henri Schoeman and Aurelien Raphael, who picked up a bronze medal at last year’s Arena Games in Rotterdamn. But when it comes to the headliners, most people will likely tune in to the Montreal race to see long-course workhorse Lionel Sanders try his hand at the lung-busting short-course format. He won’t be alone in his pursuit: fellow long-course specialist and Canadian Jackson Laundry will be toeing the line in Montreal, too.
In the women’s race, American Gina Sereno is getting a lot of hype, and deservedly so – the former collegiate track star has been showing she’s got major multisport skills, picking up multiple podium finishes across America’s Triathlon Cup and World Triathlon Cup races. She’ll be joined by fellow Continental Cup racer Sara Roel and a truckload of fresh faces on the professional racing circuit, including Canadian Kira Gupta-Baltazar, who won the 2021 NCAA overall title.
How to watch the Super League Arena Games
The finals for every race will be broadcast across multiple platforms, including YouTube and Super League TV. Super League maintains a detailed listing of broadcasts by geography here.
On every streaming option, the race’s 2.5-hour feed will be streamed with English commentary and international graphics, along with on-screen data from Zwift and Garmin. A 45-minute highlight package will also be available on these channels the Monday after each race.
2023 Super League Arena Games Races
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