Sunday in the Czech town of Karlovy Vary sees the latest stop on the transglobal 2018 World Cup tour, and ahead of the action, six of the podium contenders gave their verdicts on the course, their hopes for the race, and what it might take to seize the gold and finish out front of another two incredibly competitive fields.

Vendula Frintova (CZE) returns to the starting line up on home turf eager to put a difficult few months behind her and deliver a strong performance in front of her fans. “I’ve not been doing so great over the last couple of months so i’ve been training hard and we’ll see what happens. The weather looks like it will be another cold race which is definitely not my favourite conditions but the course suits the all-rounders and the strongest on the day will win. The season started well but I had some health issues for three or four months so I want to finish strong again like I did last year.”

Jonas Schomburg (GER) has been racing hard in 2018 and would love to record a World Cup podium in Karlovy Vary. “It has been a difficult season, i’ve been racing a lot but haven’t always felt that fresh for the races but i’ve changed up my training and i’m looking forward to the race. Last year I finished fourth so this year i’d like to get a podium. I know the course, it is one of the best on the circuit but its tough, so I want a good swim and strong bike and pull it together with a strong run. My grandparents are from here so that’s a bit of an added buzz for me.”

Barbara Riveros (CHI) has returned to the ITU circuit in style and is ready to build up to another Olympic qualification campaign. “It was really nice to get back into the points in Lausanne. I know I made a few mistakes in T1 but rode as hard as I could and then the first 5km of the run was a real struggle but over the last 4km I found the strength to finish fourth. My brother was here last year and told me its a really interesting course. It looks like the weather will be chilly but its a race that will show the strength of the athletes and the city is beautiful so i’m really happy to be here and hopefully can go even further than I did in Lausanne.”

Jorik Van Egdom (NED) has been on an upward trajectory across the season and is hoping he can convert all his hard work in training. “I finished 13th in Astana which felt good and the year has only got better from there really. I’ve trained a lot, and it is paying off, so I feel good. This is a serious course, quite hilly and technical on the bike, but I like serious racing so that’s good. I’m not going into this with any specific expectations but I want it to be the best race of the season and it would be nice to get another top 10.”

Laura Lindemann (GER) has set herself up and is fully prepared for the inimitable Karlovy Vary challenge. “This is an easy place for me to get to from home but its a hard race, so I’ll have to try and get into it. The season has gone quite well and i was really happy to podium in Hamburg and apart from the crash the European Championships also went well, so i’ll be pushing hard again and will give it my best.”

Alessandro Fabian (ITA) returns with good memories of the small Czech spa town. “My expectations aren’t that high as im coming in straight from Montreal but its a challenge. I finished second here last year so fingers are crossed! It is good to have a hard, technical course like this but there are strong swimmers so there could be a breakaway waiting to happen.

The full starting line ups can be seen here