Luis and Parker win World Championship crowns for Bahrain

Vincent Luis and Lauren Parker of Bahrain Endurance 13 etched their names into history this weekend in Lausanne, taking home world championship titles in triathlon and paratriathlon. Luis became the first Frenchman to win the ITU triathlon world title since the inception of the six-race World Triathlon Series in 2009, while Parker became the ITU Paratriathlon World Championship.

Luis had previously won the junior world title in 2008 and ended 2017 and 2018 strong winning the Grand Final races, so taking the world title home was his top priority this year. His consistent performance across the World Triathlon Series this year propelled him to the top of the WTS points leaderboard. He sealed the win with a Top 5 finish at the Grand Final.

While he had positioned himself well through the 1.5-kilometer swim, fierce competition alongside the likes of Mario Mola and Bahrain Endurance 13 teammate Javier Gomez kept competitors bunched up throughout the 40-kilometer bike ride. On the run, Kristian Blummenfelt broke away from the pack early in final 10-kilometer run as Mola and Luis ran together.

In the final kilometers, Mola broke away from his training partner to move up into second behind Blummenfelt as Fernando Alarza and Gustav Iden shot forward into third and fourth. Luis settled for fifth, which was more than enough to cement his position atop the series standings.

Less than two years after she made her paratriathlon debut, Lauren Parker holds aloft her first paratriathlon world title for Australia on the back of a perfect day of swim, bike, and run -- and more than a year of hard work training and overcoming health hurdles, including spinal surgery just eight weeks before racing in Yokohama in May.