PARIS OLYMPICS: HONG KONG TRIATHLETE JASON NG EXPECTS RACE TO QUALIFY WILL GO ‘DOWN TO THE WIRE’

With three races of the 2024 Asia Triathlon Cup to go, Ng and Kazakhstan's Ayan Beisenbayev are separated by just 70 points
But qualification rules means Ng needs podium finish to improve his standing while Kazakh rival just needs to come in top six

Hong Kong triathlete Jason Ng Tai-long said he would thrive under the pressure of a Paris Olympics qualification battle expected to "go down to the wire".

The race to reach France enters its final leg this weekend, and with only one spot left for Asian triathletes it comes down to a straight fight between Ng and Kazakhstan's Ayan Beisenbayev, with the Hongkonger leading by 70 points.

On Saturday, Ng will jump into the water in Taizhou, in mainland China, for the first of the three races in the 2024 Asia Triathlon Cup before the Olympic qualifying window closes next month.

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The other two races are in China's Lianyungang and Burabay, Kazakhstan on May 18 and 25, respectively.

However, the complexity of qualification means Ng can only improve his current score if he earns a podium finish, but his Kazakh rival only needs to come in the top six to narrow the gap.

"There are three more races left in the qualification period where we'll still be racing head to head, it's definitely going to come down to the wire," Ng said.

"It gives you something else to think about, besides just racing hard, you've got to be watching where he is, where his teammates are and be a bit more tactical in the races."

Hong Kong triathlon head coach Andrew Wright told the Post this week he would be rolling out his strongest team of Robin Elg, Mark Yu Shing-him and Chan Yui-fung for Saturday's race to give Ng all the support he needs.

For the final two races, Chan will be replaced by Olympian Oscar Coggins, who is set to make his first official appearance since his "DNF" at the Asian Games last September.

"But it is also very stressful, the last month was very hard making sure I'm training hard, recovering well and not getting injured," Ng said.

"But yeah, [the pressure is] definitely pushing me on, you know, making sure I stay focused, but I'll be happy when it's over."

Last month, Ng finished sixth in the 2024 Asia Triathlon Championships in Hatsukaichi, Japan and was fourth at the 2024 Asia Triathlon Sprint Championships in Dexing, Jiangxi province.

"It was good, not great, but not bad as well," Ng said. "Luckily, I managed to finish ahead of my rival [Beisenbayev], so that was good.

"Also, two weeks prior, we had the sprint champs in China which again, I finished fourth and he finished 20th. So that was that was a good result for me, in terms of the Olympics."