ALGHERO, Italy – One month after earning the first World Triathlon Championship Series podium of his career, Canada’s Charles Paquet continued his impressive start to the 2026 season with a fifth-place finish at the World Triathlon Championship Series event in Alghero, Italy on Saturday.
The 28-year-old from Port Cartier, Que. has now backed up his breakthrough bronze-medal performance in Samarkand, Uzbekistan with another top-five result against the world’s best triathletes, further cementing his status among the elite contenders on the WTCS circuit.
Toeing the line against a highly competitive field that included reigning world champions, Olympic medallists and several of the sport’s top-ranked athletes, Paquet was in the podium hunt until the final lap of the run, clocking a time of 1:45:59.
“I’m very happy with my race. I had a good swim. I came out close to the front. The bike was pretty hard. The course was very technical and the road bumpy so you had to be careful with that. It was very hot and I felt the heat on the bike. I was happy to be at the front,” said Paquet.
Paquet came out of the 1.5-kilometre swim course in Porto di Alghero in seventh spot. Bolting through transition, he hopped onto the bike and settled into the middle of the lead pack for the nine-lap, 40-kilometre course, that winded its way along the coastline.
“I had a tough transition. My legs were a bit dead the first lap on the run, so it felt very hard, but I paced myself because I knew it was going to be a long 10K,” said Paquet, who finished just four seconds off the podium.
Coming out of second transition in 21st spot, Paquet surged up to fourth place after the first of four laps on the 10-kilometre run.
“I caught up to the group who was fighting for third place. I was starting to feel good on the run. I had good legs and felt really strong, but I just didn’t have the speed to join the other guys,” added Paquet. “The last finish kick is not my strength, so I got passed from a couple of guys. I’m still happy with my fifth place. I’ve been pretty consistent and it is another good result.”
Portugal’s Vasco Vilaca claimed the victory with a time of 1:45:16. Brazil’s Miguel Hidalgo was second at 1:45:35, while Ricardo Batista, also of Portugal, ran to the bronze-medal step of the podium with a combined time of 1:45:45.
Paquet’s result continues a remarkable stretch of racing for the Canadian Olympian. In April, he captured bronze in Samarkand to become just the second Canadian man to stand on a WTCS podium, joining Tyler Mislawchuk. The result was a long-awaited breakthrough after making steady progress in his continued development that saw him place 13th at the 2024 Olympics.
Mislawchuk (Oak Bluff, Man.) also had another solid result on Saturday. The three-time Olympian raced in the middle of the field of 55 athletes until the run where he demonstrated his fitness charging up to 16th place (1:47:17).
Desirae Ridenour was the lone Canadian in the women’s race. Making her first World Triathlon Championship Series start of 2026, the Cowichan Bay, B.C. resident finished mid-field in 23rd at 1:59:45.
Cassandre Beaugrand, of France, won the women’s race with a time of 1:53:49.
Complete World Triathlon Championship Series Alghero Results
