Kiwis Ready to Defend the House: Wild and Smith Lead Local Charge at Taupo

Look, as an Aussie, it pains me to say this, but the Kiwis might just have something special brewing in Taupo.

Let's start with the elephant in the room - Hayden Wild's casual drop at yesterday's press conference about targeting a 65-minute run split. That's the kind of number that makes you spill your flat white. For context, that's basically short-course pace over a half marathon after 90km of New Zealand's finest hills. Either Wild's been into the crazy juice or he knows something we don't.

"If I blow, I blow, but I gave it a good crack," Wild shrugged, channeling that classic Kiwi understatement. The double Olympic medallist (bronze in Tokyo, silver in Paris - not that he's counting) has only done two 70.3s in his life. But when one of those was a dominant win in Melbourne, you tend to pay attention.

Then there's Kyle Smith, Taupo's favorite son, who's basically treating the local roads like his personal playground. He's already won here twice, including that 2019 qualifier where he left a young Hayden Wild in his wake. Now they're both back, a bit older, a lot faster, and ready to give the locals something to really cheer about.

"You can't move for Triathlon in this town," Smith grinned at the press conference, and he's not wrong. Taupo's about to see its population double with over 6,200 athletes descending on the place. That's like cramming the entire Gold Coast triathlon scene into one small Kiwi town. Good luck getting a morning coffee, folks.

The dark horse in this Kiwi convoy? Old mate Braden Currie. Yeah, he's playing down his chances faster than a Wellingtonian dismissing good weather, but don't let that fool you. The crafty veteran's sitting pretty for a top-10 finish in the Pro Series standings, which comes with the kind of payday that makes the flight from Wanaka worth it.

But here's where it gets interesting. Defending champ Rico Bogen's looking mighty comfortable on that top step, and Leo Bergere's brought his Olympic bronze medal along for motivation. Chuck in Belgium's Jelle Geens and Italy's Gregory Barnaby (currently leading the Pro Series), and suddenly this party's got more talent than an All Blacks training session.

The course? It's proper racing territory. None of that pancake-flat stuff you get in other world champs. The bike course is throwing enough curves to make a cricket bowler jealous, and the run... well, let's just say Wild's 65-minute target is looking more ambitious by the minute.

What makes this extra spicy is the cultural significance. The local iwi have blessed this race, literally and figuratively. As Smith pointed out, these waters are sacred - this isn't just another world championship, it's a privilege to race here. The fact that two local boys have a genuine shot at winning? That's the kind of story that transcends sport.

Sunday's going to be proper fireworks and not just because of the pre-dawn start time. If either Wild or Smith pulls this off, the post-race celebrations are going to be legendary. And let's be honest - as much as it hurts my Green and Gold heart to admit it, I wouldn't bet against them.