The Brisbane-born athlete, 33, stormed to a stunning victory in London last month after taking ‘pushing the pain barrier’ to the next level by completing the event with a hamstring tear. After bouncing back from a disappointing race in San Francisco the Australian crossed the tape ahead of Britain’s Kat Matthews, but she’s not underestimating the task at hand with a competitive field to conquer. “This is the first time myself, Taylor Knibb and Anne Haug have been on the startline together,” she said.
“But there’s no special preparation thinking about other athletes, I need to do what I can to be at my best. “I have put in a huge amount of work since London to try and go up a level from there so I hope that puts me in stead to face those women because they are obviously exceptionally strong. “It’s going to be a huge challenge but I think it adds a really exciting dynamic to the race because we are all different athletes and bring different strengths to the course.
” Gentle has two T100 wins to her name this season, while Knibb claimed Team USA silver in the Mixed Relay at the Olympics in Paris, meaning it will be a star-studded line up this time out. Haug is the defending champion and will be looking to bounce back from an unlucky exit in the bike phase of the World Championships in Nice last weekend due to a flat tyre. The 41-year-old pre-race favourite was forced to retire just 200m into the cycling section but Gentle believes that will make the German.