Article by Ionuţ Coman – Published Saturday, October 18, 2025 23:56 / Updated Sunday, October 19, 2025 00:10
Carol Popa told how she experienced the race at the World Junior Triathlon Championships, where she took 8th place.
Almost 15,000 kilometers from home, a 19-year-old kid achieved the best performance in history for the Romanian triathlon at an edition of the World Championships.
Carol Popa finished the sprint event held in the picturesque Australian city of Wollongong in 8th place, after being close to the top positions until the end. The Constantinian crossed the finish line just 15 seconds from the podium, but things could have been different if a small error had not intervened in the second transition.
Carol Popa and the performance from “the end of the world”
“It was a very tough race, but I'm glad that from the beginning to the end I was very sure of myself, I had confidence and everything worked out as it should have. The only mistake I could say I made is that I didn't manage to get a little further in the front in the second transition, which cost me a few seconds. Those 5 seconds could change the race, because I was close to the podium.
If I got out of the second transition faster, I didn't have to push hard to catch up with those in front, I had more resources at the end and maybe the story will change. Next time I will try to orient myself better. Being the only athlete from Romania, it was more difficult for me to sit in the leading platoon, because the other athletes each had a colleague next to them and they sat grouped, one next to the other.
Every time I tried to get to the front, there was no room for me, they cut my face and it was real madness in the platoon. The running was the hardest part, because he ran hard, to the maximum, from the beginning to the end”, said the athlete from CSM Constanța
The objective is to qualify for the Olympic Games in Los Angeles
The obtained result gives him even more confidence in the prospect of the long-term fight for qualification for the Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
“This performance is very important to me because by being able to finish 8th at the World Championships, I realized that I am among the best juniors in the world.
It's something that motivates me even more to train for the coming year and I know I can fight for the podium at any competition. If I keep working and do the training properly in the future, it will certainly get better and better and I will be able to win races of this level”, says Carol with confidence.
He was impressed by the atmosphere in Australia, one of the top triathlon countries in the world: “It's completely different, a different organization, a much higher stake. Everyone comes, seniors, youth and juniors, we know each other and there's a different vibe at these races. There are a lot of supporters, very vocal”.
56 minutes and 4 secondsis the time Carol Popa covered the 750 meters swimming, 20 kilometers on the bike and 5 kilometers running
For the athlete trained by Cristi Doicescu, a new challenge is approaching, also far from home, but in South America, in November. “There are two stages of the World Cup in Chile, one week apart from each other. Being in very good shape, I hope to take leading places and collect important points for qualifying for the Olympic Games in Los Angeles,” says Carol.
