Courtesy: USAT

The Race to Athens elite triathlon series makes its first stop Saturday at the St. Anthony's ITU World Cup Triathlon in St. Petersburg, Fla.

The St. Anthony's Triathlon is celebrating its 20th anniversary, although it is only in its third year as a World Cup and the first as a member of the Race to Athens series.

Top pro triathletes from around the world - including Barb Lindquist of the United States and Chris Hill of Australia, both ranked No. 1 in the world - will converge on the coastal city to try to earn points toward their 2003 world ranking and Olympic qualifying in 2004. They will also be looking for a share of the $80,000 prize purse.

The 2002 St. Anthony's winners, Michellie Jones of Australia and Sylvain Dodet of France, are also on the start list for Saturday.

The St. Anthony's course features a two-lap 1.5k (0.9-mile) swim, a fast, flat and technical nine-lap 40k (24.8-mile) bike course and a four-lap flat 10k (6.2-mile) run. The race will be draft legal.

Heat can also play a part for the athletes, as the women's race starts at noon and the men's race at 2:30 p.m.

The age group race takes off at 7:30 a.m. on Sunday. The race sold out in record time and 2,000 competitors are expected to take part. The St. Anthony's Triathlon is one of the 20 largest in the United States.

Among the stories that could play out at Saturday's races:

Lindquist (Victor, Idaho), ranked No. 1 in the world, will be going for her sixth win in a row this season and looking to improve on her third-place finish at St. Anthony's last year.

Laura Reback (North Palm Beach, Fla.) always makes the St. Anthony's race a family affair. Reback, ranked second in the United States and fifth in the world, is engaged to Australia's Greg Bennett, ranked No. 2 in the world, who will compete in the men's race. Reback's father and brother usually compete in the St. Anthony's amateur race.

Sheila Taormina (Livonia, Mich.) has been training at the USA Triathlon National Training Center in Clermont, Fla., and will be looking to improve on last year's second-place finish at St. Anthony's. She is ranked third in the United States and 12th in the world. She opened her 2003 season with a victory in Honduras.

Hunter Kemper (Longwood, Fla.) finished second at St. Anthony's in 2001, but fell on the bike course last year and placed 32nd. He is still the top-ranked man in the United States and No. 14 in the world. He opened his 2003 season with a victory in Honduras.

Joe Umphenour (Bellevue, Wash.), ranked second in the United States, is competing for the first time since hernia surgery earlier this year. He is looking for his first podium finish at a World Cup.

Brian Fleischmann (Jacksonville, Fla.) dropped out of the St. Anthony's race last year after falling behind on the bike. He is hoping for better things this year in front of a home-state crowd.

The complete start list is available at www.triathlon.org

Other U.S. athletes on the St. Anthony's start list:
Women
* Joanna Zeiger (Baltimore, Md.): Ranked fourth in the United States and 24th in the world. Placed second at St. Anthony's in 2001. A member of the 2000 Olympic triathlon team.
* Becky Gibbs Lavelle (San Jose, Calif.): Married fellow elite triathlete Brian Lavelle in December 2002. Ranked fifth in the United States and 40th in the world
* Susan Williams (Denver, Colo.): Placed ninth at 2002 St. Anthony's. Ranked sixth in the United States and 42nd in the world.
* Susie Gallucci (Hudson, Ohio): Won the St. Anthony's age group race in 2001. Is a captain in the U.S. Marine Corps. Ranked seventh in the United States and 66th in the world.
* Laurie Hug (Ambler, Pa.): Ranked eighth in the United States and 69th in the world
* Alison Hayden (Colorado Springs, Colo.): Ranked 13th in the United States and 103rd in the world
* Monica Caplan (Boulder, Colo.): Ranked 173rd in the world

Men
* Victor Plata (San Luis Obispo, Calif.): Ranked third in the United States, 52nd in the world. The top U.S. men's finisher at St. Anthony's last year in 17th place. Placed ninth at World Cup race in Ishigaki, Japan.
* Mark Fretta (Portland, Ore.): Ranked sixth in the United States, 79th in the world
* Doug Friman (Tucson, Ariz.): Ranked seventh in the United States, 83rd in the world
* Marcel Vifian (Santa Rosa, Calif.): Ranked eighth in the United States, 95th in the world