Four 2012 Olympic Games Medalists Highlight Omegawave World Triathlon San Diego Start List

Four of the six medalists from last summer's Olympic Games - including the entire men's podium - highlight the start list for next month's Omegawave World Triathlon San Diego, slated for April 18-20, in Mission Beach, Calif.

London 2012 men's gold medalist Alistair Brownlee of Great Britain, silver medalist Javier Gomez of Spain and bronze-medal winner Jonathan Brownlee of Great Britain are all currently on the Omegawave World Triathlon San Diego start list, which was released earlier this week. Australian bronze medalist Erin Densham headlines the women's competitors.

In all, 53 (29 men, 24 women) of the 110 athletes who competed at the 2012 London Olympic Games - including American stars Sarah Groff (Hanover, N.H.), Gwen Jorgensen (St. Paul, Minn.) and Hunter Kemper (Colorado Springs, Colo.) - are currently slated to toe the starting line in San Diego.

The women's race is set for 3 p.m. Friday, April 19, followed by the men at 4 p.m. Saturday, April 20. Great Britain's Jonathan Brownlee is the defending men's champion, while Densham is the top returning women's finisher on the start list after placing second in San Diego a year ago.

The winners of the Omegawave World Triathlon San Diego will claim a $20,000 prize purse, and the event's top 20 men and top 20 women will earn prize money.

Groff, who was fourth at the London Olympic Games, and Jorgensen, will be joined in the field by fellow Americans Anna Battiata (San Diego, Calif.), Moka Best (Salt Lake City, Utah), Brianna Blanchard (Boston, Mass.), Kaitlin Donner (Gainesville, Fla.), Beijing Olympian Julie Ertel (Irvine, Calif.) and Katie Hursey (Hampstead, Md.). Visit triathlon.org for a complete women's start list.

Joining the four-time Olympian Kemper, who was fifth in San Diego a year ago, in the men's race will be U.S. athletes Matt Chrabot (Virginia Beach, Va.), William Huffman (Colleyville, Texas), Joe Maloy (Wildwood Crest, N.J.), Jarrod Shoemaker (Clermont, Fla.) and Tommy Zaferes (Santa Cruz, Calif.). Visit triathlon.org for a complete men's start list.

The elite start lists are subject to change until race week.

One of just eight International Triathlon Union (ITU) World Triathlon Series events around the globe in 2013, the second edition of the Omegawave World Triathlon San Diego will feature an Olympic-caliber elite field competing on a historic course adjacent to the birthplace of the sport.

In addition to the elite and paratriathlon races, the Omegawave World Triathlon San Diego features top-flight Olympic- and sprint-distance age-group races, as well as an Olympic-distance relay and an aquabike event, offering amateurs the chance to compete in the same epic venue as the world's best athletes. The 2013 Omegawave World Triathlon San Diego also serves as the USA Triathlon Club National Championships.

Nearly 2,100 amateur triathletes from ages 14-to-90-years-old from 42 states and 16 countries competed at the 2012 World Triathlon San Diego. Visit sandiego.triathlon.org for more information on the 2013 event.