This weekend, triathletes from all over Germany and the world will head to Sparkasse Challenge Kraichgau, which also doubles as the German National Championships.

On Sunday 15 June 2,300 participants will take on a 1.9 km swim in Hardtsee in Ubstadt-Weiher, a 90 km long, scenic bike course with a total of 1,000m elevation and the final half-marathon, finishing in Bad Schönborn.

In the women's race, defending champion Yvonne van Vlerken (NED) returns to regain her title but she will have previous champion Julia Gaier (GER) and New Zealander Gina Crawford to contend with.

The three top German stars Sebastian Kienle, Andi Böcherer and Horst Reichel are all favourites for the win and German Championship title while Ronnie Schildknecht will be looking to put the Swiss flag on top of the podium in the men's race.

"We look forward to the DTU German Championships 2014 at Challenge Kraichgau," said Matthias Zöll, managing director of the German Triathlon Union. "The elite race is certainly exciting. But I also wish all the best to the many age-group athletes and hope they achieve their goals."

Sparkasse Challenge Kraichgau kicks off on Sunday, June 15th, 2014 at 9:00am at Hardtsee Ubstadt-Weiher, the elite winner is expected at approximately 12:45pm in Bad Schönborn. For more information visit www.challenge-kraichgau.com.