1. Only Taylor-Brown can stop Zafares: Few would begrudge the genial American a world title, especially after running Vicky Holland so close in 2018. And after her fourth win in five starts it looks – provided she stays fit to the finish of the Grand Final – that Britain’s Georgia Taylor-Brown is the only triathlete with a chance of toppling her. A Taylor-Brown triumph is the longest of shots, though. Her best route would be to win in both Hamburg and Edmonton to reduce the deficit to 286 points ahead of Lausanne’s finale. Another win in the Swiss resort would then gain an extra 1,250 points, but that would still only be enough if Zafares slipped as low as fifth – something that has only happened once to the 30-year-old in her last 12 races.

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