http://www.triathlon.org/news/ en merryn.sherwood@gmail.com Copyright 2013 2013-06-19T07:56:27+00:00 http://www.triathlon.org/news/article/itu_opens_bid_process_for_2014_world_triathlon_series http://www.triathlon.org/site/itu_opens_bid_process_for_2014_world_triathlon_series#When:06:49:57Z ITU has opened bidding for the 2014 World Triathlon Series to all National Federations and cities interested in hosting one of the eight flagship events. The elected cities will join Hamburg, London, Yokohama and Auckland as confirmed hosts of the popular race series. Edmonton, Canada will also host the 2014 ITU Triathlon World Championship Grand Final. “With ever increasing media exposure and electric racing, the ITU World Triathlon Series is a pinnacle focus of the triathlon community,” said ITU President and IOC Member Marisol Casado. “The sport’s growing popularity provides cities with the opportunity to gain global exposure and create a positive economic impact, while promoting a healthy lifestyle to its citizens.” The ITU World Triathlon Series is the premier triathlon series in the world and features the top triathletes racing head-to-head in cities around the globe. In addition to competing for the title of World Champion, athletes vie for a total prize purse of approximately $2-million USD, the greatest cumulative prize money in triathlon. The series is comprised of Olympic and sprint distance events, with one race also selected to host the Triathlon Mixed Relay World Championships.  Hosting a WTS event offers cities the opportunity to showcase themselves to millions of people via an international television audience in addition to attracting thousands of international guests and race participants. The 2012 season saw record high participation and an 18% increase in television exposure resulting from more than 1,000 hours of broadcast. Each race will again be broadcast live to an international audience, in addition to offering a 52-minute highlight show as well as live internet coverage, social media exposure and worldwide news distribution. Cities interested in hosting a World Triathlon Series event must submit bid documents in conjunction with their respective National Federations by 10 July 2013. Click here to download the bid document Events, World Championship Series, Federations, Media Centre, Press Release, Multisports, Regions, 2013-05-22T06:49:57+00:00 http://www.triathlon.org/news/article/history_made_at_national_duathlon http://www.triathlon.org/site/history_made_at_national_duathlon#When:22:47:14Z Even though there is no such thing as World and National Records in Triathlons and Duathlons as each Race course is different, there are certain Benchmarks. In Trinidad those Benchmarks are a finish time of two hours for a standard duathlon and a one-hour finish time for the juniors in the Sprint distance, which is half of the Standard. While Ancil Greene reclaimed his title as National Champion as he came first in the standard distance, he just missed this Benchmark with a time of 2hrs 2mins 49sec. The new National Junior Champion Avinash Anamalay on the other Hand took matters in his hand and with an impressive sprint and his eyes glued to the clock in front of him he managed to finish in a time of 59mins and 36seconds. He has with that become the first Trinidadian Duathlete to crack the one Hour Benchmark. The pride was obvious on his face and shared in the finish area with his Teammates, Coach and Family. The race was started a few minutes late by the Mayor of Port of Spain Louis Lee Sing, who enjoyed the Company of these athletes and had some encouraging words to give them on their way. The course took the athletes along the fence on the northeastern side of the Savannah as far as Jerningham Avenue to come back, pass the Transition Area and to the western turn just before the hollows. After the juniors did that lap twice and the seniors four times it was time to hit the road with the bike…accompanied by police motorbikes the Athletes set out and did their Laps around the Savannah. After less than an Hour Avinash, like he already had used up all the Products from GNC he found in his Race Kit reached at the finish. Behind him was Kent Costa in 1:09:24 who started in the 40-49 Years Age Group in second place and Youngster in the Juniors Joshua Ho with an impressive 1:09:49 . In the Female Junior Category Rene Chin Lee seized her first National Title as Duathlete in a time of 1:17:56. This is her second title for the month as she also has won the Tri The Spice Triathlon on the Easter weekend. Behind her was Chelsea Mohammed in 1:32:29. In the Standard Distance the first one to emerge at the finish line was Ancil Greene in a time of 2:02:49 followed by Kirk Hearn with 2:06:59 in second Place and Jonah Camps in third place with a time of 2:07:53. The women’s race was dominated by veteran Diane Henderson in 2:47:04, she added yet another national title onto the long list she already has. Diane also has given the federation a trophy for the first... Federations, Regions, Americas, 2013-05-15T22:47:14+00:00 http://www.triathlon.org/news/article/womens_committee_award_of_excellence_selection_process_opens http://www.triathlon.org/site/womens_committee_award_of_excellence_selection_process_opens#When:12:03:53Z Following the inaugural year of this award, we would like to invite candidate nominations for this season as well to honor an individual who inspire us with his/her drive, leadership, creativity and commitment to advancing women’s involvement in triathlon. The award will be presented to the chosen recipient at the Grand Final of the World Triathlon Series in London in September. Candidates must complete and submit a ‘Nomination Form’ along with all accompanying documentation. Nomination forms are due by June 15th. The Nomination Form must be signed by the individual endorsing the nomination. The President or Secretary General (or equivalent) may sign on behalf of the National Federation. Nominations for meritorious candidates will be carried forward and remain active in the review process for up to three (3) years. Award eligibility criteria Women and men are eligible to receive this prestigious Award of Excellence. To be considered, individuals may be: - A triathlete (if elite, retired from active competition); - An administrative leader; - A coach; and/ or - A builder (including, but not limited to, event organizer, official, communications or marketing specialist). We look forward to receiving many nominations! Federations, Regions, 2013-04-24T12:03:53+00:00 http://www.triathlon.org/news/article/triathlon_malta_at_the_etus_presidents_meeting_extraordinary_congress_in_wa http://www.triathlon.org/site/triathlon_malta_at_the_etus_presidents_meeting_extraordinary_congress_in_wa#When:20:05:01Z Triathlon Malta’s President, Cyprian Dalli has recently partecipated in the European Traithlon Union’s Presidents’ Meeting, held in the Polish capital, Warsaw between 15 and 18 February. The main reason for this meeting was the submission by Triathlon Malta of a Youth Development Project to the ETU. The Project was well-received by the screening technical commission set up to evaluate all the proposals received and is committed to help the Malta Triathlon Federation is establishing and executing this plan. During the weekend, the President also partecipated in Extraordinary Congress whereby a new Constitution for the European Triathlon Union was proposed and discussed. A vote was taken and the new constitution was unanimously approved by the congress. This weekend as the perfect opportunity for Triathlon Malta in sustaining its established contacts and well as building new networking opportunities with the European Federations present at these meetings. The meetings well held in the splendid Olympic Palace in Warsaw, Federations, Regions, Europe, 2013-04-06T20:05:01+00:00 http://www.triathlon.org/news/article/applications_for_team_itu_2013 http://www.triathlon.org/site/applications_for_team_itu_2013#When:11:24:59Z Applications for Team ITU 2013 are now being accepted. The primary objective of Team ITU is to provide support, resources and expertise to athletes from emerging/developing National Federations with the potential to compete at Rio 2016 and to compete at a World Cup level, while at the same time increasing the number of coaches from emerging/developing National Federations gaining experience in the preparation and support of athletes competing at a World Cup level. Project Outline Emerging/Developing National Federations are invited to submit applications.   Applications for athletes with the potential to compete in Rio de Janeiro 2016 that have already proven themselves at an ITU Elite, U23, Junior World Championship, World Cup or Continental Cup level will be considered.   Three (3) World Cup events have been named as the Team ITU events.   At each of these events a full support team (coaches, bike mechanic and physiotherapist) will be on hand for the athletes selected.   The group will be accommodated as a ‘team’ and supported as such pre, during and post event. Target Group The target group will be athletes from emerging/developing National Federations who have already shown a high level of competence in World Cup and/or Continental Cup events and are looking to qualify for Rio 2016 but need support in order to do so. Qualification Criteria Athletes must be registered with their National Federations and have shown the ability to race at a high level.   The athletes nominated should be committed to competing in the long term and have the Olympic Games as an ultimate objective.   While there will be four (4) male and four (4) female slots available at each event athletes will be selected at the discretion of the ITU Development and in some cases not all the slots or more slots will be filled. Time Line Applications must be submitted in writing to Zita Csovelyak and each applicant must also be entered by their National Federation for the respective World Cup events with ITU via the online entry method by the closing date for entry for the specific event they are applying for. A National Federation may nominate no more than two (2) male and two (2) females. If more than one nominated by gender, the list of nomination has to be in preference order. Deadlines for Application submission Event                            ... Athletes, Federations, Regions, Sport Development, 2013-03-28T11:24:59+00:00 http://www.triathlon.org/news/article/brad_beven_to_be_introduced_to_australias_hall_of_fame http://www.triathlon.org/site/brad_beven_to_be_introduced_to_australias_hall_of_fame#When:11:33:53Z North Queensland schoolboy sports star Brad Beven (AUS) would run four kilometres to and from his beloved Miriwinni State School every day carrying a brick in each hand. The kids on the school bus would hang out the window and give him a hard time, laughing at the boy running along the road as they enjoyed their daily ride to class. But this 10-year-old farm boy who would one day conquer the world, took the Miriwinni school motto of “Success Follows Effort” literally. At the suggestion of his dad Ray, Brad added the two bricks – one in each hand - to build himself up when he set out every morning to run to school. “I was a little on the puny side as a kid and dad suggested I run with bricks to help build myself up,” recalled Beven this week when he looked back over a stellar career in the sport of triathlon. “The kids would give me a hard time, yelling at me out of the bus windows but later they’d say to me we never realised just how good you would be.” Now there is a sign that welcomes travelers to Miriwinni (a little sub-tropical haven some 65 kilometres south of Cairns) “The Home of World Triathlon Champion Brad Beven.” The puny kid went on to become a legend in the sport – winning four consecutive World Cup Series titles between 1992 and 1995 and three silver medals in the ITU World Championships in the 90s – amongst a host of amazing achievements at home and abroad. The 1990 ITU World Championships in Orlando Florida was very much Australia’s day with Greg Welch taking the gold medal from Beven and Stephen Foster taking the bronze in only the second ever World Championship. Beven was in the mix again in 1994, finishing with the silver behind the aggressive Brit Spencer Smith before taking silver again to another Brit, Simon Lessing in 1995. But it was satisfaction of his consistency through the World Cup circuits that would bring great satisfaction to Beven. “We would race 30 times a year and the World Cup winner would be the most consistent for the year and that was satisfying for me,” said Beven. The Miriwinni school boasts, “Nearby you will find lovely shady beaches, superb rainforests and crystal clear freshwater creeks, not to forget the excellent fishing spots” and Beven explored it all, training by himself without a coach and taking his talents to the world. “Looking back I wouldn’t change a thing,” said Beven, “I would always run up and down chasing Dad’s tractor through the cane fields... Athletes, Federations, Regions, Oceania, 2013-03-21T11:33:53+00:00 http://www.triathlon.org/news/article/itu_announce_record_prize_money_for_2013_season http://www.triathlon.org/site/itu_announce_record_prize_money_for_2013_season#When:13:01:54Z On the heels of the World Cup season opener in Mooloolaba, ITU today announced that it will have the largest prize purse ever for the 2013 World Triathlon Series and World Cup events.  The total prize money for the World Triathlon series has increased by $182,000 (all USD), with the bonus pool up $70,000 this year to a total of $670,000. The increase makes the World Triathlon Series the richest series in triathlon with over $2.25 million dollars up for grabs. The World Cup events also received a sizeable boost, with an extra $280,800 allotted for the eight-race circuit, bringing the total sum for the two series to just under three million dollars. “Not only have we increased the overall prize funds for athletes this year,” said ITU President and IOC Member Marisol Casado, “We have also deepened the pool of how many athletes will receive the prize money at World Cup and World Triathlon Series events to encourage National Federations to send athletes to races.” Notably, the Auckland and Yokohama World Triathlon Series races will now award prize money to the top 30 finishers, as opposed to the top 20 as in previous years. Likewise, the top 20 athletes at the Ishigaki, Huatulco, Edmonton, Tongyeong, Cozumel and Guatape World Cup races will take home prize money, where as previously only the top 10 received compensation. The PruHealth London Grand Final will offer a $280,000 purse to the winners, while the ITU World Champions will each take home an extra $10,000 from the bonus pool. An additional five triathletes will also vie for the bonus pool, as it will now include the top 35 athletes, as opposed to the previous top 30. However, while money has increased, race primes will not be offered at events this year.  The 2013 ITU World Triathlon Series opens on 6-7 April in Auckland, New Zealand. The series will touch down in eight cities across four continents and the 2013 ITU World Champions will be crowned at the iconic 2012 Olympic course at the Grand Final in London on 11-15 September. Click here for more information on prize money. Athletes, Events, Federations, Media Centre, Press Release, Regions, 2013-03-18T13:01:54+00:00 http://www.triathlon.org/news/article/itu_holds_level_1_coaching_course_in_suriname http://www.triathlon.org/site/itu_holds_level_1_coaching_course_in_suriname#When:11:40:59Z Paramaribo, the capital of Suriname (Dutch Guyana), was home to another ITU Level I Coaching Course focused on the development of triathlon in emerging National Federations. This course represented the continuation of the development process initiated in 2012, when an ITU Level I Technical Officials Course took place in Suriname. With more structured races and more participants interested in triathlon, it was important to encourage local sports coaches to get more involved in the sport and provide them specific knowledge on triathlon coaching and training through the course, a landmark for triathlon in Suriname. A total of 14 coaches from five different countries (Aruba, Brazil, Puerto Rico, Suriname and Trinidad & Tobago) attended the course presented by ITU Development Facilitator Rodrigo Milazzo over five days. The seminar mixed theoretical and practical sessions tailored to provide the best overall triathlon coaching learning experience for them. Also, the day after the closing of the course, all participants had the opportunity to attend the first national triathlon competition of 2013. All the activities took place at the OASE complex, a local quality club that kindly provided all the facilities necessary for the staging of the course. Caroll Heuvel, president of the Surinamese Triathlon Federation, arranged all the exceptional conditions for the presentation of the course and was very pleased with its effect on their local coaches, projecting a significant outcome for the development of Surinamese Triathlon in the nearby future. ITU will continue its Sport Development activities in the Americas region through PATCO, which has already planned other coaching courses for 2013 that will benefit other continental emerging National Federations. Federations, Regions, Americas, Sport Development, 2013-03-14T11:40:59+00:00 http://www.triathlon.org/news/article/triathlon_malta_joins_the_mediterranean_triathlon_federation http://www.triathlon.org/site/triathlon_malta_joins_the_mediterranean_triathlon_federation#When:11:53:38Z Malta Triathlon Federation has recently submitted a formal application to become affiliated to the Mediterranean Triathlon Federation in a bid to increase cooperation between Triathlon Federations of the Mediterranean states. This co-operation aims to see more development opportunities for triathletes in the region. The President of the Malta Triathlon Federation Cyprian Dalli represented Malta at the recent Elective General Assembly in Athens. “It is indeed an honour for me and the Maltese Federation to be elected on the Executive Board” said Cyprian Dalli, president of the Malta Triathlon Federation. “Joining this Board will enable us to have a say and contribute ideas for the development of triathlon in the Mediterranean region, a region where the sport is registering strong growth numbers”.“A region (the Mediterranean) where the sport is registering strong growth numbers.” Cyprian DalliPresident of the Malta Triathlon Federation One of the major plans of the Mediterranean Triathlon Federation is to organize a bi-annual Mediterranean Triathlon Championships, which the local Federation believes will prove beneficial for Maltese triathletes to be part of. More information on Triathlon in Malta can be obtained by sending an email to maltatriathlon@gmail.com or contacting the President on +356 7903 7933 Federations, Regions, Europe, 2013-02-21T11:53:38+00:00 http://www.triathlon.org/news/article/weekend_race_roundup_february_18_2013 http://www.triathlon.org/site/weekend_race_roundup_february_18_2013#When:09:21:31Z There might be another month until the 2013 ITU World Cup season starts, but triathlon action is already in motion with four ITU continental cups staged over the weekend. Check out these highlights and results from the events. Vimperk ITU Winter Triathlon European Cup The Czech Republic’s own Helena Erbenova and Sarka Grabmullerova impressed on home soil with top finishes in the women’s race. Erbenova blew away the competition, winning with a nearly six-minute advantage. Olga Parfinenko (RUS) crossed over two minutes after Grabmullerova for third. After dominate performances at the ETU Winter Triathlon European Championships last month, Russia kept its winning streak alive in Vimperk, sweeping the top two spots in the men’s race. Pavel Andreev added yet another first place finish to his name after he clocked in first by over a minute in the men’s race. After just missing out on a medal at the European Championships, teammate Evgeny Kirillov claimed silver this weekend. Tomas Jurkovic (SVK) rounded out the podium with a bronze medal. Women’s results Men’s Results Full race recap Cape Town ITU Sprint Triathlon African Cup Rising Dutch star Rachel Klamer started her season out in style with a win at the Cape Town ITU Sprint Triathlon African Cup. After a solid swim and bike, Klamer hammered home on the run with the fastest split by seven seconds to beat out South Africa’s Kate Roberts and Carlyn Fischer. Roberts and Fischer took silver and bronze, respectively. Despite an international start list, South African athletes cleaned up the medal positions, with expert runner Richard Murray claiming gold. Wian Sullwald, who won the 2012 ITU World Championship junior title in Auckland, earned silver in the elite race on Sunday. Compatriot Henri Schoeman used the swim to work out a 17-second lead, which put him in position to take bronze at the sprint race. Women’s Results Men’s Results Roatan ITU Triathlon Pan American Cup Despite exiting the water with a four-minute deficit, Daniela Schoenfeld (GUA) had a monster bike and run to win earn her first ever ITU win. Teammate Anahi Amado also made up significant ground on the bike to earn silver, while Alia Cardinale Villalobos (CRC) took bronze. Olympian Leonardo Chacon picked up a win in the men’s race with the fastest bike and run splits of the day. Americans William Huffman and Gregory Billington, who both swam in the lead pack, completed the podium with silver and bronze,... Events, Continental Cup, Federations, Multisports, Winter Triathlon, Regions, Africa, Americas, Asia, Europe, Oceania, 2013-02-18T09:21:31+00:00