World Triathlon

The International Triathlon Union (ITU) has released bid information for cities and National Federations wishing to host the 2014 ITU World Triathlon Grand Final. 

The bid process opened on 15 July 2012, and the election of the host city will take place on 18 October 2012 in Auckland. The announcement of the host city will follow on 23 October 2012 at the ITU Congress in Auckland.

Launched in 2009, the ITU World Triathlon Series is the premier triathlon series in the world. The world’s top triathletes compete head-to-head in some of the iconic cities, vying for the World Championship titles as well as a total prize purse of over $2 million USD. In 2012, the series will touch down in Sydney, San Diego, Madrid, Kitzbühel, Hamburg, Stockholm, Yokohama and concludes in Auckland with the Grand Final. London, Great Britain is the host city for the 2013 Grand Final. Unlike other sports, triathlon turns each city centre into its competition venue, offering an unrivalled chance to showcase the city to millions around the world.

The ITU World Triathlon Grand Final is the premier event in this multi-round world championship series, where the 2014 ITU World Champions will be crowned. It also includes the world championship races in the junior and Under23 categories, Paratriathlon, which will debut in the Paralympics at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games, and thousands of athletes racing in the age-group world titles, as well as the annual ITU Congress with delegates from more than 140 countries.

Marisol Casado, ITU President and IOC Member, said:
“Each host city has so far played a crucial role in taking triathlon to a worldwide audience, and helping build the series to where it is today, the premier triathlon series in the world. But we also strongly believe that hosting these events shows a great benefit to each host city, and in particular the Grand Final can have a significant impact on the city’s image, regional economy and social legacy.”

Overall, the Grand Final creates an instant economic impact by bringing in more than 8,000 international tourists to the host city, consisting of over 3,000 competitors, support teams, officials, family and friends. With the addition of local races, the number of competitors can swell to 10,000. It offers host cities the opportunity to present their event to millions of TV audiences across the world, attract thousands of international guests and race participants and stage ITU’s Congress. International television will consist of live broadcasts and a customised 52-minute highlight show as well as international news distribution and live internet coverage.

Media coverage has significantly increased each year of the series, for example last year, TV broadcast time increased from 556 hours in 2010 to 917 hours in 2011. The TV contacts per event rose from 2.26 to 4.59 billion. The series was entirely covered live by 17 broadcast partners and the live feed and magazine shows were distributed to 42 TV partners who broadcasted into more than 160 countries. A new website design also saw significant growth, and the www.triathlonlive.tv web page gathered an extra 700,000 page impressions in 2011. Through this exposure, the Grand Final host city will have the opportunity to showcase itself as it will become a major international competition venue.

Cities wishing to host the Grand Final are required to submit bid documents in conjunction with their respective National Federations.

All bid documents must be submitted by September 1, 2012. Click here to read the 2014 ITU World Triathlon Grand Final bid document

The ITU Triathlon World Championships were first held in Avignon, France in 1989. In 2009, the championships were revamped, expanding the former single-day World Championship race into an exciting multi-city global series, culminating with the ITU Triathlon World Championship Grand Final. Athletes earn points throughout the season and those who win the overall series are crowned the ITU Triathlon World Champions.

Grand Final Host Cities since 2009:
2009: Gold Coast, Australia
2010: Budapest, Hungary
2011: Beijing, China
2012: Auckland, New Zealand
2013: London, Great Britain

To read more about the ITU World Triathlon Series, please click here