IN THESE TOUGH economic times, many minority sports are inevitably struggling to attract sponsorship.
However, triathlon is one of the few exceptions to the rule — the announcement this week that Vodafone Ireland had renewed its ties to the sport for a further three years was indicative of its increasing popularity.
One of the fastest-growing sports in Ireland, participation has increased by an incredible 120% in the last five years, increasing by 15% in the past 12 months alone and gaining 1,000 new members in the process. Such figures are particularly impressive when taking into account how the first modern triathlon event was believed to have been held at Mission Bay, San Diego, California as recently as 25 September, 1974. Meanwhile, it’s also just been confirmed that Paratriathlon will make its debut at the Paralympic Games at Rio 2016, thereby further consolidating the sport’s popularity.
So what exactly is attracting increasing numbers of people to triathlon, which in its most popular form, is a multiple-stage competition that involves swimming, cycling, and running in immediate succession over a set distance?
Scott Graham of Triathlon Ireland says the success is partially owing to people’s desire to find a unique but accessible way to keep fit and healthy.
“Fitness and health is top of people’s minds,” he says. “With triathlon, there’s such great variety because during the week, you can do a little bit of swimming, a little bit of running, a little bit of biking to suit yourself.
“The sport is also very welcoming to beginners — there’s try-out trials, there’s pool-based triathlons, there’s loads of clubs who are putting on open days, beginners’ sessions and things like that. So I think it’s very accessible.”
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The phenomenal growth over the past few years has encompassed the establishment of 83 clubs in Ireland, 13 of which have only started up over the last year. Demand has increased to the point where there is now at least one club in almost every county in Ireland. The numbers in each club range from 30 to 40 in the smaller counties to roughly 200 in more densely populated areas. Consequently, Triathlon Ireland now has a total membership of 8,450.
Another reason for its burgeoning popularity is the high profile the sport acquired from featuring at the London Olympics two years ago. In particular, the involvement of Derry native Aileen Reid (née Morrison) and Gavin Noble would have boosted interest in the event on these shores.
“There was definitely a spike in interest after some of the elite athlete performances and so on, at the Olympics,” Graham says. “The Olympics on TV was just a spectacular showcase for the sport, so a lot of people got involved [because of it]. There are a lot of young athletes who’ll see that there are Irish athletes actually winning a podium on the world stage, so it’s a sport that Ireland can be really competitive at internationally. From the age side of things, everybody now knows somebody who does triathlon, so it’s probably word of mouth [that's also responsible for its success] — you can drag your mates in to do a race, or a leg in a relay, or something like that.”
JANOS M SCHMIDT
JANOS M SCHMIDT
(Aileen Reid exhausted after her 2014 season opener in Cape Town)
Reid has continued to impress since her Olympic endeavors, finishing the 2013 season ranked eighth in the world after securing a silver medal at the ITU World Triathlon Series Grand Final in London. 2014 has been slightly less successful, as she is currently ranked 28th, though largely because she has competed in just two races all year.
And Graham, who was inspired to take up the sport himself after filming one of its events in Valentia Island a few years back, is confident that many more Irish participants can follow in Reid’s footsteps, emulating and even surpassing her success, especially as the size of the Irish Junior squad has more than doubled in the past year — going from six athletes in 2013 to 17 currently.
“We’ve got a great stock of athletes coming through,” he says. “We also have a couple of young athletes who are going over to try to qualify for the Youth Olympic Games.”
And indeed, the chance to build on previous high-profile successes has already started for some. This weekend, Reid, along with Conor Murphy, Ben Shaw and 21-year-old debutant Russell White got their first opportunity to pick up some of the coveted Olympic qualification points at the Yokohama World Triathlon Series in Japan. The event consists of eight races and culminates in a Grand Final in Canada at the end of the year in front of a global audience of 45 million in 160 countries.
In Yokohama yesterday, Reid ultimately put in a solid display to finish 22nd, while there were mixed fortunes in the men’s race — Shaw took 22nd and White came 48th, though Murphy disappointingly did not finish.
Moreover, in addition to World Triathlon Series and the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow this July, in which Triathlon Ireland are hoping to have six representatives from Northern Ireland racing, the Vodafone National Series will be taking place throughout the year.
These slightly more informal and primarily club-run races can usually involve anywhere between 400 and 2,500 participants . The event, which Graham refers to as “20 of the most competitive and high-profile races in the country” is already immensely popular both at junior and senior level.
“People compete in these very different races, gather up points and then at the end of the year, you can become an overall medalist,” he explains.
“What’s also unique is the five-year age band, so you’re competing against people in your own age band, whether that’s 25-29 or 40-44 and so on. There’s those age categories, as well as the overall prize.”
However, Graham says that despite the considerable success of top athletes such as Aileen Reid, as well as the increasing number of promising youngsters getting involved in the sport, the majority of those that take it up are in the 30-45 age bracket — individuals who are, for the most part, not exactly intent on winning medals and enjoying spectacular success.
“They don’t want to break any records, they’re interested in the health and the social aspect… There are some amazing races around the country in stunning locations, so it’s a great path to be able to compete and take in those nice locations as well.”
How triathlon participation in Ireland grew by 120% in 5 years
Updated at 10.23
IN THESE TOUGH economic times, many minority sports are inevitably struggling to attract sponsorship.
However, triathlon is one of the few exceptions to the rule — the announcement this week that Vodafone Ireland had renewed its ties to the sport for a further three years was indicative of its increasing popularity.
One of the fastest-growing sports in Ireland, participation has increased by an incredible 120% in the last five years, increasing by 15% in the past 12 months alone and gaining 1,000 new members in the process. Such figures are particularly impressive when taking into account how the first modern triathlon event was believed to have been held at Mission Bay, San Diego, California as recently as 25 September, 1974. Meanwhile, it’s also just been confirmed that Paratriathlon will make its debut at the Paralympic Games at Rio 2016, thereby further consolidating the sport’s popularity.
So what exactly is attracting increasing numbers of people to triathlon, which in its most popular form, is a multiple-stage competition that involves swimming, cycling, and running in immediate succession over a set distance?
Scott Graham of Triathlon Ireland says the success is partially owing to people’s desire to find a unique but accessible way to keep fit and healthy.
“Fitness and health is top of people’s minds,” he says. “With triathlon, there’s such great variety because during the week, you can do a little bit of swimming, a little bit of running, a little bit of biking to suit yourself.
The phenomenal growth over the past few years has encompassed the establishment of 83 clubs in Ireland, 13 of which have only started up over the last year. Demand has increased to the point where there is now at least one club in almost every county in Ireland. The numbers in each club range from 30 to 40 in the smaller counties to roughly 200 in more densely populated areas. Consequently, Triathlon Ireland now has a total membership of 8,450.
Another reason for its burgeoning popularity is the high profile the sport acquired from featuring at the London Olympics two years ago. In particular, the involvement of Derry native Aileen Reid (née Morrison) and Gavin Noble would have boosted interest in the event on these shores.
“There was definitely a spike in interest after some of the elite athlete performances and so on, at the Olympics,” Graham says. “The Olympics on TV was just a spectacular showcase for the sport, so a lot of people got involved [because of it]. There are a lot of young athletes who’ll see that there are Irish athletes actually winning a podium on the world stage, so it’s a sport that Ireland can be really competitive at internationally. From the age side of things, everybody now knows somebody who does triathlon, so it’s probably word of mouth [that's also responsible for its success] — you can drag your mates in to do a race, or a leg in a relay, or something like that.”
(Aileen Reid exhausted after her 2014 season opener in Cape Town)
Reid has continued to impress since her Olympic endeavors, finishing the 2013 season ranked eighth in the world after securing a silver medal at the ITU World Triathlon Series Grand Final in London. 2014 has been slightly less successful, as she is currently ranked 28th, though largely because she has competed in just two races all year.
And Graham, who was inspired to take up the sport himself after filming one of its events in Valentia Island a few years back, is confident that many more Irish participants can follow in Reid’s footsteps, emulating and even surpassing her success, especially as the size of the Irish Junior squad has more than doubled in the past year — going from six athletes in 2013 to 17 currently.
“We’ve got a great stock of athletes coming through,” he says. “We also have a couple of young athletes who are going over to try to qualify for the Youth Olympic Games.”
And indeed, the chance to build on previous high-profile successes has already started for some. This weekend, Reid, along with Conor Murphy, Ben Shaw and 21-year-old debutant Russell White got their first opportunity to pick up some of the coveted Olympic qualification points at the Yokohama World Triathlon Series in Japan. The event consists of eight races and culminates in a Grand Final in Canada at the end of the year in front of a global audience of 45 million in 160 countries.
In Yokohama yesterday, Reid ultimately put in a solid display to finish 22nd, while there were mixed fortunes in the men’s race — Shaw took 22nd and White came 48th, though Murphy disappointingly did not finish.
Moreover, in addition to World Triathlon Series and the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow this July, in which Triathlon Ireland are hoping to have six representatives from Northern Ireland racing, the Vodafone National Series will be taking place throughout the year.
These slightly more informal and primarily club-run races can usually involve anywhere between 400 and 2,500 participants . The event, which Graham refers to as “20 of the most competitive and high-profile races in the country” is already immensely popular both at junior and senior level.
“People compete in these very different races, gather up points and then at the end of the year, you can become an overall medalist,” he explains.
However, Graham says that despite the considerable success of top athletes such as Aileen Reid, as well as the increasing number of promising youngsters getting involved in the sport, the majority of those that take it up are in the 30-45 age bracket — individuals who are, for the most part, not exactly intent on winning medals and enjoying spectacular success.
“They don’t want to break any records, they’re interested in the health and the social aspect… There are some amazing races around the country in stunning locations, so it’s a great path to be able to compete and take in those nice locations as well.”
For more information about Triathlon Ireland, you can visit their official website.
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