Athlone is hosting the 2010 European triathlon championships as part of triAthlone next year.

The European triathlon championships will take place on the weekend of the 3rd and 4th of July 2010. The course of the weekend will see over 5000 athletes from around Ireland and Europe will compete in over 12 different triathlon events. The races are as follows:

• triAthlone Sprint and try a tri (as normal)
• European Junior Elite Men and Women
• European Age Group SPRINT distance championships Men and Women
• European Age Group STANDARD distance championships Men and Women
• European Para triathlon STANDARD distance championships Men and Women
• European Team RELAY Championships Men and Women

Athlone and Ireland will be the first ever hosts of both the sprint and standard distance championship events.

With 25 people allowed per age group per sex for the host country, Ireland could have an Irish team of over 600 athlete’s across all events.

Please read on for further details.....

Triathlon is one of the few sports where age group athletes are able to compete for their country. The European Championships in Athlone represents an excellent opportunity to race for Ireland on home soil. The last avenue for qualification closes on 1st April 2010. The number of places available in each age group is detailed below, but does not include qualification through the National Series or athletes outside of Ireland. We would encourage all members to apply for a place on the team before 1st April 2010.

Triathlon Ireland will be organising a series of training events for qualified athletes leading up to Athlone 2010. Further details will be announced towards end of October.

For more details on how to qualify for both the sprint and standard distance events visit the selection section on www.triathlonireland.com.

The selection process for the Sprint and Standard distance European Championships started in June this year and will end in April 2010. While many age group athletes have already qualified and been selected to race in Athlone next year, there are still many places available.

Please see below for number of places still available in each age group for the rest of the selection period.

Male - Sprint Distance
18-19: 22 places
20-24: 24 places
25-29: 19 places
30-34: 15 places
35-39: 12 places
40-44: 16 places
45-49: 19 places
50-54: 24 places
55-59: 23 places
60-64: 25 places
65-69: 25 places
70-74: 25 places

Female - Sprint Distance
18-19: 24 places
20-24: 22 places
25-29: 24 places
30-34: 17 places
35-39: 21 places
40-44: 22 places
45-49: 22 places
50-54: 25 places
55-59: 24 places
60-64: 25 places
65-69: 25 places
70-74: 25

Male - Standard Distance
18-19: 24 places
20-24: 19 places
25-29: 19 places
30-34: 16 places
35-39: 14 places
40-44: 13 places
45-49: 19 places
50-54: 23 places
55-59: 23 places
60-64: 24 places
65-69: 25 places
70-74: 25 places

Female - Standard Distance
18-19: 25 places
20-24: 24 places
25-29: 19 places
30-34: 21 places
35-39: 22 places
40-44: 24 places
45-49: 23 places
50-54: 25 places
55-59: 24 places
60-64: 25 places
65-69: 25 places
70-74: 25 places

Please note that we estimate that more places will become available at the end of the selection period.