Events to Return from June 7th
Triathlon events will return to the Republic of Ireland on June 7th, meaning that for the first time since 2019, an extensive calendar of races will be accessible to Triathlon Ireland members.
In addition, from today (May 24th) the maximum number of participants allowed at Triathlon Ireland sanctioned events in Northern Ireland increases from 100 to 500. Download the Covid-19 Events Guidelines for Northern Ireland here.
Taken together, the two sets of measures mean the BMW Triathlon National Series, the new Youth Series supported by Costcutter and dozens of other races right around the island of Ireland are expected to take place this summer.
Republic of Ireland Racing
Under Triathlon Ireland directives developed from Sport Ireland’s guidelines, races will be able to proceed under social distancing and other COVID-19 prevention measures. Support is available to all race organisers from Triathlon Ireland to ensure their events are in compliance and the head of Triathlon Ireland’s Technical Committee has stressed that officials are available to work with races along every step of this process.
Wave System
Events will implement a system of socially distanced waves for participants, who will begin their race with a rolling start. Each wave will contain an absolute maximum of 100 people including marshalls and other personnel. Spectators will not be permitted at races.
The total number of participants per race will be decided on a case by case basis according to the event’s ability to guarantee social distancing and the safe delivery of the event from a COVID-19 prevention perspective. Consideration will also be given to the minimum number of participants required to stage a meaningful event safely.
This means in practice, providing they satisfy Triathlon Ireland’s COVID-19 protocols, races will be permitted to have multiple waves.
Clear wave-limit numbers and the times required between waves will be supplied by Triathlon Ireland’s Technical Committee, and Triathlon Ireland will be encouraging race organisers to learn best practice from one another as the summer progresses.
The measures are an initial step and will be reviewed as the broader re-opening of sport continues through the summer months.
DOWNLOAD THE COVID-19 EVENTS GUIDELINES FOR ROI
Coombes – Looking Forward to a Summer of Triathlon
Triathlon Ireland CEO Darren Coombes says the guidelines are the latest in a series of positive signs for the sport of triathlon and give confidence that a summer of fantastic events lies ahead.
“Following the recent return of club training, we are really excited to announce the return of competitive triathlon and multisport, and I know our community is eager to ‘Embrace the Summer’ and challenge themselves in races across the island over the coming months.”
Mr Coombes said a lot of work has taken place behind the scenes to get us to this stage. “I’d like to recognise the support and trust of both the Sport Ireland Expert Group and Sport NI who have recognised that our sport and other outdoor, non-contact sports, have the ability to deliver meaningful competition in a safe environment for all participants. We take this trust and responsibility very seriously, and our staff and volunteer technical experts led by Operations Manager Orla Nugent are proactive and available to support all of our Event Organisers deliver exciting racing in a safe manner for the triathlon community.”
He added: “We have all learned a lot about the role of our sport, clubs and our people in the community over the past 18 months, finding new and innovative ways to deliver connection, physical health and mental health benefits. However, we all know that ultimately, you can’t beat that race day feeling. I am personally looking forward to getting to as many races as possible and will be joining the community over the coming weeks in checking that race calendar to identify my first triathlon of the year.”
Help for Race Organisers
Jane O’Brien, the Chair of Triathlon Ireland’s Technical Committee is stressing that her fellow technical officials are standing by to help races so they can comply with the new guidelines.
“We are there to support the races, not to oversee everything, we don’t want to be another level of bureaucracy, we are there to support and will be there at any time before, during and after the race.”
Jane O’Brien said because triathlon is already a sport that incorporates social distancing, she is confident races will be able to implement the new measures without undue difficulty.
“I think it’s very do-able, we have gone into great detail about how we can separate people out so that there is no overlapping at all. Because of the way everything is divided out in triathlon with three different disciplines, from the time the participants registers to the time he or she goes to transition to the time they swim, it’s much easier to space things out.”
Her fellow committee member Hugh McAtamney agrees.
“Everyone wants races to come back. We’ve looked at the current guidance and we really are going above and beyond. When you consider the number of athletes that will be in each wave compared to the number of people that are on a playing pitch at the same time, triathlon is a very safe sport.”
He re-emphasised that the Technical Committee is standing by to support race organisers.
“Race organisers are not alone, we are there to help. The Technical Committee want racing back too. It’s a two way process, we will work with race organisers and issue guidance but they will interpret it and send it back to us for review, feedback or help. We will also remind athletes to approach events with common sense and be responsible for their own safety.”
Enter A Race
Dozens of races are now open for entry on the Triathlon Ireland race calendar. Some have limited numbers of places available but are expected to release additional spots as race organisers finalise the maximum number of participants allowed in line with COVID-19 measures.
Triathlon Ireland will release updates on the news section of our website and on social media.
