Indoor triathlon

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An indoor triathlon is a nonstandard variation of the triathlon and consists of three events: swimming, cycling, and running. The swim is held in an indoor pool, the cycling takes place on stationary bikes, and the run takes place on an indoor track or treadmill. Indoor triathlons are generally held in fitness clubs to accommodate all three sports.

Triathlon sport which combines swimming, cycling and distance running

A triathlon is a multisport race with three continuous and sequential endurance races. The word is of Greek origin, from τρεῖς or treis (three) and ἆθλος or athlos (competition).

Cycling riding a bicycle

Cycling, also called biking or bicycling, is the use of bicycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bikers", or less commonly, as "bicyclists". Apart from two-wheeled bicycles, "cycling" also includes the riding of unicycles, tricycles, quadracycles, recumbent and similar human-powered vehicles (HPVs).

Running method of terrestrial locomotion allowing humans and other animals to move rapidly on foot

Running is a method of terrestrial locomotion allowing humans and other animals to move rapidly on foot. Running is a type of gait characterized by an aerial phase in which all feet are above the ground. This is in contrast to walking, where one foot is always in contact with the ground, the legs are kept mostly straight and the center of gravity vaults over the stance leg or legs in an inverted pendulum fashion. A characteristic feature of a running body from the viewpoint of spring-mass mechanics is that changes in kinetic and potential energy within a stride occur simultaneously, with energy storage accomplished by springy tendons and passive muscle elasticity. The term running can refer to any of a variety of speeds ranging from jogging to sprinting.

In some competitions participants are judged by the distance they travel [1] in each event in a set amount of time. Times can vary between races. On other occasions, the triathlon is conducted in the same manner as an outdoor triathlon in that distances are set and participants compete to finish the total distance in the shortest amount of time. Generally, the swimming is the shortest event, and cycling is the longest. Occasionally, transition time will not be factored into the overall scoring. In one example, participants are given about 5 minutes to transition between events. [2]

An indoor triathlon has several advantages when compared to an outdoor triathlon. Indoor triathlons are a way to compete during the winter, as well as a way to be introduced to the sport without facing an open water swim. They also do not require an investment in a bicycle, as the bike portion is on a supplied stationary bike. Finally, they also allow participants that may not be able to complete a set distance but that could "race" for a set period of time to compete.

The first indoor triathlons were held in stadiums and velodromes in Europe and Asia in the late 1980s as showcase events for the top professionals where a temporary pool would be built in the center and the bike and run would be around the track. These were invitation-only spectator events with qualifying heats and a final race for professional triathletes and were not open to the general public. Unlike the current format of indoor triathlons, these races did not have a short break between events, so transitions were an important element of the race. Borrowing from that concept, the first editions of the current version of the indoor triathlon were staged in the early 1990s in Ontario, Canada. There a group of 4 triathlete friends created an indoor series based out of the 4 different universities they attended (University of Western Ontario, MacMaster University, Queens University and Trent University). The races consisted of a 15-minute indoor pool swim followed by a 5-minute break to get from pool to bikes followed by a 15-minute bike on a stationary bike followed by a 5-minute break to get from bikes to the track followed by a 15-minute run on an indoor track. The events were held with participants going in waves over the course of a morning. Participants were scored based on point scale where you could achieve up to 1,000 points in each sport based on how far you went in the 15 minutes. In contrast to the original professionally focused indoor races, the purpose of this series was to create a low cost, fun, safe and unstressful way to initiate newcomers to the sport of triathlon. These races sold out quickly, and the series expanded to other universities and the Ontario InterUniversity Triathlon Association (OITA) was born to oversee it. As triathlon's popularity grew in the 90s, other indoor triathlon races began appearing across North America and the world using a similar format to the OITA races.

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An Ironman Triathlon is one of a series of long-distance triathlon races organized by the World Triathlon Corporation (WTC), consisting of a 2.4-mile (3.86 km) swim, a 112-mile (180.25 km) bicycle ride and a marathon 26.22-mile (42.20 km) run, raced in that order and without a break. It is widely considered one of the most difficult one-day sporting events in the world.

Triathlon at the 2004 Summer Olympics

At the 2004 Summer Olympics, the triathlon events were held at the Vouliagmeni Olympic Centre. Fifty triathletes contested the female event on August 25, and the same number contested the male event on August 26, making up a total of 100 competitors.

Wildflower Triathlon May triathlon in California

The Wildflower Triathlon is a triathlon held at Lake San Antonio in Central California since 1983, the first winner being Dean "The Machine" Harper. It is held the first weekend in May each year.

International Triathlon Union international triathlon governing body

The International Triathlon Union (ITU) is the international governing body for the multi-sport disciplines of triathlon, duathlon, aquathlon and other nonstandard variations. The ITU host the top level international race series the ITU World Triathlon Series and the ITU Triathlon World Cup. More recently, the ITU created a long distance race circuit with official world championships. Long Distance Triathlon races are closer in length to Ironman Triathlon races owned and organized by the World Triathlon Corporation.

Due to the nature of triathlons as a race consisting of multiple sports many pieces of technical equipment have been borrowed from other sports, or developed specifically in an effort to race faster and improve a competitors safety.

Aquathlon continuous, two-stage race involving swimming followed by running

The sport of aquathlon consists of a continuous, two-stage race involving swimming followed by running. The International Triathlon Union (ITU) and its member federation organizations sanction competitions and govern the sport. An aquathlon is also called an "aquathon." The ITU and USA Triathlon sanctioning organizations generally use the term aquathlon.

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The Mooloolaba Triathlon is an annual triathlon held in Mooloolaba, Queensland, Australia since 1993. It begins with open water swimming, then cycling and running. USM EVENTS owns and manages the Mooloolaba Triathlon Festival.

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ITU World Triathlon Series world championship series in the sport of triathlon

The ITU World Triathlon Series is the International Triathlon Union's annual series of triathlon events used to crown an annual world champion. There are multiple rounds of competitions culminating in a Grand Final race. Athletes compete head-to-head for points in these races that will determine the overall ITU world champion. The elite championship races are held over two distances the standard and the sprint distance.

Triathlon at the 2012 Summer Olympics

The triathlon events at the 2012 Summer Olympics were held in Hyde Park in London, United Kingdom, with the women's triathlon held on 4 August and the men's on 7 August. 110 triathletes from 39 countries competed with 55 men and 55 women competing. The races were held over the "international distance" and consisted of 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) swimming, 43 kilometres (27 mi) road cycling, and 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) road running.

Triathlon at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Mens

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Triathlon at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Womens

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Triathlon at the 2014 Commonwealth Games

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The Embrunman is a long distance triathlon held on August 15 each year around Embrun in the Hautes-Alpes, France. It is an equivalent triathlon consisting of a swim of 3.8 km, a 186 km cycle ride and running a marathon (42.2 km), but is not affiliated with the World Triathlon Corporation which owns the brand Ironman, so is not promoted as such. The French newspaper Le Dauphiné libéré described it in 2012 as the hardest triathlon in the world. The men's record time for the event is 9 h 34 m 10 s by the Frenchman Hervé Faure on August 15, 2011 and the women's record is held by Tine Deckers from Belgium at 10 h 51 m 14 s on 15 August 2017. The men's record number of victories in this event is held by Frenchman Yves Cordier with five wins, and women's record by Briton Bella Bayliss Commerford with 3 victories.

Claire Michel is a Belgian professional triathlete. She is the 2013 Aquathlon vice-World Champion. She has been named Belgian Triathlon's Female Athlete of the Year twice, in 2014 and 2015, she's part of the National Team and represented Belgium at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio. She is also Belgian Champion on Sprint distance for 2016.

References

  1. ↑ "Life Time Fitness Indoor Triathlon". Indoortri.com. Retrieved 2010-09-05.
  2. ↑ "Indoor triathlon prepares competitors for summer". Thelantern.com. 5 February 2008. Retrieved 2010-09-07.
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