Triathlon has been an Olympic sport since its debut at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia. [1] Its inclusion in the Summer Olympic Games program was the quickest of any sport: [2] the International Triathlon Union (ITU) was founded in 1989 and five years later, on 4 September 1994, triathlon's Olympic status was approved by the 103rd International Olympic Committee Session, in Paris. [3] The variant contested at the Olympics (called Olympic distance) is composed of a 1,500-meter (4,921 ft) swim, followed by a 40-kilometer (25 mi) bicycle race, and a final 10 km (6 mi) run leg. The distances were chosen based on the resulting format to be a challenge for participants (sprint triathletes as well as endurance competitors) and entertaining for spectators all over the world. [4]
From 2000, the triathlon competition consisted of a men's and a women's event. A third event, the mixed medley relay involving four triathletes each covering the sprint distance, was introduced in 2021. [5] The inaugural women's event was the first to be contested during the Sydney Games, and crowned Swiss triathlete Brigitte McMahon as the first Olympic champion, over the heavy-favorite Australians. [6] The following day, Simon Whitfield of Canada, who was not considered one of the favorites, came from behind and took the men's gold medal with a 200-meter sprint finish. [7] In similar fashion, long-distance specialist Kate Allen of Austria secured the women's Olympic title in 2004. [8] New Zealand placed two male triathletes in the top two, as Hamish Carter and Bevan Docherty won the gold and silver medals, respectively. [9] At the 2008 Summer Olympics, Whitfield was on the verge of repeating his 2000 success, but failed to keep his lead over Jan Frodeno of Germany in the final meters, who pipped the Canadian to the gold medal. [10] The Australian power in women's triathlon was rewarded at the Beijing Games, when three-time world champion and favorite Emma Snowsill clinched the gold medal and Emma Moffatt secured the bronze. [11]
After securing a second career Olympic medal in Beijing, Simon Whitfield (one gold and one silver) and Bevan Docherty (one silver and one bronze) were the only triathletes to have won more than one Olympic medal. [10]
Despite having a number of world champions in the sport, before the home games of 2012, Great Britain had failed to win a single medal in the sport at Olympic level. This changed dramatically in 2012 itself when the Leeds-based brothers, Alistair and Jonathan Brownlee took gold and bronze in the men's individual event with a surging run, in the company of Spanish silver medalist Javier Gómez. In Rio 2016, the brothers both returned to the Olympic event, sweeping the podium with Alistar claiming gold and Jonathan silver. In the women's race, GB also made it to the podium with bronze for Vicky Holland, behind Nicola Spirig Hug claiming silver. The champion of the women's race that year was USA's Gwen Jorgensen.
In 2021 at the delayed 2020 Summer Olympics, Jonathan Brownlee became the first triathlete to win three medals, help leading Great Britain to victory in the inaugural mixed relay event in a team composed of individual silver medalists Alex Yee and Georgia Taylor-Brown. These athletes joined the two-medal club along with Katie Zaferes of the United States.
In 2024, both races took place on the same day since the men's race, initially scheduled a day prior, was rescheduled due to poor water quality in the Seine. In the women's race, home favorite Cassandre Beaugrand took the women's title, claiming France's first Olympic medal in the sport on home soil. Switzerland's Julie Derron won silver, crossing the finish line right ahead of Beth Potter, who was one of the top seeds after winning the Paris test event in 2023. In the men's race, in a shocking finish closing a fifteen-second gap in the last 400m of the race, [12] Alex Yee claimed gold after passing a close rival, Hayden Wilde of New Zealand. France's Léo Bergère claimed bronze, the first male French medalist in the Olympic event.
Rank | Athlete | Nation | Olympics | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Alex Yee | Great Britain (GBR) | 2020–2024 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
2 | Alistair Brownlee | Great Britain (GBR) | 2012–2016 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
3 | Jonny Brownlee | Great Britain (GBR) | 2012–2020 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
Georgia Taylor-Brown | Great Britain (GBR) | 2020–2024 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | |
5 | Simon Whitfield | Canada (CAN) | 2000–2008 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
Nicola Spirig | Switzerland (SUI) | 2012–2016 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | |
7 | Cassandre Beaugrand | France (FRA) | 2020–2024 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
8 | Taylor Knibb | United States (USA) | 2020–2024 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
Morgan Pearson | United States (USA) | 2020–2024 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | |
10 | Hayden Wilde | New Zealand (NZL) | 2020–2024 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Bevan Docherty | New Zealand (NZL) | 2004–2008 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
Katie Zaferes | United States (USA) | 2020 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
13 | Beth Potter | Great Britain (GBR) | 2024 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Great Britain | 4 | 3 | 4 | 11 |
2 | Switzerland | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
3 | Germany | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
4 | Australia | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 |
New Zealand | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 | |
United States | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 | |
7 | Canada | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
8 | France | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
9 | Austria | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Bermuda | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
Norway | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
12 | Portugal | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Spain | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
Sweden | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
15 | Czech Republic | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
South Africa | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
Totals (16 entries) | 16 | 16 | 16 | 48 |
Simon St. Quentin Whitfield is a Canadian retired Olympic triathlon champion. Whitfield won ten consecutive Canadian Triathlon Championships titles and carried the Canadian national flag during the 2000 Summer Olympics closing ceremony in Sydney, where he had won his gold medal, and the opening ceremony at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, making him one of few Canadian athletes to be honoured twice as Olympic flag bearer.
Triathlon had its Summer Olympics debut at the 2000 Games, in Sydney, when men's and women's individual events were first held, and has been contested since then. In 2021, at the delayed 2020 Summer Olympics a mixed team relay event was held for the first time. The sport, and its Olympic events, are governed by the International Triathlon Union, known since 2019 as World Triathlon.
Emma Laura Snowsill OAM is an Australian professional triathlete and multiple gold medalist in the World Championships and the Commonwealth Games. She won the gold medal in triathlon at the 2008 Olympics. Snowsill is married to the 2008 Olympic champion in men's triathlon, Jan Frodeno.
Jacquilyn Louise "Jackie" Fairweather was an Australian world champion triathlete, long-distance runner, coach and Australian Institute of Sport high-performance administrator.
Alistair Edward Brownlee MBE is an English triathlete. He is the only athlete to hold two Olympic titles in the individual triathlon event, winning gold medals in the 2012 and 2016 Olympic Games. He is also a four-time World Champion in triathlon being Triathlon World Champion twice and World Team Champion twice, a four-time European Champion, and the 2014 Commonwealth champion. Brownlee is the only male athlete,, to have completed a grand slam of Olympic, World, and continental championships. Brownlee is also a one-time world champion in aquathlon. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest male Triathletes ever.
Francisco Javier Gómez Noya is a Spanish triathlete. He is the winner of five ITU Triathlon World Championships, he holds three ITU Triathlon World Cup titles, and won the Silver medal for Spain at the 2012 Summer Olympics in men's triathlon. He has also won world titles for Ironman 70.3 and XTERRA Triathlon.
Jan Frodeno is a German former triathlete who is the gold medal winner in men's triathlon at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, 3-time winner of the Ironman World Championship in 2015, 2016, and 2019, and 2-time winner of the Ironman 70.3 World Championship in 2015 and 2018. He had set the world record for the long distance in Roth, Germany in 2016 with 7:35:39 hours. In 2021, he broke his own world record during the Tributtle in Allgäu, Germany against Lionel Sanders, with a time of 07:27:53, setting a new world best for the long-distance triathlon.
The women's triathlon was part of the triathlon at the 2008 Summer Olympics programme. It was the third appearance of the event, which was established in 2000. The competition was held on Monday, August 18, 2008 at the Triathlon Venue at the Ming Tomb Reservoir in Shisanling. Fifty-five triathletes from thirty nations competed.
The men's triathlon was part of the Triathlon at the 2008 Summer Olympics programme. It was the event's third appearance, established in 2000. The competition was held on Tuesday, August 19, 2008 at the Triathlon Venue at the Ming Tomb Reservoir in Shisanling. Fifty-five triathletes from 31 nations competed.
Jonathan Callum Brownlee is an English professional duathlete and triathlete. He is a six-time World champion, and one-time Olympic champion in triathlon.
Emma Jackson is an Australian professional triathlete, U23 World Champion of the year 2010, and 2009 Junior World Championships silver medalist.
The Dextro Energy Triathlon – ITU World Championship Series 2011 was a series of six World Championship Triathlon events leading to a Grand Final held in Beijing, China in September 2011. The Series was organised under the auspices of the world governing body of triathlon, the International Triathlon Union (ITU), and was sponsored by Dextro Energy.
Nicky Samuels is a New Zealand professional triathlete who has won the 2013 XTERRA Triathlon World Championship and the 2012 ITU Aquathlon World Championships. She is also the 2012 New Zealand cycling road race national champion. She represented—alongside Andrea Hewitt—New Zealand at the 2016 Summer Olympics in triathlon and came 13th.
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.
The men's triathlon was one of the triathlon events at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, United Kingdom. It took place on 7 August 2012, featuring 55 men from 32 countries. It was the fourth appearance of an Olympic men's triathlon event since the first at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. The race was around Hyde Park, a 1.42 km2 park in central London. The race was held over the "international distance" and consisted of 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) swimming, 42.959 kilometres (26.693 mi) road cycling, and 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) road running.
The women's triathlon was one of the triathlon events at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, United Kingdom. It took place on 4 August 2012, featuring 55 women from 31 countries. It was the fourth appearance of an Olympic women's triathlon event since the first at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia. The race was around Hyde Park, a 1.42 km2 park in central London. The race was 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.
Lauren Campbell is a triathlete from Canada, who won the bronze medal at the 2007 Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. She is currently ranked no. 48 in the world by the International Triathlon Union.
Sophie Coldwell is a British triathlete. She competed in the women's event at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. and has achieved several medals in International Triathlon Union (ITU) and European Triathlon Union (ETU) Championships. Sophie Coldwell is based in Loughborough, England. On the 26th June 2022, she won her 1st major medal when helping Team GB to Silver in the mixed team relay. She finished in third place in the 2022 Super League Triathlon Championship Series.
Hayden Wilde is a New Zealand professional triathlete. He was the silver medalist at the Paris Olympics in 2024 and the bronze medallist at the Tokyo Summer Olympics, the silver medalist at the 2022 Commonwealth Games and the winner of the 2021 XTERRA World Championships. He finished second in the 2021 Super League Triathlon Championship Series, having taken the win at the SLT London race. Wilde won the 2022 Super League Triathlon Championship Series, having been victorious in 3 of the 5 series races.
Alexander Amos Yee is a British professional triathlete and distance runner. He is the 2024 World and Olympic champion in standard or 'Olympic' distance triathlon. the second man to win both titles in a single year.