Europe Triathlon

ETU Cheile Grădiştei Winter Triathlon European Championships, due to be held over the weekend 23rd and 24th February, will feature a new style relay format and the team, led by Peter Klosz, is more than ready for you.

Check out the regular updates on the event Facebook page.

The revised ITU Competition Rules permit not only the tradition mixed relay team of two women and two men, but also a mixed team of two athletes.

By allowing this format, the opportunity for racing is opened up to more nations and with a bigger field, the racing will be much more exciting.

This will make the race a much more tempting option for any TV companies that might want to follow the event and, we hope, entice more sponsorship in future. With the best Winter Triathletes in the world racing this weekend in China, the season is in full swing.

For the 2x2 Mixed Relay, we will see teams made up of 2 athletes: 1 man and 1 woman. They will compete in the following order: woman, man, woman, man. Each of them will race the short course, as described in the Athlete Guide and in line with ITU event guidelines, before handing over to their teammate. Once the first man has finished his leg, he hands over to the first woman to repeat. So, each athlete will race twice over the short course and it will be the male athlete who crosses the finish line, at which time the clock will stop.

The total time for the team is from the start of the 1st team member to the finish of the second leg of the 2nd athlete.  Time is continuous and the timing does not stop between athletes.

Within the rules, there is also the possibility of mixing athletes from different nations. This is a great opportunity for developing nations to get experience in the sport.

So, any nations that have not yet applied for their teams to race, this is your opportunity. Looking back at some of the Age group results from last year, it would be great to see the National Federations supporting their strong age-group athletes.

But remember: Applications must, as always, be made on-line using the ITU entries system.