Europe Triathlon

16th February 2021 –. The European Triathlon Federation has announced the choice of València as the official venue for the next European Triathlon Championship, after a 2020 season in which the global situation experienced with the pandemic did not allow the celebration of the continental title.

This season’s European Championship will be held once the Olympics are over. The exact date will be announced shortly but we are trying to finalise the European and International calendars with this time of the season being very busy for events. However, we are very conscious that all concerned, including our elite and age group athletes and our National Federations, are all eager to get some information on this major Championship of the 2021 season.

The continental championship will feature the Elite competition in the men’s and women’s categories, as well as the paratriathlon event, and the European championships for age groups in both sprint distance and Olympic distance. It will be a fantastic opportunity for all triathletes who want to compete in the colours of their national team to start to plan. The last edition of this championship held in Spain was in 2011, in the Galician city of Pontevedra.

València has an extensive and experienced organisational background both nationally and internationally. In fact, it hosted the European Championship in 2004, which was a valid test for the Olympic Games, Athens 2004 in Elite category. In recent seasons it has hosted the European Triathlon Cups in 2018, the European Under 23 Championship and Paratriathlon in 2019, and a World Triathlon Cup held last November. Undoubtedly, the Spanish Triathlon Federation together with the Triathlon Federation of the Valencian Community, the Valencia City Council, the Trinidad Alfonso Foundation, the Valencian Government and the Valencia Provincial Council have demonstrated their ability to put on a great event and relish the challenge organising the European Championship this year.

Renato Bertrandi, president of the European Triathlon Union, highlighted “I am very happy to be able to confirm that our European Triathlon Championship in the city of València after the Olympic Games dispute. from Tokyo. There is a long history and links between the Triathlon and the City. The most recent are the organization of the European Under-23 Championships in 2019 and in 2020, in very difficult conditions due to the pandemic, the World Cup. This year’s European Championship 2021 will take place in the second part of the season and we all have to be positive thinking that we will be in a much more relaxed state.

I was present at the 2019 event and I have witnessed the professionalism in organizing the event and the great hospitality that the city of València has given to our Triathlon family. For this reason, I was delighted to assign the maximum continental triathlon competition this year to Valencia. In addition to the best Elite athletes, the event will feature thousands of Age Group triathletes from all over Europe who will proudly compete on the streets of the Valencian capital to win a medal. I am sure that Valencia and the European Championship will be a great party, with the 43 flags of our Federations waving in the Parade of Nations. And it will also be the occasion to celebrate with enthusiasm the end of a dark period that has affected not only Sport but also our lives.

My sincere thanks to the Community, the City, the City Council, the Provincial Council and the rest of the institutions and the Spanish Federation for their support”.

José Hidalgo, president of the Spanish Triathlon Federation, stated “After the pandemic in 2020 forced the suspension of the most important continental competition, the European Triathlon Championship, it is a great responsibility for the FETRI and for València to host the reactivation of the premiere European competition, both for the elite and for the Age Groups.

I believe that the good work that València has been doing, especially in recent years highlighted by the World Cup event delivered to end the international calendar last season, has been the best guarantee for the key European Triathlon competition to take place this year in our country. We welcome the decision by Europe Triathlon and understand the great responsibility to deliver a great event and make Valencia an exciting reference for all European triathletes”.

Pilar Bernabé, councillor for sports at the Valencia City Council, highlighted “We are pleased with the announcement of Europe Triathlon and the choice of València as the venue for the European Championship. Valencia is a great city, with a great organisational capacity in sporting events. València, is a destination for the practice of safe sports and the celebration of this Championship (as long as the health situation allows it) will consolidate us as the epicentre of international triathlon. Once again, we will show the world our enthusiasm and commitment to sport, hosting the European triathletes who come to our city and consolidating ourselves as the Mediterranean capital of sport. Without a doubt, this European Championship is a great opportunity both for our city and for the Valencian triathlon “.

The head of Sport of the Generalitat, Minister Vicent Marzà, explained that “from the Generalitat we are promoting that our territory is a benchmark for attracting relevant sporting events and in the case of the European Triathlon Championship it is a very important milestone in the calendar of this sport. All the institutions involved have formed a great team to gain the award of the Championships to Valencia for this year’s edition. We are the ‘Comunitat de l’Esport’ and we want València to be a benchmark in Triathlon. We are achieving this and hosting this event is also a very positive impulse for Valencian triathlon athletes, whom we will continue to accompany in different lines of action”.

Elena Tejedor, director of the Trinidad Alfonso Foundation, highlighted “We are very happy that the Europe Triathlon and the FETRI continue to have confidence in València to host this great event of triathlon. This European Championship is one more example that things are being done well and that is why the organisations of the most powerful disciplines are committed to holding their events in our city. After the very high-level triathlon tests in recent years, we are very satisfied to continue growing and to continue positioning ourselves as the Comunitat de l’Esport.

We maintain the hope and we trust that the health situation improves to be able to welcome the maximum possible participants and the city to enjoy this great event. One of the efforts of our Foundation and of our president, Juan Roig, is to continue claiming that sport is fundamental in our society for two reasons: on the one hand, we have shown that sport is safe and that it is synonymous with health; on the other, it is an important generator of wealth.”

Andrés Campos, deputy for Youth and Sports of the Valencia Provincial Council, declared “We all have to be in luck because in 2021 Valencia will host the European Triathlon Championship. Sporting events like this have their perfect venue in Valencia. Thanks to all those who in one way or another have managed to make the next realization of an event of this level a reality. The presence of the European Triathlon Championship in Valencia is an accolade to the popularity of this sport in our city.

The Triathlon Federation of the Valencian Community has attached to no less than 82 clubs, and has 2,827 federated athletes, only in the Province of Valencia. This gives us an idea of the popularity and the roots that this sport discipline has in our community.

 The Diputación de València is going to get involved to make Valencia once again a “point of reference” in the practice of a sport, in this case triathlon, which will bring together athletes from all over Europe in Valencia”.

Vanessa Huesa, president of the Valencian Community Triathlon Federation, highlighted “I want to thank the Europe Triathlon for the opportunity it offers us to host the European Triathlon Championship in 2021 in the city of Valencia. One of our objectives is to be able to host international events where safety prevails both from a technical and health point of view. In addition, being able to bring international competition closer to our federation and that they can enjoy an event like this in their own home is one of the motivations for organizing a championship of these magnitudes. All this without neglecting the popular facet of the Valencia triathlon, where people who want to start in our sport can do so in a spectacular environment such as the one offered by the capital of Túria, in addition to being able to debut on a great stage such as that of the European Championship.

For the Triathlon Federation of the Valencian Community, it is important that Europe Triathlon, FETRI, the Valencia City Council, the Valencia Provincial Council, the General Sports Directorate, and the Trinidad Alfonso Foundation continue to support and collaborate in this project, ensuring that the triathlon continues to grow year after year in our community. See you at the finish line”.

Europe Triathlon looks forward to seeing all our National Federation’s athletes, coaches and supporters in Valencia and we will post the event date as soon as we possibly can.