Representatives from nearly all of the National Federations represented in the Pan American Triathlon Confederation (PATCO) met on Thursday to discuss opportunities for the sport at the PATCO Best Practices Symposium at the Dallas Marriott Las Colinas, Texas.
Ahead of an action-packed weekend of racing, the focus was how to build successful National Federations that would be well represented on the global stage. Additionally, the discussion included ways to engage athletes at all ability levels, from beginners and youth at the grassroots level to elite athletes racing in ITU World Triathlon Series events and eyeing the Olympic Games.
ITU President and IOC Member Marisol Casado travelled from Spain to join the PATCO National Federations for the Best Practices Symposium, organized by USA Triathlon (USAT) in cooperation with PATCO, which also included club programs, coaching and new initiatives such as the Mixed Team Relay event.
The symposium allowed members from each of the federations to network with one another and learn more about how the evolution of the sport is different in each country. Discussions included organizational structure, sponsorships, membership, local races and more, providing delegates with the insight into what works and what doesn’t for the National Federations and their respective programs.
The theme of the symposium and Friday’s PATCO Congress is ‘Sharing the Win’ and through three panels on Thursday, the presenters highlighted ways their federations have developed the sport, which has collectively helped to make triathlon one of the largest participatory sports in the world.
In addition to the panel discussions, Sam Renouf, General Manager with USA Triathlon partner Active Network, shared how technology in triathlon can make all the difference. Data is often used by triathletes to track mileage or speed, but it can also help the sport grow with a better understanding of who is a member of the triathlon community and how to reach them.
The weekend’s events will continue on Friday afternoon with the PATCO Congress before four exciting draft-legal races begin on Saturday, including juniors and elites. Then, paratriathletes will compete for titles on Sunday morning. For elites and paratriathletes, the races in Dallas are at the start of their quest to be named members of the US Olympic and Paralympic teams in 2016, with the qualification period for National Federation spots now open.
Program
Welcoming Remarks – Barry Siff, USA Triathlon President
Introductions – Antonio Alarco Guerrero, PATCO President
Opening Remarks – Marisol Casado, ITU President, IOC Member, AGNOC Board
The Art and Business of a National Federation
Moderator: Gustavo Svane, PATCO
Presenters: Julio Ramirez, Ecuador; Luc Landriault, Canada; Carlos Froes, Brazil; Barry Siff, USA
High Performance Development Programs
Moderator: Javier Gutierrez, Columbia
Presenters: Steve Kelley, USA; Eligio Cervantes, Mexico; Ana Lecumberri, Chile; Angel Matute, Ecuador
Sport Development
Moderator: Jaime Cadaval, Mexico
Presenters: Marco La Porta, Brazil; Alan Carlsson, Canada; Rob Urbach, USA; Carlos Gonzalez, Argentina
Closing Remarks – Antonio Alarco Guerrero, PATCO President
