Major League Triathlon (MLT), billed as ‘the first and only professional triathlon league in North America’, has announced that the league will host an individual Super Sprint Series, in partnership with USA Triathlon, at two of the four MLT events in 2018.
MLT will host these draft-legal super sprint events at MLT Vail Valley at Avon, CO (August 3-5) and MLT Charlotte (October 5-7). The MLT Super Sprint Series will feature male and female individual super sprint races with a US$10,000 prize purse at each event. The races will feature 30 of the world’s top pro men and 30 of the world’s top pro women facing off in this head-to-head format.
While 27 slots will be reserved for invited pros (at each event), the remaining three slots will be filled via a qualification race during the MLT event weekends. There will be international slots available; although, the majority of the slots will be reserved for US elite athletes.
“We are thrilled to be able to launch this new initiative with USA Triathlon’s support,” said Daniel Cassidy, CEO of Major League Triathlon. “With Mixed Relay’s inclusion in the Tokyo Games, we are excited to be able to further showcase this format in the USA. We will continue to provide our athletes with a platform to showcase their speed and talent at the MTR and super sprint format. The additional prize purse allows our pros to earn a bit more money; but more importantly, this is their chance to put their stamp on this format.”
MLT Vail Valley and MLT Charlotte will also feature qualification races in which aspiring pros will have an opportunity to earn their USA Triathlon Elite licenses. Current pros are also invited to apply for a slot in the qualification races. The top three athletes (male and female) will earn a slot to compete in the ‘A’ final and for their share of the US$10,000 prize purse at each event.
Qualification races will be limited to 30 athletes per gender at each event. MLT and USA Triathlon will define criteria for participation in the events.
All MLT Super Sprint Series races will be sanctioned by USA Triathlon and will serve as opportunities for US athletes with Olympic dreams to race head-to-head.
“USA Triathlon is proud to work with Major League Triathlon on this initiative, which provides more head-to-head super sprint race experience for US elite athletes,” said John Farra, USA Triathlon’s High Performance General Manager. “With Mixed Relay’s inclusion in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, this race format offers another opportunity for USA Triathlon to evaluate athletes for the top-end speed required to be competitive at the super sprint distance.
“We expect these will be coveted race starts for those athletes looking to identify themselves as Mixed Relay talent in the coming years.”
