The United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) has announced USA Triathlon’s ‘Together, We Thrive’ initiative as the recipient of its annual Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Choice Award. This is the fourth time since 2017 that the national governing body has been honoured by the USOPC for its diversity and inclusion efforts.
Awarded since 2015, the DE&I Choice Award recognizes a national governing body (NGB) or high performance management organization (HPMO) for the creation of a single diversity, equity and inclusion best practice or a series of diversity, equity and inclusion best practices.
After an internal USOPC selection committee narrows down the submissions, finalists are put to a vote of representatives from NGBs and HPMOs across the US Olympic and Paralympic Movement.
USA Triathlon’s Together, We Thrive program received the highest number of votes, and the organization was honoured at a celebratory dinner as part of the 2021 US National Governing Bodies Council meeting in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
USA Triathlon previously won the D&I Choice Award in 2018 and 2019.
Launched in August 2020 with the goal of integrating diversity, equity, inclusion and access into all areas of USA Triathlon’s business and community, the Together, We Thrive initiative is centred around four principles. These serve as guideposts for future decision-making and programming at USA Triathlon:
- Inclusivity Starts with Us,
- A Community Focus,
- Accessibility & Impact, and
- Representation Matters.
The Together, We Thrive initiative involved the formation of a Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Access (DEIA) Advisory Council, consistent DEIA messaging sent to all constituent groups, the launch of the Sport is a Human Right campaign, roundtable discussions, accessible grassroots programs to grow the sport, scholarship opportunities and on-site activations at USA Triathlon National Championship events.
USA Triathlon notes that the Together, We Thrive initiative has seen a number of highlights:
- Launching the DEIA Advisory Council made up of leaders in the space and sport, to support and advise on DEIA within USA Triathlon and further ensure USA Triathlon is keeping DEIA at the forefront of its organization and the sport.
- The Sport is a Human Right campaign, developed to provide opportunities to participate in sport in communities impacted by discriminatory legislation prohibiting transgender youth from participating in public school sports and/or prohibiting public schools from participating in, sponsoring, or providing coaching staff for sporting events that allow transgender youth to participate.
- The Together, We Thrive: Actions for Change DEIA Summit, an annual summit taking place again this November 5-7 that explores topics related to diversity, equity, inclusion and access (DEIA) in multisport.
- The Together, We Thrive Student Summit, which took place on October 9 and provided an introduction to career possibilities within the Olympic and Paralympic Movement, with a focus on recruiting students from historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving institutions (HSIs) and tribal universities.
- Event activations at 2021 Duathlon National Championships, 2021 Zone3 Youth & Junior Nationals, and 2021 Toyota Age Group National Championships. The activations provided opportunities for athletes and their family members to learn more about Together, We Thrive and subscribe to the quarterly DEIA newsletter.
“At USA Triathlon, we are dedicated to combating discrimination, challenging inequalities and championing social justice in the multisport community and throughout the endurance sports industry,” said Megan Ritch, USA Triathlon Manager of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Access.
“Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Access is a guiding principle in USA Triathlon’s Strategic Plan, and through our Together, We Thrive initiative, we have reached hundreds of thousands of athletes, coaches, club leaders and race directors through on-site activations at our National Championships, our inaugural Actions for Change Summit and consistent communication and promotion across all our digital channels.
“This is just the beginning as we continue to build a future for the sport that all people can see themselves being a part of.”
