International governing body World Triathlon has announced its 2026 race calendar, welcoming new host cities as well as kicking off the start of LA28 qualification.
The World Triathlon Championship Series (WTCS) once again begins in Abu Dhabi, this time on the final weekend of March, before heading to the Uzbek capital of Samarkand at the end of April. From there it is on to Yokohama (JPN) and a return to Alghero (ITA) before a new France course in Quiberon in June.
In July, the WTCS Hamburg – just confirmed as host of the 2027 Championship Finals – again takes place along with the Mixed Relay World Championships, followed by the first series race in London since 2013. Once again leading into the Championship Finals it’s Weihai (CHN) and Karlovy Vary (CZE), with the Grand Final returning to Pontevedra in the north of Spain in late September.
Brand new World Cup venues include South American destinations RIo de Janeiro (BRA), Asuncion (PAR), Tuarunga (NZL), Edmonton (CAN) and Jeddah (KSA).
There are three Mixed Relay Series (Abu Dhabi, Alghero and Quiberon), along with the Mixed Relay World Championships returning to Hamburg, and three Mixed Relay Cups (Chengdu and Edmonton) to take place across the year, while the Para Series takes in Devonport, Yokohama, Montreal and Hamburg, with the World Championships in Pontevedra.
World Triathlon President, Antonio Arimany, said “It is a clear signal of the strength of our sport and our partners that we have been able to confirm our full WTCS calendar and the majority of races for 2026 at this early stage.
“We know how beneficial this is for the athletes and teams and the LOCs (local organising committees) and stakeholders to be able to plan this far ahead, and it will only strengthen the sport’s most prestigious series and every race on it.”
More World Triathlon Cup events will be added in the coming weeks, which will make approximately 20 events in 2026.
WTCS
Abu Dhabi, UAE – 27 March
Samarkand, UZB – 25-26 April
Yokohama, JPN – 16 May
Alghero, ITA – 5 June
Quiberon, FRA – 20 June
Hamburg, GER – 11 July
London, GBR – 25 July
Weihai, CHN – 29 August
Karlovy Vary, CZE – 13 September
Pontevedra, ESP – 24-27 September
Mixed Relays
Abu Dhabi, UAE – 28 March – Mixed Relay Series
Chengdu, CHN – 10 May – Mixed Relay Cup
Alghero, ITA – 6 June – Mixed Relay Series
Quiberon, FRA – 21 June – Mixed Relay Series
Hamburg, GER – 12 July – Mixed Relay World Championships
Edmonton, CAN – 19 July – Mixed Relay Cup
Rome, ITA – 4 October – Mixed Relay Cup
World Cups
Lievin, FRA – 7 March – Indoor
Chengdu, CHN – 9 May
Huatulco, MEX – 14 June
Tiszaujvaros, HUN – 27-28 June
Edmonton, CAN – 18 July
Rio de Janeiro, BRA – 1-2 August
Asuncion, PAR – 8-9 August
Lima, PER – 22-23 August
Rome, ITA – 3 October
Tongyeong, KOR – 24-25 October
Iquique, CHI – 31 October
San Pedro de la Paz, CHI – 7-8 November
Hong Kong, HKG – 7-8 November
Miyazaki, JPN – 14-15 November
Tauranga, NZL – November
Jeddah, KSA – 28-29 November
Para triathlon
Devonport, AUS – 13 March – Para Series
Abu Dhabi, UAE – 27 March – Para Cup
Samarkand, UZB – 25-26 April – Para Cup
Yokohama, JPN – 16-17 May – Para Series
Besancon, FRA – 20-21 June – Para Cup
Montreal, CAN – 27-28 June – Para Series
Tegernsee, GER – 4-5 July – Para Cup
Hamburg, GER – 11-12 July – Para Series
Tata, HUN – 18-19 July – Para Cup
Alhandra, POR – 5-6 September – Para Cup
Pontevedra, ESP – 25-27 September – Para World Championships
Alanya, TUR – 24-25 October – Para Cup
San Pedro de la Paz, CHI – 7-8 November – Para Cup
T100 Triathlon World Tour dates confirmed so far
Gold Coast, Australia (21-22 March)
Singapore (25-26 April)
Vancouver (15-16 August, 2026)
Changes to the T100 Competition format
The Professional Triathletes Organisation (PTO) and World Triathlon have announced a number of revisions to the 2026 T100 Triathlon World Tour format, including an adapted competition schedule, removal of season-long contract commitments and increased event prize money.
This new format will take place over a nine race T100 Race To Qatar in 2026 with the PTO and World Triathlon also confirming the return dates for the Singapore T100 on 25-26 April, 2026, and the Vancouver T100 on 15-16 August, 2026; which are added to the Gold Coast T100 in Australia on 21-22 March, 2026.
Revisions for 2026 T100 Tour
As the Professional Triathletes Organisation (PTO) aims to elevate the sport of triathlon and take it mainstream, the revisions to the T100 competition format include:
- Adapting the event schedule to allow for fewer mandatory races for professional women and men: instead of hosting joint female and male T100 race weekends, women and men will each race four individual dates before coming together for the Qatar T100 World Championship Final in Doha. Each athlete’s best three T100 race scores plus the final will count towards the women’s and men’s T100 World Championship titles.
- Removal of season-long contracts: Moving to a ranking-based selection of events, providing athletes with more flexibility throughout the season. In the lead up to each event, the PTO will simply issue invitations to the best female and male professionals. For the first race this will be based on their 2025 T100 Race To Qatar finishing position [top 10]; the top 5 from the Contender Rankings and 5 Wildcards. After that, it will be the top 10 in the 2026 T100 Race To Qatar, along with the next 8 from the PTO World Rankings System and 2 Wildcards.
- Increased prize money per race: Each T100 race in 2026 will offer a US$275,000 prize fund, more than double the prize fund per race this year, starting with US$50,000 for first place, US$40,000 for second, US$30,000 for third, down to US$3,500 for 20th place. The series prize pool will be worth US$1,450,000 split equally between women and men, with US$100,000 to each series winner.
PTO CEO Sam Renouf said “What is clear and supported by our professional athletes’ feedback and actions over the last 18 months, is that getting the pros to compete across all the legs of a nine stop series has been a challenge, for a variety of reasons.
“Equally, we know from the feedback from our commercial partners, that if triathlon wants to elevate itself and compete with the many other forms of sport and entertainment in the world, we need to deliver a season-long calendar that has enough volume to ‘cut through’. By adapting our competition format to keep our race calendar intact, while incorporating the feedback of the professionals, we believe we can deliver the best of both worlds.”
He continued, “We also recognize the impact our racing has on our other stakeholders, be that the fans who tune-in and spectate, the hosts who close their roads and the broadcasters who dedicate their valuable airtime to the competition.
“An unanticipated impact of our calendar in 2025 was a professional product that sometimes extended to six or seven hours – far longer than we’d ever anticipated when creating the T100 as the optimum distance to professionalise the sport. By adapting to this single race format, we can deliver the ideal product for all our stakeholders in a 4-hour event window consistent with other major professional sports, making our events for both genders even more competitive, rewarding and exciting for everyone involved.”
World Triathlon’s Antonio Arimany added “World Triathlon is really proud of the strong partnership and collaborative spirit we share with the PTO. By listening to our key stakeholders, especially the athletes, we are confident that the evolution of the T100 series will result in an even more compelling and successful circuit in 2026. Together, we are committed to elevating the sport and providing the best possible platform for our athletes to shine.”
PTO also announced that the World Triathlon Championship Series (WTCS) will return to London in 2026 at the London T100 Triathlon weekend (July 25-26, 2026). Here, PTO and World Triathlon decided to switch out the professional 100km distance races for 2026 for the shorter WTCS format; whilst the amateur part of the weekend will continue to feature the PTO’s signature 100km triathlon (2km swim, 80km bike, 18km run) as well as Olympic, Sprint and Relay options.
