The Blithfield Sprint Triathlon, the fourth of seven events that make up the new look 2013 Triathlon England – National Championships, will be taking place on Sunday 4 August at Blithfield Reservoir, Staffordshire.
The Sprint Distance race will kick off with a 750m swim in the beautiful reservoir, followed by a 20K bike ride on virtually traffic-free roads, and finishing off with a 5K run on a mixture of road/off-road terrain.
Over the past year, Triathlon England notes that interest in the sport has increased dramatically; and more women in particular are getting involved and ‘giving it a tri’ for themselves. In 2012, over 700 triathlons, duathlons and aquathlons took place in England, seeing over 125,000 people competing in races and many of them for the first time.
Jem Lawson, Chair of Triathlon England, said “It’s great news to see how interest in the sport is continuing to grow and we are excited to say that our 2013 Triathlon England – National Triathlon Championships is already proving very popular. With previous events selling-out, it shows these events are growing, and we hope that this in turn will encourage many more to get involved. Our memberships have been increasing steadily and we hope the value we offer will inspire more to get involved.”
Peter Jackson, of race organiser Punishing Events, said “It’s an absolutely fantastic location for a triathlon. It’s quite a forgiving course, which is ideal for a sprint distance as we often get novices giving triathlon a go for the first time. We just hope the weather settles down!”
The new Triathlon England Engagement Trailer will also be heading to the event. It provides a state-of-the-art facility for race-goers to talk to experienced members of the national governing body on a range of issues.
Triathlon England staff will be on hand all day and are hoping to receive valuable feedback about the membership benefits it provides and to discuss other new initiatives currently happening within the sport.
The 14-foot trailer, which is kitted out with its own PA system and digital media area will be touring around all of the remaining Triathlon England – National Championships.
There are still three other events in the Championships series available to enter for all abilities, whether athletes wish to take part in a duathlon, aquathlon or race with their club in the Club Relays, there’s still time to achieve a personal triathlon challenge in 2013.
The next Triathlon England – National Championships are:
- The BRAT Aquathlon Championships on 10 August 2013
- The Nottingham Club Relays Championships on 24-25 August 2013
- The Essex Off Road Duathlon Championships on 27 October 2013
Triathlon England is the National Governing Body for managing the sport and recreation of triathlon in England, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. Members are affiliated to a region and can vote for their regional committee. There are nine regions, which correspond to the English regional government areas.
Each region has a representative on the Council of Triathlon England, which appoints and supervises the controlling Management Board of Triathlon England. Triathlon England enables excellence and delivers the opportunities for everyone to achieve their personal triathlon challenges.
Due to the success of 2012 the Triathlon England – National Championships have grown to seven races in 2013.
