Only two weeks after announcing the launch of Long Course Weekend in Jervis Bay, Australia Activity Wales Events have announced it will have another European event in Alcudia, Mallorca in November 2017.
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The Long Course Weekend, which originated in Wales six years ago, is a three-day sporting festival where athletes swim on Friday, cycle on Saturday and run on Sunday. There is a multitude of distances and a special medal for those that enter the Full Long Course Weekend and do the Long distance every day.
“We are delighted to have been able to come here to Mallorca and secure this slot in the race calendar,” says Matthew Evans of Long Course Weekend. “The Long Course Weekend is very much an experience and allows a range of people to get involved in the weekend. We will be working very closely with the local community to ensure the Mallorca experience is unparalleled
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Entries are scheduled to open in early January and are expected to fill very quickly. To register your interest or for more information you can visit www.lcwmallorca.com.
Alistair Brownlee has come second, behind tennis world number one and 2016 Wimbledon winner Andy Murray, at BBC Sports Personality of the Year. In third place was showjumper Nick Skelton who, like the other two, also won gold in Rio.
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The awards were held at a glittering ceremony at the Genting Arena in Birmingham and were presented by Gary Lineker, Clare Balding and Gabby Logan.
Alistair was the first triathlete to be nominated for the award and it followed a fantastic 2016 when he became the first triathlete ever to defend his Olympic gold in Rio.
But it was his feats at the 2016 ITU World Triathlon Grand Final in Cozumel, Mexico, in September that shot him to global prominence. The video of Alistair running with an exhausted Jonathan to the finishing line became the BBC’s most watched ever. Alistair could have won the race, but sacrificed victory to help his stricken brother across the line.
These emotional scenes were once again shown in the programme, earning Alistair one of the biggest cheers of the night from the show’s audience. And when asked what he said to Jonny in that moment in Mexico, he said, in a typical Yorkshire fashion, that he called him a ” **** idiot!”
Congrats Alistair Brownlee – you did triathlon proud – and yes you are supposed to ask for our votes!
Are you supposed to ask for votes in this situation? #notsureoftheprotocol #spoty #VoteBrownlee pic.twitter.com/XbYXu9WBgZ
— Alistair Brownlee (@AliBrownleetri) December 18, 2016
The other nominations were:
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Nicola Adams – Boxing, Gareth Bale – Football, Alistair Brownlee – Triathlon, Sophie Christiansen – Equestrian, Kadeena Cox – Athletics/Cycling, Mo Farah – Athletics, Jason Kenny – Cycling, Laura Kenny – Cycling, Andy Murray – Tennis, Adam Peaty – Swimming, Kate Richardson-Walsh – Hockey, Nick Skelton – Equestrian, Dame Sarah Storey – Cycling, Jamie Vardy – Football, Max Whitlock – Gymnastics, Danny Willett – Golf.
Boardman Bikes have been granted planning permission to build a new performance centre near Evesham in Worcesterhire. The centre will include a cycling specific wind tunnel, physiology testing suite, activity area and a concept store with café. The centre aims to offer a unique experience for all cyclists and triathletes of all levels, from Olympic and Paralympic champions to weekend cyclists.
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Chris Boardman said “This project has been a dream of mine for more than 6 years and I’m delighted the finishing line is now in sight. The possibilities for what the centre can deliver are truly amazing; in fact I don’t think it’s overly dramatic to say it will be revolutionary.”
Construction of the 18,000sqft site is anticipated to start in the spring with a grand opening scheduled for winter 2017.
Based on the edge of the Cotswolds it will be easily accessible by road, rail, or air.
Boardman Bikes Managing Director Andy Smallwood stated “It’s been a long time in the planning but following our close collaboration with Wychavon Council we are now ready to take the Performance Centre project from concept to reality. The combination of world class facilities and unique customer experience will make the new site a true destination for cyclists not just locally but from across the UK and Internationally. To say we are excited about this new chapter in the Boardman brands history is an understatement.”
Alistair and Jonny Brownlee have just faced their greatest challenge ever – forget going 70.3, forget Olympics, forget SPOTY – the real question is ‘who is the fastest down a waterslide?’
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Joined by professional triathlete and rising star Lucy Charles and Olympic open-water swimmer Jack Burnell, the group were put through their paces with a number of challenges at Alton Towers Water Park.
The athletes took an initial timed run down the slide, before being given the chance to spend £50 each to upgrade their HUUB products to increase their overall speed.
The second part of the HUUB Waterslide Challenge will be released in the coming weeks.
Alistair Brownlee said: “Jonny and I have a lot of experience in high pressure endurance competition, but I can safely say this was a first for us. More than anything we all wanted to win! It was freezing cold but we all forgot that when the competition started.”
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HUUB founder Dean Jackson: “All of our elite level ambassadors think they are the quickest, so we thought we would even the playing field and see who could cope with a few new situations! HUUB is all about using science and technology to gain an advantage so we thought we would try out a few new ideas with the guys!”
Thanks to Sony our competition package for the 220 Awards prize draw now includes a framed signed Brownlee tri-suit, worn by Jonny at WTS Cape Town as well as £100 worth of triathlon kit.
Jonny came second at WTS Cape Town 2016, just five seconds behind the winner Fernando Alarza from Spain.
To enter and be in with a chance of winning you just need to vote for your favourites before March 17 2017. A winner will then be chosen at random once the competition has closed and terms and conditions apply.
British Triathlon has confirmed the 29 athletes that will form part of the 2017 UK Sport Lottery Funded World Class Performance Programme.
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British Triathlon Performance Director, Brendan Purcell said: “It was fantastic to get funding confirmed from UK Sport, and this is what allows us to support a group of athletes who are targeting Tokyo and or the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Triathlon receives £8.1 million from UK Sport
“Several athletes have left the programme, but are continuing to compete in triathlon, and we wish them all the best. They make way for exciting juniors such as Alex Yee and Sam Dickinson. We’re also able to extend our support of India Lee, the current ETU European Champion, by adding her to the UK Sport Lottery Funded squad.”
“Our Paratriathlon roster will be added to. For now it features the key performers from Rio. Following the summer successes, we are currently working on developing a strong talent pathway to bring more paratriathletes through to world class level.”
The season starts in March with the first round of the ITU World Triathlon Series in Abu Dhabi. The ITU World Paratriathlon Series season opens a month later on the Gold Coast. Winning ITU world titles will be the major focus across both the triathlon and Paratriathlon squads in 2017.
British Elite Triathlon Squad (1 Jan – 31 Dec 2017)
Podium Squad
Alistair Brownlee, 28
Jonny Brownlee, 26
Vicky Holland, 30
Helen Jenkins, 32
Non Stanford, 27
Jodie Stimpson, 27
Podium Potential Squad
Marc Austin, 22
Gordon Benson, 22
Tom Bishop, 25
Sam Dickinson, 19
Ben Dijkstra, 18
Grant Sheldon, 22
Alex Yee, 18
Sophie Coldwell, 21
Lucy Hall, 24
Jessica Learmonth
India Lee, 28
Sian Rainsley, 19
Georgia Taylor Brown, 22
British Elite Paratriathlon Squad (1 Jan – 31 Dec 2017)
Tempted to try Swimrun? This news might tempt you more… ÖTILLÖ are offering the overall winner at all ÖTILLÖ Swimrun World Series races in 2017, as well as the ÖTILLÖ Swimrun World Championship, one million Swedish krona in prize money. That is €100,000 or £86,705 – not a bad incentive to try the sport.
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What is Swimrun?
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The races the team need to win to collect the €100,000 are (order by date): the first edition of ÖTILLÖ Hvar (2 April), ÖTILLÖ Utö (28 May), ÖTILLÖ Isles of Scilly (17 June), ÖTILLÖ Engadin (9 July), ÖTILLÖ The Swimrun World Championship (4 September), ÖTILLÖ 1000 lakes (1 October) and ÖTILLÖ XX (not yet official).
“We thought that eight hours was impossible at the ÖTILLÖ Swimrun World Championship, but we were proved wrong in 2016 when Daniel Hansson and Lelle Moberg finished at 07.59… People might think this new challenge is impossible but the opportunity is there to grab it.
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“Who will be the first team to win it all? We are very excited to start the 2017 swimrun season with such a challenge!” said swimrun founders and ÖTILLÖ organisers Mats Skott and Michael Lemmel (SWE).
Swimrun gear: what you need
How to make your own Swimrun kit
Now in their seventh year, Dengie Events have released their schedule of Essex-based triathlons for 2017, with sprint, Olympic and middle-distance racing all featuring.
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The Big East Triathlon kicks off the Dengie calendar on 21 May 2017 in Bradwell-on-Sea, Essex. The event gives entrants a choice of Middle Distance (1.6km swim/82km cycle/20km run) or Challenge Distance (800m swim/43km cycle/10km run) and is open to individual athletes and relay teams.
The Fambridge Yacht Haven Half Iron Triathlon takes place on 2 July 2017 in North Fambridge, Essex. This welcoming and friendly middle-distance event sees entrants take on a 1.9km river swim next to Blue House Farm Nature Reserve, 90km cycle in the peaceful Essex countryside and an 18km run around North Fambridge village.
The ever-popular Maldon Triathlon takes place on 30 July 2017 and the race organisers are expecting entries to sell swiftly. The beginner friendly Maldon Triathlon is based around the Promenade Park and Hythe Quay over Sprint (750m swim/28km cycle/5km run) and Olympic (1.5km swim/45km cycle/10km run) distances.
Alistair Brownlee’s actions at WTS Cozumel, when he helped his brother Jonny across the line, has earned him a nomination for the ‘Best Sporting Moment’ award at the prestigious Laureus World Sports Awards, the Oscars of the sporting world.
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WTS Cozumel: all the drama and emotion in pictures
This is a new category at the awards and members of the public will be able to vote for their favourite moment from the shortlist at mylaureus.com. By voting, fans are in with the chance of winning VIP tickets to the Laureus World Sports Awards.The voting period lasts from January 16th to February 4th.
These prestigious annual awards celebrate the outstanding achievements of sportsmen and sportswomen around the world and other great names recognised included tennis players Serena Williams and Novak Djokovic, not to mention triathlon’s very own Jan Frodeno, who was crowned the Laureus World Action Sportsperson of the Year last year.
The 2017 awards are to be held in Monaco on February 14
The ‘Best Sporting Moment’ shortlist
1. Alistair Brownlee helping exhausted brother, and fellow competitor, Jonny, across the finish line at the Triathlon World Series.
2. FC Barcelona’s under 12’s proving football really is a gentleman’s game by consoling their Japanese rivals, Omiya Ardija, after defeating them in the Final of the Junior Soccer World Challenge.
3. At the Hopman Cup in Perth, US tennis player Jack Sock proved sportsmanship isn’t dead by advising Aussie opponent Lleyton Hewitt to challenge the umpire’s decision that a shot was out
4. The Icelandic national football team met by a crowd of thousands in the capital city of Reykjavik upon returning from Euro 2016, and all taking part in an ‘Icelandic thunder clap’
5. New Zealand’s Nikki Hamblin and Abbey D’Agostino of the US helping each other after colliding in their 5000m heat at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro
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6. The touching image that captured the hearts of football fans across Europe; a young Portuguese fan embracing a sobbing French man after France lost in the Euro 2016
Four-time world Ironman champion Chrissie Wellington has announced the launch of her latest book: To the Finish Line: A World Champion Triathlete’s Guide to Your Perfect Race.
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Available from spring 2017, the book, which was produced in association with 220 Triathlon magazine, offers advice on everything from planning your race season and fitting triathlon training into everyday life, to race nutrition strategies and coping with pre-race nerves, to exercising during pregnancy and how to budget for a triathlon.
Drawing on Chrissie’s own training and race experiences – both good and bad – and packed full of extras, such as recipes, a typical weekly training programme and pearls of wisdom from some of Chrissie’s own advisors, To the Finish Line promises to be a valuable guide for triathletes of all abilities.
Chrissie Wellington OBE is an iconic figure in the history of British triathlon. A four-time world Ironman champion, she also holds the Ironman world record, was voted Sunday Times Sportswoman of the Year in 2010, and was awarded an OBE for services to sport and charity in 2015. Her 2012 memoir, A Life Without Limits, also published by Constable, was a No. 1 Sunday Times bestseller.
220 named her 5th greatest Kona athlete of all time
Wellington says: “I’m so excited that this book has become a reality, thanks to a partnership with Little, Brown and 220 Triathlon. Triathlon has changed my life in so many wonderful ways. Although I am no longer a professional athlete, I want to use my platform as four-time Ironman world champion to inspire, educate and encourage others and this book is a way of doing just that. It offers something for everyone, whatever stage you’re at on your sporting journey; enabling you to be the athlete you dream of, whether that be through refining your training, your nutrition, goal setting, your race strategies or by strengthening your mind.”
“We know based on feedback from our readers how valuable Chrissie Wellington’s advice is,” says 220 Triathlon editor Helen Webster. “Her wealth of knowledge is taken from personal experience and delivered in such a way that it inspires triathletes of all levels of ability, from newcomer to experienced Ironman, to get out there and achieve their best. We are excited about the publication of this must-read book that will help every triathlete reach their goals.”
To the Finish Line: A World Champion Triathlete’s Guide to Your Perfect Race will be published by Constable and priced £18.99.