Super League Triathlon set to debut in Penticton this weekend
Penticton once again becomes the centre of global triathlon attention as the first Super League event in North America goes this Friday to Sunday.
Close to 1,000 registrations have been received for the action-packed racing weekend, which sees athletes compete against each other in three stages over three days.
Now in its second season, Super League Triathlon is the pinnacle of triathlon on the world’s stage, delivering game-changing, short-course events with unpredictable outcomes.
The races take place on small, fan-friendly downtown circuits, and vary from the sport’s traditional long-course swim-bikerun format that has a rich history in the South Okanagan.
Spectators will be close to the centre of the action at all times, and guaranteed an action-packed race thanks to tight course design, pack racing, fast-paced event legs and ever-changing race leads.
“Penticton will be one of the first cities in the world to experience this dynamic event,” said Michael Brown, race director, Super League Triathlon Penticton. “Super League has changed the face of multisport racing, injecting fresh energy into the sport and spurring renewed global enthusiasm for triathlon.
“Triathlon fans and local residents are going to love what they see,” he added.
The first event is the Equalizer — a twostage event. Stage one is a stand-alone 15-km cycling time trial on Friday evening at Area 27 — a Grand Prix-inspired motor vehicle racetrack in Oliver.
The following day, the Equalizer stage two is a 300-metre swim, 2.5-km run, 300-metre swim, 16-km bike, then 2.5-km run.
Pro athletes will be handicapped according to their finish times in Friday’s time trial, and the slowest athletes eliminated after the first run leg.
Sunday sees age-group athletes race the Standard Enduro event, comprising six short-distance swim-bike-run-swim-bikerun legs.
That afternoon, the pro Eliminator stage consists of three swim-bike-run races, with each round separated by only a 10-minute break, and the slowest athletes being eliminated between each round.
Saturday and Sunday’s events are held at Gyro and Rotary Parks. Times from all three races are combined to find age-group champions.
A professional field of more than 30 triathletes from across the Americas, Europe and Asia-Pacific will be taking part.
These athletes are racing for one of 10 qualifying spots into the five-leg Super League Triathlon Championship series, taking place across Europe and Asia-Pacific between September and March.
Local residents wishing to participate can still register for any or all of the three races, run in Thursday’s “Almost” 1-km Family Fun Run at 5 p.m., volunteer on the course or spectate at the events.
Road closures on Saturday include Lakeshore Drive, the streets around Gyro Park, and Vancouver Ave/Lower Bench Road/Corbishley Ave until 4 p.m.
On Sunday, Main, Ellis and Government streets, and Dawson Avenue will be affected until 11 a.m., with Lakeshore Drive closed and minor road closures around Gyro Park until 5 p.m.
For more information on Super League Triathlon Penticton, go online to superleaguecanada.com, or visit the event’s Facebook, Twitter or Instagram pages.