DISPARITY IN TRIATHLON
ITHINK IT’S SAFE to say that none of us are going to forget 2020 any time soon. When the COVID-19 pandemic forced Canada to shut down in March, few of us had any idea just how devastating this virus would be – both in terms of the lives lost and the impact on the economy and other facets of our lives. As I wrote in my May editorial, it’s important for us to keep things in perspective: “If losing a race season is the worst thing you have to deal with this season, you are in pretty good shape.”
But losing a race season might have some dire consequences for some in our sport. As Nicola Busca explores in this issue, some pro triathletes are struggling to hold things together through these difficult times. Race directors have had a tough summer, too – Ironman has taken a PR beating over its refund policy, while smaller events are struggling to make ends meet. Some event organizers might not be in business next year. Then there are the companies that are dependent on races for their existence. My friends at Ottawa-based Sportstats, one of the largest timing companies in the world, have had quite a year holding things together.
It has been well documented that the COVID-19 pandemic has affected marginalized communities disproportionately, too. There has been some much-needed awareness brought to this and the issues around racism in our country after the death of George Floyd in the United States, and Canadians such as Regis Korchinski-Paquet, at the hands of the police. The ensuing protests have forced us to re-examine the disparity issues that plague our society.
So how can the triathlon community advocate for the broad societal changes that we need to make to address the disparities? Last year, we explored triathlon’s diversity challenges in our May & June 2019 issue. I hardly need to re-emphasize that triathlon is not a diverse sport. The more I’ve thought about that, the more I keep thinking that one of the most important things triathletes could do to make a significant change and to help marginalized communities across Canada starts at a pretty basic level.
Just look at the demographics. The average income of recreational triathletes is around $150,000 a year here in Canada. Transition areas are full of lawyers, doctors, financial power players and high-level executives. Many in our sport have the power to make significant change by ensuring that the companies they work for, or own, pay everyone a living wage. That they hire people from diverse backgrounds and give everyone a chance to make a decent living, so they can enjoy leisure activities, like triathlon, because they’re not constantly struggling to make ends meet.
As you will read in Isi Ibarra’s excellent piece in this issue, triathlon offers an incredible opportunity to make a difference in people’s lives. Wouldn’t it be great if that opportunity was expanded to more people? We need to continue to make races, camps and triathlon clubs as accessible as possible, but there are those in our sport who can also make a huge difference in workplaces and other parts of our society. We can, should and need to make a difference.