- PruHealth World Triathlon Grand Final London, staged 11-15 September
- 8,500 athletes, including GB Olympic Champion Alistair Brownlee, to compete
- 200,000 spectators expected to descend on Hyde Park
- Grandstand Tickets launched and on sale today (Tuesday 9 July) at midday
In a re-run of London 2012, the world’s best triathletes including Olympic Champion Alistair Brownlee will again descend on Hyde Park in September in front of an expected crowd of 200,000 as the Grand Final of the ITU World Triathlon Series comes to town.
The Grand Final is part of UK Sport’s £27million National Lottery funded Gold Event Series which aims to bring 70 major championships to homesoil to build a strong sporting legacy for the UK.
The event, sponsored by PruHealth, is the most prestigious of triathlon competitions and will see 8,500 athletes from all over the world competing for Junior, U23, Elite, Paratriathlon and Amateur World Championship titles.
Five days of spectacular competition in Hyde Park from 11-15 September will be accompanied by a five day Triathlon Festival on Trafalgar Square featuring a health & lifestyle programme of one of the fastest growing sport in the UK. BBC’s live coverage of the elite races will be shown on big screens and those that have never tried out the sport will be given the opportunity to do a mini triathlon on Trafalgar Square itself. Kids Zones, temporary pools, static bikes, treadmills and PruHealth vitality tests will complete the triathlon experience.
Organisers Upsolut Sports and British Triathlon have announced that as well as being able to watch for free around the Olympic course, a small number of exclusive tickets will also be placed on sale on 9 July for grandstand seats for the women’s and men’s elite races on 14 and 15 September respectively.
Tickets (£15 for adults and £5 for children) will be on a first come first served basis and fans need to go to london.triathlon.org to purchase.
Simon Morton, Director of Major Events at UK Sport, said: “To stage the Grand Final on the same route will evoke so many wonderful memories of London 2012. It provides a fantastic opportunity for a huge number of people to see some of their Olympic heroesagain at an iconic London setting free of charge and also for thousands of people to get involved and compete on the same course.
“Since its launch UK Sport’s Gold Event Series has targeted major World and European Championships to build an enduring legacy from London 2012 and I am delighted to say we have now secured 27 world class events that will bring major benefit throughout the UK including the Grand Final of the ITU World Triathlon Series.”
Great Britain’s Non Stanford, who is currently 4th in the ITU World Series rankings and reigning World U23 Champion was on hand to launch the ticket sale.
She said: “London 2012 was incredible for our sport and to have the PruHealth World Triathlon Grand Final London in the city just 12 months later is going to be amazing. We want to encourage as many fans as possible to come down and support us take on the best in the world.”
It will be one of the biggest sporting events to hit the capital this year and will see Britain’s Paratriathletes embark on their first ever Paralympic journey and over 1,000 GB age-group athletes competing for worldtitles in front of friends and family ensuring an unforgettable atmosphere in Hyde Park.
Lauren Steadman, a member of the Team GB Paralympic Swimming team in 2012, has made a successful transition into triathlon winning the European Championships in the Tri 4 category last month and will be aiming for an impressive performance in front of a home crowd: “Competing at London 2012 was the highlight of my life and to have the opportunity to go out in front of a home crowd so soon after is amazing. I’m thoroughly enjoying my transition into triathlon and my big aim is to qualify for the Great Britain Paratriathlon Team at the Grand Final and then push for a podium place.”
Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, said: “Staging the Grand Final of the ITU World Triathlon Series is a fantastic honour that further cements our reputation as the best big city in which to hold major sporting events. We all remember watching the fantastic endeavors of the Brownlee brothers last year and this is an event that will give Londoners and visitors to the capital achance to see some of the finest triathletes once more. So, whether you plan to soak up the action in Hyde Park or Trafalgar Square, don’t miss out on what will no doubt be an awesome sporting spectacle.”