TRIATHLON CANADA INSIDER
2010 Triathlon Photo
The InsiderJuly 2011

Thousands Line Edmonton Streets for Successful World Cup

Kyle Jones 2011
Edmontonians didn't get a chance to see their hometown hero, Paula Findlay, lead the world down the streets she grew up on, but they were exposed to an incredibly action-packed weekend at the 2011 Edmonton World Cup. 

 

While Australia's Ashleigh Gentle and Bevan Docherty, of New Zealand, took home the gold medals, it was the City of Edmonton standing on the top of the podium at the conclusion of the weekend festivities. The City of Edmonton, which was a strong vocal supporter of Edmonton bringing back the World Cup event, will honour the organizing committee at the beginning of the next meeting of City Council, in July.
 

 

The following are a number of highlights from the first of a five-year commitment for the Edmonton ITU World Cup Triathlon:
 

kids- Nearly 200 Alberta youth, ages 11 and under, participated in the Kinetico Kids of Steel event at the Royal Glenora Club surpassing the organizers entry goals;

- More than 850 competitors took part in the PATCO Junior Championships and age-category races at Hawrelak Park;

- More than 5,000 spectators watched the World Cup races;

- All three levels of government supported the World Cup, were in attendance and participated in the awards ceremonies;

- Nearly 30 reporters and photographers covered the World Cup events, representing national mainstream media including print, radio and television;

- The ITU successfully staged two training events: a Level 2 coaching seminar for 10 countries from the America's, and a Level 2 technical officials course;

- The Edmonton Triathlon Academy, which was created as a beneficiary of the previous decade of staging major international events, has had a great start and will be providing four of the six Alberta triathletes at the Western Canada Games next month.  The Academy also had one member participating in the PATCO Junior Championships.
 

Ellen Pennock Captures first International Victory in Edmonton

PennockCanada's top juniors kicked off the World Cup weekend in Edmonton with the PATCO Junior Pan American Championships.
 
  

Calgary's Ellen Pennock thrilled the thousands of spectators that lined the streets of Edmonton with her first international win. Pennock rebounded from a difficult start to the 750-metre swim where she swallowed a lot of water to come out of the water in the chase pack. The feisty Albertan worked well within the chase pack on the 20-kilometres of rolling hills that made up the bike course to catch the leaders on the second loop. The 18-year-old put together a strong five-kilometre run to post a winning time of 1:01:22.


"I was quite nervous for this race because I have never raced athletes from outside of Canada before," said Pennock. "It feels so great to have a good result, and has motivated me for the rest of the season."
Working with coach Patrick Kelly, who has helped lead Paula Findlay to five World Championship Series victories, Pennock has is developing into another one of Canada's young junior star triathletes. She won the opening race on the Teck National Junior Series in June.
 

"This is the first year that I have really directed my focus towards triathlon," said Pennock. "My goal is to stay healthy, race well and continue working on my transitions. I need to remain focused through the summer, but also enjoy what I am doing and keep it fun."
 

Pennock was pushed for the battle for the top of the women's program by teammate, Christine Ridenour. The Victoria resident, who represented Canada at the inaugural Youth Olympic Games in Singapore last year, claimed the silver medal with a time of 1:02:28. Mexico's Adriana Barraza finished third at 1:02:43. Victoria's Allison Hooper was fourth at 1:03:00, while Hillary Willie was the final Canadian in the top-five with a time of 1:03:13.
 

Turn the Dial to CBC for Triathlon Race Action - Edmonton and London

  Bike Photo



CBC Sports Weekend will be broadcasting same-day coverage of the London stop of the World Championship Series. The main network will air the women's race on August 6 from 3-4:30 p.m. EST, followed by the men's race on August 7 at 2-4 p.m. local regional time.


 Young Canucks Win Double-Gold in San Francisco

Brault & Sharpe

 

Victoria's Matt Sharpe and Winnipeg's Sarah-Anne Brault got the monkey off their back by winning their first Pan American Cup Olympic distance races in San Francisco.  


 On the men's side, Sharpe broke the tape in 1:56:42, just ahead of Ethan Brown of the United States, who grabbed second in 1:56:52. Costa Rica's Leonardo Chacon placed third in 1:57:23 over the 1,500-metre swim, 40-kilometre bike and 10-kilometre run.

  

"It feels pretty unbelievable. I had no idea I would place that well," beamed Sharpe, who is days shy of his 20th birthday. "I was strong in all disciplines and had good mental awareness in terms of responding to the race situations."


A rookie on Triathlon Canada's development squad, Sharpe was no stranger to the winner's circle during his junior career. The reigning Canadian Junior titleholder is a two-time Teck National Junior Series Champion.

 

 

"My season didn't start too well but this tells me when I execute my race plan I am capable of positive results."

 
Calgary's Jon Bird was the only other Canadian in the top-five, placing fifth at 1:58.39. 

 

 

The Canadian celebration continued with Winnipeg's Sarah-Anne Brault also bringing home her first Pan American Cup title.

 

Brault and American Kaitlin Shiver were within a second of one another on both the swim and bike, but Brault earned the win on the 10-kilometre run with a 37:22 split for, 16 seconds quicker than Shiver. Brault's time-to-beat was 2:05:04. Shiver settled for silver with a time of 2:05:19, while Julie Ertel, of the United States, rounded out the women's podium in third at 2:07:51. Calgary's Alex Coates finished fourth after stopping the clock at 2:08:16.Victoria's Matt Sharpe and Winnipeg's Sarah-Anne Brault got the monkey off their back by winning their first Pan American Cup Olympic distance races in San Francisco.

 

 

 "Defend Your Podium Title" (DYPT) Program

 

In 2011 Age Group Athletes who achieve a Podium Performance at the ITU Age Group World Championships in Sprint, Olympic, Duathlon, Long Distance Duathlon or Long Distance Triathlon will be eligible for benefits to assist them in their attempt to "Defend their Podium" at the 2012 ITU Age Group World Championships.  Note that Elite and Paratriathletes are not eligible for this program.

 

Age Group athletes who achieve the following podium finish will receive the following support:

 

GOLD

 - Automatic qualification to the 2012 World Championships

 - Team AND Uniform Kit Fees waived ($400CAD Value!)

 

SILVER & BRONZE

 - Automatic qualification to the 2012 World Championships

 - Team Fee Waived ($125CAD value!)

 - $100 off of Uniform Kit Fee (Athlete to pay $175CAD)

 

Athletes who achieved a podium finish will receive an email approximately 1 month following the World Championships requesting their confirmation on "defending their podium title" at next year's World Championships.

 

 Please note the following terms and conditions:
- There must be at least 5 other athletes competing in the same age group category

- Must be a member of their PGB throughout the next season

- Respond by the deadline date set by Triathlon Canada - NO EXCEPTIONS

- WITHDRAWALS: if a withdrawal occurs after the uniform sizing request deadline, the athlete is responsible for paying the uniform fee ($275)

National Champions Bonus

Starting at the 2011 Canadian National Championships in Kelowna, the National Champion from each age group category in the Olympic and Sprint Categories will be able to obtain a bonus of $125 toward their World Champion Team registration.

This is to encourage our top Canadian age group athletes to travel to the ITU World Championships and compete against the best in the world.

 

Athletes interested in obtaining the bonus must:

 - Complete the online registration for World Championships following the National Championships

 - Alert Triathlon Canada that they were the National Champion in their respective age group prior to/following registration

 

NOTE: The National Champions' Bonus does not apply to age adjusted race results

 

Teck Employee Introduces B.C. Youth to Triathlon

 

Teck JuniorGord Menelaws has spent the better part of his adult life participating in triathlons, and providing kids and families in his small community of Trail, British Columbia the opportunity to play sports.

The chair of Teck's Inspiring Wellness and Learning program at Teck Trail Ops, who has completed two Ironman's, combined his two passions in life to hold a free Kids of Steel clinic in Trail at the end of June.
 

"I am a true ambassador for triathlon and for getting kids involved in sport so this event seemed like a natural fit for me," said Menelaws, who only dreams he had the opportunity to be introduced to triathlon at a young age.  "As parents we are always conscious of keeping our kids busy. There is no better sport to keep kids busy than one that has three disciplines in it."
 

With a focus on using sport to live a healthy, active lifestyle, Triathlon Canada and its title sponsor, Teck, are working to inspire athletes at all levels to join in the spirit of their communities for vital and vibrant futures.


As a result, Teck is holding triathlon clinics to teach enthusiastic kids - ages eight to 15 - the basics of swimming, cycling and running while mastering the fourth sport mixed into a triathlon - the tricky transitions. The Teck Kids of Steel program features a unique combination of weekend camps, triathlon-Multisport events, and special presentations for children, youth and parents in the Teck communities.


"These types of events are key to exposing kids at an early age the benefits of sport," said Menelaws. "We had a very successful weekend in Trail, and coach Teresa <Cheng> was tremendous. The emphasis was on fun and the highlight was the smiles the event put on the faces of kids, parents and the coach."


This is the second clinic that Teck has held in partnership with Triathlon Canada in Trail, Teck has also provided Kids of Steel clinics to youth in the communities of Oakville, Ont., Elkford, B.C., and Fernie, B.C. since 2008.

2011 Canadian National Championships Set for Kelowna

The 2011 Canadian National Triathlon Championships will again be hosted by the 29th Annual Pushor Mitchell Apple Triathlon in Kelowna, B.C., August 19-21

This year's International Triathlon Union (ITU) Age Group World Championships will take place in Beijing on September 11-12. The Apple Triathlon offers an opportunity for Canada's leading triathletes to prepare for Beijing. Age groupers also have an opportunity to secure one of ten spots for the ITU Age Group Triathlon World Championships in Auckland, New Zealand 2012.

 

In addition to the Canadian National Triathlon Championships, the Pushor Mitchell Apple Triathlon also hosts the ITU Triathlon Pan American Cup, the Western Canadian Kids of Steel (KOS) Youth Championships for athletes aged 12 to 15 and FINA Open Water Swims.

 

The Pushor Mitchell Apple Triathlon caters for all ages and stages. Triathlon novices can participate in the Try-a-Tri, organizations can challenge each other in the Business Challenge Sprint Relay and swimmers have the opportunity to participate in the FINA 1.5km and 5km Open Water Swims.

 

The elite races wrap up the weekend on August 21. For a complete schedule of events, please visit

www.appletriathlon.com

Quotes of the Month

Simon"I'm very, very proud that Paula has done what she is doing, showcasing this City of Champions the way she is. You see a real unique thing about Edmonton in that this Edmontonian does well and it doesn't go unnoticed. There are a lot of cities that have great champions in amateur sport and it kind of goes unnoticed."...  Simon Whitfield

"Findlay is the real deal heading to next year's London Olympics and the betting is she'll only get better." Randy Starkman, Toronto Star's Olympic reporter.

 

"She loves to compete, she knows how to hurt and she knows how to race hard. That's something that you can't teach athletes. You can give them all the appropriate training, all the right ingredients leading into a race, but I always call that hard wiring that you're born with. And I think she's hard-wired to win." Paula Findlay's coach, Patrick Kelly.

 

 "He's a legend. He's been a mentor for me for 10 years. I was 15 when he made that sprint for gold at the Sydney Olympics. I watched that and told myself 'One day I want to do that.' Hopefully in 2012 Simon and I can get to the London Olympics together and be teammates."...Kyle Jones after becoming the first Canadian in 10 years to beat Simon Whitfield in a race.

 

 Get Connected with Triathlon Canada

 

Triathlon Canada is officially exploring the world of social media having launched its Facebook page in June. The page will highlight important information around the high-performance, age group and para-triathlon programs leading to the Grand Final in Beijing.  In addition, athlete quotes, photos, notes and video will also be displayed prominently on the page.

The success of the Facebook page will be as strong as its participation from the triathlon community, so we encourage you to join us and get involved.
  Find us on Facebook
Communications Manager
Chris Dornan
281.703.4394 
communications@triathloncanada.com
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