Still relatively unknown a few years ago, the triathlon is a discipline that is becoming increasingly popular because of the new challenge that it offers as well as the variety of the training. Check out the following data on the number of people who practise triathlon and their profile.
Triathlon, which received relatively little media coverage when it started, is becoming increasingly popular as is demonstrated by the following figures: the number of triathletes in the world has more than doubled in 7 years! It has risen from 1.3 million in 2009 to 2.8 million in 2016. Thanks to the short race formats and the improvements in the available equipment, everyone can have a go at the triathlon with a little bit of training if they want to surpass themselves and discover a new discipline. The triathlon is a very complete and varied sport that is practised in the countryside. This is what makes it so popular with those who love to engage in new outdoor experiences!
In addition to a new challenge, it is also the opportunity for swimmers, cyclists or runners to add variety and break the routine of the training sessions in a single sport. Most triathletes come from running (33%), then cycling (16%) and finally from swimming (12%).
The triathlon is a mixed sport that involves many female participants (26% of the signed-up members of the FFTRI in 2016 were women) and where the issue of male-female parity has been a part of the mixed competitions from the very start. The same cannot necessarily be said of other elite disciplines. However, there is an increasing number of competitions reserved for women being organised in order to encourage women to get into the sport and feel more comfortable.
The average age of those who practise the triathlon is distributed as follows: 41% are between the ages of 36 and 50 years old, 35% are between 26 and 35 years old with most of those involved in the short race formats like the sprint being relatively young because of the intensity in effort level required – explosive power is needed at the start and end of the race, which suits them better. As for the longer race formats, they attract the older athletes who prefer endurance races and have superior resistance.
Source: FFTRI - 2016 figures
Passionnée de sport, j’ai longtemps pratiqué la danse avant de découvrir le triathlon qui est devenu une vraie addiction dès ma première course ! Adepte des distances Sprint et Olympique, j’aime la variété qu’offre ce sport tant au niveau de sa pratique que de l’environnement dans lequel il me fait évoluer. Le triathlon c’est toujours de beaux défis en perspective avec beaucoup de plaisir à la clé !