Eh, this is inaccurate. Ironman has done both things. Targeted areas that had an independent race and created their own, and also bought struggling races and kept them going.
You mean IM bought races that were dying on the vine due to lack of participation to try and bolster them (and of course capitalize on their locations for their own benefit). When the infusion from IMâs involvement was short lived they returned to their destined death OR the IM involvement lead to sustained success. At least that was the case for the last 15 years.
Instead we now have VC group buying up races with the hope of living off the revenue generated by the races and when they are unable to it leaves those well established races futures in jeopardy.
Theyâve also bought perfectly successful races and kept them (70.3 Wisconsin). But back 10-15 years ago, they were doing a lot of killing local races with their own competing races and buying and killing local races.
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Donât think anyone views this as a game changer but there are synergies definitely. One set of road closures and other related costs can now be shared between 2 organizations. It does saved pennies when both entities are struggling
what is clear from the interview is that PTO is now into mass participation events and they have pivot away from getting that mega broadcasting deal as it ainât happening
Koolhaas recently gave an interview to the Dutch press saying PTO still hasnât paid him, didnât specify what but it does need to pay athletes on time otherwise more will move on
Sounds a lot like Grand Slam Track.
Getting into bed with federations sounds like a great idea. Just ask Australia & Canada athletes where federation interests lie 
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Im not concerned at all. I lost interest in the ITU/WTS a couple of decades ago.I look forward to the 2026 season and then will worry about 2027 in 13 months time.
It doesnât say triathlon federationsâŚ
I would suggest football (soccer) - FIFA obviously still runs the World Cup but the difference between the Premier League and the FA in England is clear, cricket (donât laugh if youâre state-side, second most popular sport in the world!), boxing, tennis, cycling.
And then weâve seen less successful attempts recently in athletics (GST) and rugby (R360).
It does seem to be a common trend in sports governance.
Overall good. But letâs not keep down-grading the swim.
Distances should be Olympic and Double-Olympic.
And athletes gotta be freelancers. Like golf. Which is also an Olympic sport. No more federation meddling. If youâre good enough, youâre good enough. No matter which country you are from.
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Do you realize how much money this would pull away from triathlon?
Yes. But Iâm thinking of a dream scenario. Hopefully things evolve.
Obviously weâve seen plenty of cases of favouritism. Gotta be in the right training group. etc. And athletes signing for another federation just to get starts.
But also. I just donât like the aesthetic of racing all year in national kit. I love it in T100 when they get to be creative with kit and equipment. Vincent Luis etc.
Are SC triathletes making more money than Long Course? Always thought it was the opposite, that Long Course is where the money is. SC hopefully getting a boost of sponsor money.
I kinda like it, hope they will host some T50 AG races near me.
I think @Kajet means that if thereâs no federation involvement then government funding pathways might dry up.
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Exactly this is what I meant.
USAT alone spent on its programs (not including overhead to run the organisation) $13m last year. Thatâs incidentally as much as total prize and bonus purses of Ironman and the T100 combined - worldwide.
Look at how many long course pros are real full time pros living off prizes and sponsors. Mid double digits? And these people are drawing eyeballs. Now tell me how youâre going to get sponsors to fund untold thousands of kids and youth and U23s who are now in various development programs. Oh and how adults will be funded, since you know, nobody cares about short course?
Really depends. From a prize money perspective, LC earn significantly more and the top tiered athletes get a good sized amount of paid sponsorship
SC athletes are supported by their federation. Some countries give a good monthly stipend which allows them to live decently and train for the Olympics. That stipend is augmented by prize money and sponsorships. Think UK athletes are well taken care off, thanks in large part to lottery cash in the past
Yes. Totally agree. Thatâs where the money is coming from. But in a dream scenario it would be great to see all athletes ultimately in charge of their own destiny. Like the good olâ days.
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Federation support is much less than most think⌠often doesnât even cover rent and in places like the UK, support phases out if you earn X amount of sponsor/prize money (think itâs 30k or so)
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National federations sanction (authorize) organizations to run leagues. Global Federations donât do that at all. They may have an events/commercial co that they own that does these things. FIFA has one, World Rugby has one, etc. But letâs not for a second say this what World Governing bodies do. I understand Triathlon is different. But in this case, WTCS looks more like the HSBC SVNS than it does like a regular league.
What about the FIA and F1?
Nicely written article sfjab
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