At the world triathlon multisport championship in Ibiza last week there was no finisher t-shirt, no medals but there was an NFT “race capsule” (Basically a video animation with your result sent to you via email the day after the race).
I’ve searched this forum for comments about NFT medals and I had the impression the majority thought it would be a dumb idea.
So what’s everyone’s thinking of that decision? Both about not having a physical finisher gift and the choice of having NFT medals.
It seemed the organisers wanted to make triathlon greener. I get it that a certain number of finisher t-shirts and medals probably go to waste but I feel like of all possible solutions this wasn’t a good one. Maybe an opt out system could have been implemented? (If you don’t want the medal or the t-shirt you opt out and they donate to a charity?).
Personally, I didn’t like this at all. I like to have a memory of the race linked to the fact that I finished it. I always end up using finisher t-shirts in training unless I really don’t like them (in which case they get donated). I do keep most medals and they go in a big glass vase of medals that is getting heavier and heavier.
About NFT, I think it’s just a ridiculous idea. Maybe NFT has its use cases (to be demonstrated), this is definitely not the one. This decision - to me - seems one born out of groupthink and losing touch with your users. An animation can look cool but I think people appreciate free race photos of themselves more.
I like the race capsule idea, with free media of yourself. I understand the appeal of “physical” mementos. But you could queue up all your finishes on non-stop loop as the default background on your home TV to subject your entire household to that kind of abuse. It’d be sort of like Doug Flutie putting the Hail Mary on endless loop (which I’d absolutely do if I were Doug).
The NFT aspect is a bit silly. Because finisher media is going to have no resale value or intellectual property value for anyone but the finisher.
Great idea. One less piece of crap my kids will have to throw out when I die.
^^^THIS^^^
We have to stop the BS of giving a trophy to everyone who finishes.
Disagree, if there’s no trophy or medal I don’t sign up for the race. It’s a major accomplishment to finish any race IMO and there should be a reward.
Agreed NFT for this purpose is silly and they could just have an option at registration. For a world championships and a race most people are traveling for and treating as a big deal, a small memento like a medal or even pair of socks seems reasonable.
What tech was used to implement this NFT? And is it on a public or private blockchain? From your post it sounds like you didn’t get an actual NFT but more so a video highlight.
[
Disagree, if there’s no trophy or medal I don’t sign up for the race.
You’re missing out on some spectacular events.
[
It’s a major accomplishment to finish any race IMO and there should be a reward.
Completing an arbitrary distance of a physical activity because it has a start and finish line is NOT a major accomplishment.
The finisher medal is essentially a participation certificate that is economical to make due to modern productivity enhancements.
Might I suggest it’s no more of a “waste” than the cost to produce it, which is what…1-2 bucks? That’s what price is after all. A measure of the economic inputs necessary to extract minerals, use energy, labor, shipping, accounting, taxes, etc to make the thing. I’m quite certain we waste many orders of magnitude more in other things.
On course bottles, gel wrappers, etc. are far more wasteful. I make my own nutrition from bulk, reuse my own gel and water bottles, and don’t use any on course nutrition other than a cup of water a few times. There’s far more waste there than in medals if you ask me. Even think of all those race banners, tape, volunteer shirts etc. Thats some serious waste. I’d be happy if courses everywhere required you to be self sufficient. Just have some 5 gallon jugs of water for me to stop and refill if needed.
There’s real low hanging fruit out there thats truly wasteful. Getting rid of the tangible marketing asset would be a net loss for the sport. The entire concept of triathlon is a giant waste if one obsessed about pollution or waste. I think the medals end up serving a valuable marketing reinforcement message that increases participation in the long run which is good for the sport.
If you only value what’s good for the planet or for your kids sorting you possessions after you die? Outlaw triathlon.
What tech was used to implement this NFT? And is it on a public or private blockchain? From your post it sounds like you didn’t get an actual NFT but more so a video highlight.
You get an individual link. The link takes you to a page where you can either download the video or “claim your NFT”.
I didn’t try to claim my NFT but clicking the button takes you to a signup page. The video is actually kinda nice, a bit futuristic maybe and it might get old quickly.
Screenshot of the page https://share.getcloudapp.com/Z4unXP1B
The company providing the service is called Podium https://podium-labs.io/ I didn’t see any specifics of the technology used on their website.
What tech was used to implement this NFT? And is it on a public or private blockchain? From your post it sounds like you didn’t get an actual NFT but more so a video highlight.
The company doing it is light on tech details, but they claim it’s NFT. I would guess it’s a private blockchain. The value-added of the NFT part is (sit down, big shock coming) fuzzy at best.
Great idea. One less piece of crap my kids will have to throw out when I die.
^^^THIS^^^
We have to stop the BS of giving a trophy to everyone who finishes.
Disagree, if there’s no trophy or medal I don’t sign up for the race. It’s a major accomplishment to finish any race IMO and there should be a reward.
Agreed NFT for this purpose is silly and they could just have an option at registration. For a world championships and a race most people are traveling for and treating as a big deal, a small memento like a medal or even pair of socks seems reasonable.
Yes, exactly. I don’t expect, want or need the average parkrun or small event to have it - but a major race like this one yes I do expect it and want it - at least give me the choice.
Agree. My girlfriend did the standard duathlon, first world champs, not likely to do them that often etc and we found out in the race pack queue on the Thursday about this, I was raging 🤣
The issue is that they take all your money for the kit, race entry etc plus you then have to travel, stay multiple days due to the staggering of the event and then you find out things like this last minute
It seemed the organisers wanted to make triathlon greener.
adding injury to insult, NFT’s are in no way shape or fashion green…
The authenticity factor, which is said to be one of the biggest benefits of NFTs, is causing incessant harm to the environment due to the continuous verification and mining process.
NFT instead of medals is a really stupid idea, just like NFTs themselves.
I was very bummed to find the ITU Age Group Championships didn’t have medals or t-shirts - honestly would have liked to have a medal from there.
Great idea. One less piece of crap my kids will have to throw out when I die.
^^^THIS^^^
We have to stop the BS of giving a trophy to everyone who finishes.
Disagree, if there’s no trophy or medal I don’t sign up for the race. It’s a major accomplishment to finish any race IMO and there should be a reward.
Why do you need a medal or trophy just for finishing? Surely you know and remember which races you did? I’m not really sure what the medal itself is accomplishing. It doesn’t tell you your time, performance, or offer any specific memory of the race itself.
At least a “time capsule” could have some basic info (splits, overall position, maybe a few photos) to look back on. But I can’t say I’d be excited about a time capsule or nft.
I quite like a t-shirt, because it has a practical purpose and actually gets used (I can never have enough t-shirts, even ones I don’t particularly like can be used for training in). Although, I’m sure even a lot of them just sit in a drawer never to be worn.
Maybe offer things at extra cost during sign up, which includes a carbon offset. No waste as the organisers would only have to order as many as required. Can still claim it’s a green race, and those that don’t want more junk don’t get it.
