A sport which claims a reach of 900 million participants and offers over $8 million annually to its elite protagonists will reach its season finale in Doha this week.
Triathlon’s professional world tour will culminate in the Qatar T100 World Championship Final on Friday, in the water of the Arabian Gulf and around the streets of Lusail.
Qatar's capital will be the destination for the season finale for the next five years, as the region is becoming increasingly central to the growth of the sport.
What is the T100 Triathlon World Tour?
Launched last year, when the season final was held in Dubai, the tour is triathlon’s attempt to find its way into world sport’s mainstream.
Triathlon’s governing bodies estimate that 900 million people regularly train or compete in at least one of the three triathlon disciplines: swimming, cycling and running. Yet widespread exposure for the sport is generally limited to the Olympic event every four years.
By creating a new professional world tour, the aim is to create a season-long narrative to make stars of its leading performers, remunerate them accordingly, and ultimately create a globally recognised world champion.
Where does it visit?
The races, of which there have been nine this season, consist of a 2km swim, an 80km bike ride, and an 18km run, adding up to a total of 100kms – hence the name T100.
One of the pillars on which the tour is built are the destinations to which it travels. This season, the venues were Singapore, San Francisco, Vancouver, London, the French Riviera, a coastal town near Valencia in Spain, Sydney, Dubai and Doha.
Who participates?
There are 20 contracted athletes in each of the men’s and women’s tours. The top 16 on each were picked via a combination of their finishing position in last year’s series and the Professional Triathlete Organisation’s world rankings.
There are four others who are selected on the basis of their pedigree outside of the T100 tour events. They are referred to as “Hot Shots”, while there are also wildcards who are invited as cover when the contracted athletes are unavailable.
What is the prize money?
Between them, the 40 athletes are compensated more than $8m over the course of the season, according to the organisers.
There is a $250,000 prize fund at each T100 race, totalling $2.25m across the nine races. That is $25,000 for first place, $17,000 for second and $13,000 for third.
The series winners following the Qatar T100 World Championship Final will collect $200,000 from an additional total prize pool of $2.94m.
Why is the Middle East important?
Last season, the finale was in Dubai. For the next five, it is in Doha. And, next year, a race will be added in Jeddah in Saudi Arabia.
It is an embryonic tour which relies on private equity, rather than the traditional model of government funding based on Olympic participation. Host venues pay to stage their events, and advertise themselves as destinations to TV audiences in the process.
The organisers have borrowed concepts from other sports. Many of its broadcast's data visuals have been inspired by the coverage of Formula One.
And the Race to Qatar concept, with a desert swing of events culminating in a season-ending championship with an elevated prize pot, is almost identical to the DP World Tour’s Race to Dubai.
Who will win it?
Hayden Wilde leads the men’s series. He has won five of his six races this season, giving him an 18-point lead in the standings.
The New Zealander’s feats are remarkable in isolation. Then factor in a horror crash earlier in the year left him with six broken ribs, a punctured lung, and requiring shoulder surgery.
If he finishes on the podium in Doha, he is guaranteed to be world champion. If he finishes fourth, Jelle Geens, who is second in the standings, must win the race to deprive Wilde the title.
Between the last race in Dubai and the finale in Qatar, Wilde trained in Abu Dhabi, alongside Kate Waugh, who is leading the women’s series.
The Englishwoman’s lead is far tighter, though. She will be beaten to the title if Julie Derron or Lucy Charles-Barclay win the race in Lusail.
