Triathlon as spectator sport

iAcesHigh

After reading the thread about no news on Alieen's success this year, I came back to the question that was bothering me even more when I was starting with my tri-trainings and trying to get people engaged. Although I did get some numbers since I posted my blog posts on the biggest sports site back in Croatia, comparing the numbers to numbers I would get for any other automoto or tennis news, I wasn't all that satisfied.

On the other hand, when I though about what can we as athletes/organizers/enthusiasts do to attract more spectators, I couldn't really get anything decent other than use beautiful venues, try to secure nice atmosphere during Events and have a really loud and funny announcers What are your thoughts on this?

If you ask me, stories like the one from brothers Brownlee, from 0 to Ironman in 3 months, Hines Ward one etc. are great publicity stunts which for sure attract a bunch of people to do triathlons but they aren't really addressing the "issue" of low interest by spectators. I myself am struggling to check out some races which my friends are racing and let alone watch ones where I don't have anybody so what can we do to attract those who aren't really triathletes and living "our" life? Can we do anything? Some food for thought...

joey100

Ironman races are too long to watch fully, even for people interested in the sport. Apart from Kona I wouldn't say many watch a full Ironman race (if they even are streamed live or available to watch).m The ITU stuff can turn into a bit of a running race a lot of the time. Few groups on the bike, usually one big group with a smaller group or two by the end and then a running race to see who wins.

I reckon races like the triathlon relay and some of the American super sprints, where they have say a 200m swim, 6km bike, 2km run and they do it twice are more interesting for spectators. Plenty going on and can be less predictable.

iAcesHigh

yeah, not that long ago one of the best Croatian triathletes commended a special type of relay race for which he though was great for spectators: "It's dynamic, fast and really enjoyable to watch":

2 male + 2 female athletes: 300 m swim, 6.5 km bike and 1.8 km run - each do that before they pass the relay

He though this was really interested and actually said that authorities are trying to push it into Olympic Games schedule. I must admit I never witnessed this kind of race so would be willing to give it a go

woody1

youtube itu hamburg mixed relay, looks like great craic, our club doing one this year for ourselves,

desertcircus

Whether triathlon can work as a spectator rather than participant sport is an interesting question. I haven't yet done a triathlon (still learning how to move more than five metres in the water without coming to a spluttering halt), but I watch Ironman and ITU race coverage on Eurosport when it comes up. By far the biggest problem is the delay in coverage - I don't think I've watched a single race that was less than a month old, which is close to being pointless. If you want to develop a fan base, then you need live TV coverage, ideally with multiple cameras and a knowledgeable commentary team who know exactly what's going on. Eurosport's live cycling coverage is the model to shoot for - you can tune in with two hours to go before the race ends, and Carlton Kirby and Sean Kelly will tell you that the breakaway has six minutes on the peloton but they've very few climbers and they're about to hit Ventoux. They know who's going to try to make up time on the descents, who's gunning for sprint points, and who benefits most from tomorrow's 58k time trial. Tune into Eurosport two hours before an Ironman race ends, or half an hour before an ITU race ends, and there's tennis. Without a good package for watching, you don't get fans. Everything else is secondary.

sconhome

woody1 wrote: »

youtube itu hamburg mixed relay, looks like great craic, our club doing one this year for ourselves,

Actually when I read the thread this morning my first thought was to Hamburg. As a format it can be a great spectacle with looping bikes and runs through the streets and a grandstand area.

But in fairness how many towns are open to shutting down their streets for a race like this? From a safety point of view having the elites on a closed circuit like that is great for spectators but the AG races that followed were boring as you saw people in transition or the finish only.

catweazle

desertcircus wrote: »

By far the biggest problem is the delay in coverage - I don't think I've watched a single race that was less than a month old, which is close to being pointless.

Keep an eye out for coverage on BBC - via the red button they often have full coverage, ITU London last weekend was live on BBC 2 and they have a decent highlights package usually on the normal service for us cursed UPC users on the weekend of the race.

Otherwise I think cycling has a lot more going for it as regards coverage, a three week tour has lots of ups and downs that sucks you in, although I will admit I have hardly ever watched a flat sprinters stage but I do enjoy the high mountain stages and TTs.

I remember going to a golf tournament a few years back and thinking never again as I waited by the green for three lads to roll 4 foot putts every 20 minutes or so. Golf is a TV sport.

ITU London - Mens I watched the full swim, fast forwarded the bike just slow enough so I could stop it if I saw someone trying a break and watched the run. The womens was even worse for me as I fast forwarded the run as well as the bike as Gwen steamed away as per usual. In my opinion its not a great spectator sport even for TV let alone going to one

griffin100

catweazle wrote: »

The womens was even worse for me as I fast forwarded the run as well as the bike as Gwen steamed away as per usual. In my opinion its not a great spectator sport even for TV let alone going to one

To be fair the cameraman covering the 2nd and 3rd place women tried to make the women's race interesting, he spent most of the race with his camera trained on their backsides, so much so that even my wife commented on it!!!

catweazle

griffin100 wrote: »

To be fair the cameraman covering the 2nd and 3rd place women tried to make the women's race interesting, he spent most of the race with his camera trained on their backsides, so much so that even my wife commented on it!!!

Yes it's a pity the USA tri suit is not a patch on the Aussie girls tri suit

Peterx

Live GPS tracking on all athletes screened on a huge big screen in the transition area, a knowledgeable commentator, athletes coming through the transition area at least 8 times during the race, a big kiddie zone, razzamatazz IMMEDIATELY after the race with prize giving. It's all doable.

The cyclocross organisers have a good model going on, the Supercross races are excellent. Hospitality tent, racers coming and going from all directions all the times, kiddie fun to be had for supporting families and an announcer letting you know how the race is going.
It's an hour long, similar to Olympic distance tri.

edit - The summer CX race in Rathfarnham was in fact the perfect model. The village completely bought into it, there was a festival, the racing looked exciting and spectators could safely see the racers in several locations on the compact course.

rooneyjm

AKW wrote: »

Actually when I read the thread this morning my first thought was to Hamburg. As a format it can be a great spectacle with looping bikes and runs through the streets and a grandstand area.

But in fairness how many towns are open to shutting down their streets for a race like this? From a safety point of view having the elites on a closed circuit like that is great for spectators but the AG races that followed were boring as you saw people in transition or the finish only.

I'm sure if towns thought it would bring people it might accommodate, like Athlone, Lanesboro, Skerries. Get Barry Hearn involved, he made Snooker sexy.