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Triathlon is an ancient Greek word that refers to an
athletic event made up of three contests. In
contemporary usage, the name triathlon is mostly
applied to a race consisting of a combination of
swimming, cycling and running, in that order. In
most modern triathlons, these events are placed back-to-back
in immediate sequence and a competitor's official
time includes the time required to "transition"
between the individual legs of the race, including
any time necessary for changing clothes and shoes.
As a result, proficiency in swimming, running, and
cycling alone is not sufficient to guarantee a
triathlete a competitive time: trained triathletes
have learned to race each stage in a way that
preserves their energy and endurance for subsequent
stages.
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Name |
Swim |
Bicycle |
Run |
Notes |
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Super Sprint |
400 m(0.25 mi) |
10
km(6.2 mi) |
2.5 km(1.5 mi) |
Distances vary, but this is a standard Super
Sprint course. |
|
Sprint |
750 m(0.5 mi) |
20
km(12.4 mi) |
5
km(3.1 mi) |
A
500m swim is also common. The Sprint Distance is
the fastest growing triathlon race distance in
the United States |
|
Olympic |
1.5 km |
40
km |
10
km |
Also known as "international distance", "standard
course", or "short course". |
|
ITU-Long Distance |
3.0 km |
80
km |
20
km |
Shortened in 2006 |
|
Half-Ironman |
1.2 mi(1.9 km) |
56
mi(90 km) |
13.1 mi (21.09 km) |
Also called an "Ironman 70.3", or "medium
distance". |
|
Triathlon one 0 one |
1.86 mi (3.0 km) |
80.6 mi(130km) |
18.6 mi (30 km) |
Made debut in 2007 |
|
Ironman |
2.4 mi (3.8 km) |
112 mi(180 km) |
26.2 mi (42.195 km) marathon |
Also known as "iron distance" or "long distance". |
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Specialization of swimming, cycling and running in
triathlon |
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Swimming |
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A U.S. Marine emerging from the
swimming portion of a triathlon
Triathletes will use their legs
less vigorously and more
carefully than other swimmers,
conserving their leg muscles for
the cycle and run to follow.
Many triathletes use altered
swim strokes to compensate for
turbulent, aerated water and to
conserve energy for a long swim.
In addition, the majority of
triathlons involve open-water (outdoor)
swim stages, rather than pools
with lane markers. As a result,
triathletes in the swim stage
must jockey for position, and
can gain some advantage by
drafting, following a competitor
closely to swim in their
slipstream. Triathletes will
often use "dolphin kicking" and
diving to make headway against
waves, and body surfing to use a
wave's energy for a bit of speed
at the end of the swim stage.
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Also, open-water swims necessitate "sighting":
raising the head to look for landmarks
or buoys that mark the course. A
modified stroke allows the triathlete to
lift the head above water to sight
without interrupting the swim or wasting
energy.Because open water swim areas are
often cold, specialized triathlon
wetsuits have been developed. In
addition to warmth, wetsuits add
buoyancy and cut water resistance, both
of which increase swimming speed.
Wetsuits are only legal in sanctioned
events with a water temperature equal to
or below 78 degrees Fahrenheit (25.5
degrees Celsius). Some events allow
wetsuits regardless of water temperature,
and sometimes they are required. Or, in
a single event, wetsuits may be allowed
for "age groupers" but not for
professionals, as the temperature rules
differ slightly between the two groups. |
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Cycling |
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Triathlon cycling, with the exception of
Olympic triathlon and ITU World Cup
races, is very different from most
professional bicycle racing because it
does not allow drafting, so racers do
not cluster in a peloton. It more
closely resembles individual time trial
racing. Triathlon bicycles are generally
optimized for aerodynamics, having
special handlebars called "aero-bars" or
"tri-bars", aerodynamic wheels, and
other components. Triathlon bikes use a
specialized geometry, including a steep
seat-tube angle both to improve
aerodynamics and spare muscle groups
needed for running (see also Triathlon
equipment). At the end of the bike
segment, triathletes also often cycle
with a higher "cadence" (revolutions per
minute), which serves in part to keep
the muscles loose and flexible for
running. It is believed, though, that
the primary benefit to spinning in a
triathlon is that the strain of the
effort is placed disproportionately on
the slow twitch muscle fibers,
preventing the athlete from accumulating
an oxygen debt before the run. |
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Running |
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The primary distinguishing feature of
running in a triathlon is that it occurs
after the athlete has already been
exercising in two other disciplines for
an extended period of time, so many
muscles are already tired. The effect of
switching from cycling to running can be
very profound; first-time triathletes
are often astonished at the bizarre,
sometimes painful sensation in their
thighs a few hundred yards into the run,
and discover that they run at a much
slower pace than they are accustomed to
in training. Triathletes train for this
phenomenon through transition workouts
or "bricks": back-to-back workouts
involving two disciplines, most commonly
cycling and running. (The term "brick"
has multiple claims of origination/derivation.
Among those is the derivation from a
partial anagram of Bike-Run. Also, it
may simply be a descriptive term for how
your legs feel for the first part of the
run. Another is credited to Mark Sisson
and Scott Zagarino (1988), who
associated the term brick with the idea
of "Just another brick in the wall"...
as noted in a song by the group "Pink
Floyd". Another association of this term
has been claimed to originate from a New
Zealand athlete by the name of Matt
Brick.) |
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