If you’re interested in getting started in paratriathlon, British Triathlon are holding a talent ID event on Sunday 11 September at Eton Dorney. More information can be found here.

Often involving no more than 15K, with the vast majority of that on the bike, these entry-level events are perfect for people new to aquabike. Sprint There are shorter and longer races outside these parameters—known as “super sprint” and “ultra distance,” respectively—but the distances for these events are not standardized, and thus vary widely from race to race. You might wonder why the 4-star Pacer Pro is ranked higher than the 5-star Forerunner 255S on this list; that's because they have similar functionality, but the Polar is A) cheaper (if only slightly), and B) can measure running power on the wrist without external sensors.)Open-water swims normally have mass starts, broken up into waves (at larger events, it is not uncommon for a wave to include around 100 athletes). On Marine Walk, there will be activation stands for you to find out more about the world of swim, bike, run, and also your chance to collect an exclusive character on the new Swim Bike Run Adventure app (find out more here). You may feel of course that the real challenge is in open-water swimming. Open-water swims can be held in a lake, river, or the sea. A lake swim is likely to be calmer than a river or sea swim, where you obviously have to contend with waves and the current.

Any distance of swim-bike-run can be a triathlon! The shortest standardized triathlon distance is a sprint triathlon, while the longest is the iron distance (sometimes referred to as an IRONMAN, which is a brand of races, but not the only brand that puts on iron-distance races). Triathlon Distance XTERRA is the main international series of cross triathlon and, rather than road riding and running, has off-road mountain biking and trail running. Step 5:Fill in the training times with your swim/bike/run (and possibly strength) workouts. Aim for at least two per week in each sport, with one or two extra on your “needs improvement” sport. Some things to consider for extra workouts She said: “Team Animis have always made it a friendly, inclusive event no matter of age or ability, with the ethos of ‘encouraging individuals to reach and exceed their own goals’.Some longer races, like iron-distance events, provide changing tents for athletes who wish to change their clothes for long-distance comfort between swim, bike, and run. But this is a courtesy, and athletes are not required to wear different clothes for each discipline. Most prefer to wear the same thing for all three legs of the event, even in a race of 10 hours or more. Swimming is very technique-oriented but is low (no) impact. You can swim often and if swimming is your weakness, I highly recommend getting in the pool as much as you can.

Marine Walk will be at the heart of the action with the start, finish and transition areas all located on the Roker seafront, with many fantastic places to watch the racing unfold across the routes. Find out more about the route and places to watch here. There are a number of famous organisations which stage triathlon races – headed by IRONMAN (the company not the distance!). IRONMAN holds races over full distance, the 70.3 half distance and also some at Olympic distance. There is often a direct relationship between a race’s entry costs and the size of the event, the length of the race, the picturesque nature of the location, the event publicity, and the ‘free’ goodies (for example, bags and T-shirts).Many triathlon clubs cater for beginners through to experienced triathletes. You’ll be surrounded by like-minded people who are willing to share their experiences and advice. The bottom line: Triathlon training is exercise, and exercise is almost always good for your health! But exercise is only one piece of the health puzzle, which is why you’ll often hear triathletes talk about their sport as a holistic lifestyle, requiring attention to nutrition, recovery, and mental health. How do triathletes train? There really is something for everyone including free fun activities for families in Roker Park so I’d encourage everyone to come along and enjoy this sporting spectacular along our beautiful seafront.”