Goal of project

The primary objective of this project is to provide support, resources, and expertise to athletes from emerging/developing National Federations (NF Group* 2, 3B, 3A) with the potential to compete at the World Triathlon Cup level and qualify for the Paris Olympic Games. World Triathlon Development is also looking after young talents facilitating their athlete career from junior to elite and aiming at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games and beyond.
The project also aiming to increase the number of coaches from emerging/developing National Federations (NF Group* 2, 3B, 3A) gaining experience in the preparation and support of athletes competing at a World Cup level.
(*Note: for NF Groups please visit National Federation Survey)

Principles of the Team World Triathlon Project:

- Provide support, resources, and expertise to athletes from Group 2-3B-3A National Federations with the potential to qualify for the upcoming Olympic Games through Olympic Ranking or “New Flag” or IOC Tripartite Commission Invitation or IOC Refugee Programme.
- Look after young talents, facilitating their athlete careers from junior to elite, aiming for Olympic Games
- Projects held in conjunction with World Triathlon Cup events (3-5 events/year)
- Gender consideration in selection: 50% male & female (available slots: 5 men & 5 women).
- Support for a maximum of two (2) Olympic Cycles:
  1st-2nd year: observation & pre-selection
  3rd year: bigger pool, more opportunities
  4th year:    performance-based selection, a strict focus on Olympic Qualification

Project Outline

- Emerging/Developing National Federations (NF Group 2, 3B, 3A) are invited to submit applications.
- Applications for athletes with the potential to qualify and compete at the Paris Olympic Games and who have already proven themselves at the World Triathlon Elite, U23, Junior World Championship, World Cup or Continental Championships/Cup level will be favoured.
- Four (4) World Triathlon Cup events have been named as the Team World Triathlon events. Please note World Triathlon will add one (1) World Triathlon Cup event  to the team programme at a later stage.
- At each of these events, coaching, physiotherapy, and bike mechanic support will be on hand for the athletes selected.
- The group will be accommodated as a ‘team’ and supported as such pre, during and post-event.
- Gender equality and geographic distribution will be considered in the selection for each project.
- In addition to the application process, World Triathlon Development may invite athletes for each project in agreement with their respective National Federation.
- To maximise female participation and support, World Triathlon Development may invite potential female athletes fighting for the “New Flag” position of their respective continent in the Olympic Qualification on the way to Paris. For this reason, World Triathlon Development/Selection Panel may consider female athletes with an exception.

Target Group

The target group will be athletes from emerging/developing National Federations (NF Group 2, 3B, 3A) who have already shown a high level of competence in World Triathlon Cup and/or Continental Cup events and are looking to qualify for Paris 2024 and beyond but need support to do so. Please note applicant athletes must be born in 1994 or later.

Qualification Criteria

- Athletes must have been born in 1994 or later.
- Candidates must be in the top 250 of the World Triathlon Ranking.
- Athletes must have at least two results (finishing in the top 66%) from Continental Cup events in the past 12 months.
- Athletes must be registered and in good standing with their National Federations and have shown the ability to race at a high level.
- The athletes nominated should be committed to competing in the long term and have the Olympic Games as an ultimate objective.
- While there will be a maximum of ten (10) slots available at each event, athletes will be selected at the discretion of World Triathlon Development and in some cases, not all the slots or more slots will be filled.
- Athletes from the continent where the WC is taking place are favoured.
- Athletes should be connected with the Continental Development Projects too.
- Injured or ill athletes are not accepted for the project. Illness or injury of a selected athlete must be reported immediately to World Triathlon Development.

Timeline

Applications must be submitted in writing to World Triathlon Development and each applicant must also be entered by their National Federation for the respective World Triathlon Cup event with World Triathlon via the online entry method by the closing date for entry of the specific event they are applying for. If the National Federation fails to register the applicant on time, World Triathlon Development will not consider the application.
A National Federation may nominate no more than two (2) male and two (2) female athletes. If more than one is nominated per gender, the nominations have to be in preference order (1st / 2nd).

PLEASE NOTE: All applications MUST be submitted and endorsed by the applicant’s respective National Federation. The National Federation must be in good standing with World Triathlon as defined in the World Triathlon Constitution. 

Selected World Cups

                                                                                                     

Designated Event	Distance	Date of the World Cup	Application Deadline
2023 World Triathlon Cup Huatulco, Mexico	Sprint	17-18 June 2023	Closed
2023 World Triathlon Cup Valencia, Spain	Standard	2 September 2023	17 July 2023
2023 World Triathlon Cup Chengdu, China	Standard	14 October 2023	4 September 2023
2023 World Triathlon Cup Brasilia, Brazil	Standard	15 October 2023	4 September 2023

 

Selection

A Panel composed of World Triathlon Sports Department, Development and project Head Coaches will decide on the selected athletes based on the project description (outline and qualification criteria) for the project within one (1) week of the application deadline, and all applicant NFs with selected athletes will be informed accordingly.

Budget

All athletes selected will be funded as follows:
1. Hotel accommodation (on a shared basis) for a maximum of 5 nights
2. Meals – 3 per day (or a meal stipend)
3. Travel stipend*
4. Coaching, physiotherapy and bike mechanic support

*PLEASE NOTE: A travel stipend between 250 USD and 750 USD will be provided to each Team World Triathlon member per event. Please note World Triathlon is covering a maximum of 60% of the full flight fare, but not more than 750 USD per Team World Triathlon Member per project.

Evaluation

The athletes selected will be tracked over the year to determine their progress, and feedback sheets/reports will be completed on the World Triathlon Education & Knowledge Hub (https://education.triathlon.org) by the members and the head coach of the respective project after each event.

Application form

Please complete the relevant application form online on or before the due dates. Please contact your National Federation for the application form link.

Olympic Qualification: Paris 2024
For more details on Olympic Qualification criteria please visit the following document on triathlon.org: Paris2024-QS-Triathlon.pdf

For more information on the Team World Triathlon project, please contact Zita Csovelyak, Head of National Federation Services & Development, at zita@triathlon.org.