The progress of Triathlon in Turkey over the last few years has been remarkable but the Turkish Triathlon Federation believe that 2013 is the year in which Turkey will announce itself on the world’s triathlon stage.
Since 2002, Alanya has hosted a European race every year and in 2013 it will host the European Championships. Antalya, and now Istanbul, have also hosted European Cups, meaning that Turkey remains a popular and frequent destination for Triathletes.
Whilst the courses may be popular, the success of home grown Turkish athletes has not quite hit the heights of the European Cups. Hamdi Gunes, President of the Turkish Triathlon Federation, hopes this will change in 2013.
He said: “2012 was a development year for our athletes, we had a lot of success and we have worked very hard for 2013.
“We have tried to give our athletes experience in international races, European cups. Our athletes do not have a lot of international experience and we need to train and prepare them better.
“However, results in 2012 show that our athletes are moving up the field. They are improving and beginning to challenge higher up.
“It is important to us to organise the 2013 European Championships. We hope our athletes have more chances to do well on home soil – this is one of our main goals.”
After hosting a European Cup in Antalya there is now less than a fortnight until the European Championships in Alanya and with another European Cup race to come in Istanbul in early August, Gunes sees 2013 as the perfect time to demonstrate Turkey’s Triathlon capabilities, from facilities, to the course and the athletes.
He said: “We are working very hard to make Triathlon more popular in Turkey. It is not easy, but our Federation is working very hard. There are three important races in Turkey this year, Antalya, Alanya and Istanbul, which puts us in an excellent position to develop ourselves, promote our races and to take on more athletes.”
Gunes believes the impact of these three races should have long term benefits for the sport in Turkey.
“For 2013, we have a lot of races and activities. We currently have 700 members and we expect to reach over 1,000 by the end of the year. We currently have 55 existing clubs and we would like to reach 70.
“These figures can be achieved by hosting fantastic races in our country, where our athletes can test themselves against the best and continue to improve.
“Turkey’s success in 2013 will be a success for Triathlon.”
Certainly all eyes will be on Alanya in two weeks as Elite, Junior, Paratriathlon and Age Group athletes invade Turkey for what is building up to be an open and exciting European Championships.
Gunes said: “Alanya is very important for us as this is the biggest triathlon race in Turkey. We are grateful for the support from the ETU.
“Our target is the best European Championships in European history – we had a practice race in 2012, we know where we need to improve and everything is ready. It will be a great event.”
The 2013 European Triathlon Championships will be held in Alanya from 14th-16th June.
For more information on the 2013 European Championships, click here.
For more on the Turkish Triathlon Federation, click here.
TURKEY TRIATHLON FEDERATION
President: Hamdi Gunes, contact triathlonfederasyonu@hotmail.com or denizdelen@triathlon.org.tr
