The Olympic Triathlon competition will have the record participation of 39 countries
The International Triathlon Union has closed the deadline for qualifying for the London 2012 Olympic Games, with the surprising fact that 39 countries will be present in this event, with a total of 110 participants, unprecedented figures to date.
55 men and as many women managed to certify, during the period of the last two years, their classification for this summer's event, thus setting a record number of both participants and countries represented.
Figures that thus beat the records of recent years, demonstrating the boom experienced by this sport. In Beijing 2008, 36 National Committees were present, compared to 33 in Athens 2004 and 34 in Sydney 2000. In the latter, there was a record number of participants with 100 athletes, 50 men and 50 women, surpassed by 10 runners for those of this summer.
“Having a record number of National Olympic Committees from five continents indicates the phenomenal growth triathlon is experiencing. With many hopefuls for medals from so many countries, the Hyde Park Triathlon will be an event that will mark the Games”, indicated the president of the ITU, the Spanish Marisol Casado.
Among the 39 participating countries, there will be five making their debut in this competition, which will be Ecuador, Mauritius, Monaco, the Republic of Korea and Slovenia. On the other hand, the United States, Australia, Great Britain, Japan, France, Germany, New Zealand and Spain will contribute the maximum of three women to the competition, while Great Britain, Germany, New Zealand, Russia, France, Australia, Spain and Canada, will do the same in the men's sector.
Javier Gómez Noya, Mario Mola, José Miguel Pérez, Ainhoa Murua, Zuriñe Rodríguez and Marina Damlaimcourt will be the Spanish representatives. The test will be held on Sunday August 4 for the girls, and on Wednesday the 7th of the same month for the men. In both cases, the triathlon will take place in the well-known park in the English capital, Hyde Park.
EuropaPress
There are no previous results.
