Valencia will host the 2021 European Triathlon Championship

The European Triathlon Federation has announced the choice of Valencia as the official venue for the next Triathlon European Championship, after a 2020 season in which the global situation experienced with the pandemic did not allow the celebration of the continental title.

This season's European Championship will be held once the Olympics are over. and the JJ.PP. from Tokyo, where the Olympic and Paralympic champions will be erected in the latter part of the season.

The continental championship will feature the Elite competition in male and female category, in addition to the proof of paratriathlon, and the European Championships for Age Groups both in sprint distance and in Olympic distance.

It will be a unique opportunity for all Spanish triathletes who want to compete with the colors of the national team in a European Championship, which is also held at home.

The last edition of this championship held in Spain was in 2011, in the Galician city of Pontevedra.

Valencia's experience in organizing international events

Valencia has an extensive and experienced organizational background both nationally and internationally. In fact, it housed the European championship in 2004, which was valid test for the Olympic Games. Athens 2004 in Elite category.

In recent seasons it has hosted the Triathlon European Cup in 2018, the European Under 23 Championship and Paratriathlon in 2019, and the last international test of 2020 with the World Cup held last November.

Undoubtedly, a path followed year after year with determination and the coordinated work of the Spanish Triathlon Federation together with the Valencian Community Triathlon Federation, the Valencia City Council, the Trinidad Alfonso Foundation, the Valencian Government and the Valencia Provincial Council. , and that again faces a major challenge with the organization of the European Championship this year.

Mediterranean Triathlon with 3 distances

The competition will host one more year the circuit of Mediterranean popular triathlon Triathlon allowing fans of our sport to compete in an incomparable setting and in the environment of this continental championship.

As usual, the popular competition will have Superprint, Sprint and Olympic distances.

Declarations:

Renato Bertrandi, President of the European Triathlon Union, stressed that “I am very happy to be able to confirm that our European Triathlon Championship in the city of Valencia after the Olympic Games. from Tokyo.

There is a long history and links between the Triathlon and the City. The most recent are the organization of the European Under-23 Championships in 2019 and in 2020, in very difficult conditions due to the pandemic, the World Cup.

This year's European Championship 2021 will take place in the second part of the season and we all have to be positive thinking that we will be in a much more relaxed state.

I was present at the 2019 event and I have witnessed the professionalism in the organization of the event and the great hospitality that the city of Valencia has given to our Triathlon family. For this reason I was delighted to assign the maximum continental triathlon competition this year to Valencia.

In addition to the best Elite athletes, the event will feature thousands of Age Group triathletes from all over Europe who will proudly compete on the streets of the Valencian capital to win a medal.

I am sure that Valencia and the European Championship will be a great party, with the 43 flags of our Federations waving in the Parade of Nations. And it will also be the occasion to celebrate with enthusiasm the end of a dark period that has affected not only Sport but also our lives.

My sincere thanks to the Community, the City, the City Council, the Provincial Council and the rest of the institutions and the Spanish Federation for their support".

For his part, the president of the Spanish Triathlon Federation, José Hidalgo declared "After the pandemic in 2020 forced the suspension of the most important continental competition, the European Triathlon Championship, it is a great responsibility for the FETRI and for Valencia to host the reactivation of the maximum European competition, both for the elite as for the Age Groups.

I believe that the good work that València has been doing, especially in recent years and mainly closing the international calendar last season, has been the best guarantee for the maximum European triathlon competition to take place this year in our country. We welcome the European commission with great responsibility and also wanting to make Valencia an exciting reference for all European triathletes".

Pilar Barnabas, Councilor for Sports of the Valencia City Council, stressed that “We are pleased with the announcement of the European Triathlon Federation and the choice of València as the venue for the European Championship.

Valencia is a great city, with a great organizational capacity in sporting events. València is a destination for the practice of safe sports and the celebration of this Championship (as long as the health situation allows it) will consolidate us as the epicenter of international triathlon.

Once again, we will show the world our enthusiasm and commitment to sport, hosting the European triathletes who come to our city and consolidating ourselves as the Mediterranean capital of sport.

Without a doubt, this European Championship is a great opportunity both for our city and for the Valencian triathlon"

The head of Sport of the Generalitat, the Minister Vincent Marza, has explained that “From the Generalitat we are promoting that our territory is a reference for the attraction of relevant sporting events and in the case of the European Triathlon Championship it is a very important milestone in the calendar of this sport modality.

All the institutions involved have formed a great team to attract Valencia to this year's edition. We are the 'Comunitatde l'Esport' and we want València to be a benchmark for Triathlon.

We are achieving this and hosting this event is also a very positive impulse for the Valencian triathlon athletes, whom we will continue to accompany in different lines of action".

Elena Weaver, director of the Trinidad Alfonso Foundation, also made an assessment of this announcement "We are very happy that the ETU and the FETRI continue to bet on València to host the great events of the International triathlon.

This European championship is one more example that things are being done well and that is why the organizations of the most powerful disciplines are committed to holding their events in our city.

After the very high-level triathlon tests in recent years, we are very satisfied to continue growing and to continue positioning ourselves as the Comunitat de l'Esport.

We maintain the illusion and we trust that the health situation improves to be able to welcome the maximum possible participants and the city to enjoy this great event.

One of the efforts of our Foundation and of our president, Juan Roig, is to continue claiming that sport is fundamental in our society for two reasons: on the one hand, we have shown that sport is safe and that it is synonymous with health; on the other it is an important generator of wealth. "

Andres Campos, Deputy for Youth and Sports of the Valencia Provincial Council, for his part stated that “We all have to be in luck because in 2021 Valencia will host the European Triathlon Championship. Sporting events like this have their perfect venue in Valencia.

Thanks to all those who in one way or another have managed to make the next realization of an event of this level a reality.

The presence of the European Triathlon Championship in Valencia is an accolade to the popularity of this sport in our city.

The Triathlon Federation of the Valencian Community has attached to no less than 82 clubs, and has 2.827 federated athletes, only in the Province of Valencia. This gives us an idea of ​​the popularity and the roots that this sport discipline has in our community.

The Diputación de València is going to get involved to make Valencia once again a "point of reference" in the practice of a sport, in this case triathlon, which will bring together athletes from all over Europe in Valencia".

Finally, the president of the Triatló Federation of the Valencian Community, vanessa huesa has explained that “I want to thank the ETU for the opportunity it offers us to host the European Triathlon Championship this 2021 in the city of Valencia.

One of our objectives is to be able to host international events where safety prevails both from a technical and a health point of view. In addition, being able to bring international competition closer to our federated and that they can enjoy an event like this in their own home is one of the motivations for organizing a championship of these magnitudes.

All this without leaving aside the popular facet of the Valencia triathlon, where people who want to start in our sport can do so in a spectacular environment such as the one offered by the capital of Túria, in addition to being able to debut on a great stage such as that of the European Championship.

For the Triathlon Federation of the Valencian Community it is important that the ETU, FETRI, the Valencia City Council, the Valencia Provincial Council, the General Sports Directorate, and the Trinidad Alfonso Foundation continue to support and collaborate in this project, ensuring that the triathlon continues to grow year after year. after year in our community. See you at the finish line".