USA Triathlon has announced that Tempe, Arizona, has been selected as the host city for the 2019 and 2020 USA Triathlon Collegiate Club and High School National Championships. The 2019 event will be held April 5-6, and the 2020 edition will take place April 3-4.
Home to Arizona State University, Tempe has a rich history of hosting national and international triathlon events. The city played host to the Collegiate Club National Championships in 2013 and 2014, as well as the USA Paratriathlon National Championships in 2014. The Women’s Collegiate Triathlon National Championships for varsity student-athletes were held there in 2017, and will return to Tempe this November.
The city has also hosted multiple ITU Pan American Cup events and non-drafting triathlons such as IRONMAN Arizona and Life Time Tri Tempe. Major League Triathlon, a series of professional super-sprint mixed relay events, will stop there this September.
“USA Triathlon is proud to bring the United States’ top collegiate club and high school athletes back to Tempe, a city that offers both a thriving multisport community and an excellent venue at Tempe Town Lake,” said Brian D’Amico, Director of Events at USA Triathlon. “We are grateful for the strong relationships we have with the City of Tempe, Tempe Tourism, Arizona State University and other local partners, which allow us to continue to offer premier championship events for our up-and-coming triathlon stars.”
“We are thrilled that Tempe is hosting the USA Triathlon Collegiate Club & High School National Championships in 2019 and 2020,” said Brian McCartin, Tempe Tourism Office President & CEO. “Tempe is an energetic triathlon destination, and we look forward to welcoming these stellar athletes as they compete in these prestigious events.”
More than 120 collegiate triathlon clubs are represented annually at Collegiate Club Nationals, and over 1,300 collegiate athletes participated in last year’s event in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. In addition, approximately 150 young athletes will compete for top honors in the fourth running of the High School National Championships. Although Collegiate Club Nationals have been held in Tempe before, the city welcomes High School Nationals for the first time.
The 2019 event will begin the morning of Friday, April 5, with the Draft-Legal Collegiate Club Championships. In this fast-paced event, 75 men and 75 women will compete for national titles and club points on an approximate 750-meter swim, 20-kilometer bike and 5-kilometer run course. High school athletes will then compete for individual and club national titles on Friday afternoon, covering a non-drafting sprint-distance course of approximately a 750m swim, 20k bike and 5k run.
On Saturday, April 6, the entire field of collegiate club athletes will contest the marquee event of the weekend, the non-drafting Olympic-Distance National Championships — an approximate 1,500m swim, 40k bike and 10k run. Racing concludes with the Mixed Team Relay on Saturday afternoon. In this race format, which will debut as an Olympic medal event in Tokyo in 2020, each team is comprised of two women and two men. Each athlete covers an approximate 300m swim, 6k bike and 1k run before tagging off to the next teammate, alternating between women and men.
An awards ceremony on Saturday night will recognize individual medalists in each collegiate club race, in addition to the men’s club, women’s club and overall club champions for the weekend.
Visit usatriathlon.org/ccnc2019 for complete information about the 2019 USA Triathlon Collegiate Club and High School National Championships. Registration for 2019 High School Nationals will open in the coming month, while Collegiate Club Nationals registration is set to open in early 2019.
About USA Triathlon
USA Triathlon is proud to serve as the National Governing Body for triathlon, as well as duathlon, aquathlon, aquabike, winter triathlon, off-road triathlon and paratriathlon in the United States. Founded in 1982, USA Triathlon sanctions more than 4,300 events and connects with more than 400,000 members each year, making it the largest multisport organization in the world. In addition to its work with athletes, coaches, and race directors on the grassroots level, USA Triathlon provides leadership and support to elite athletes competing at international events, including International Triathlon Union (ITU) World Championships, Pan American Games and the Olympic and Paralympic Games. USA Triathlon is a proud member of the ITU and the United States Olympic Committee (USOC).
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