USA Triathlon membership is picking up the pace in the post-pandemic environment. According to the national governing body’s “2024 Impact Report,” released in mid-February, USA Triathlon counts more than 302,000 active and unique members — an increase of 1.6% over 2023 but still trailing pre-COVID numbers; there were 329,000 members in 2019.
The boost in 2024 was driven primarily by new members purchasing more one-day/single-race memberships, officials said, adding that membership saw the most significant growth in the 20-29 and 30-39 age demographics. Meanwhile, the 40-59 age groups showed a continued decline — following a trend more than a decade long in the 40-49 category and a post-COVID trend in the 50-59 category.
Total adult participation in race finishes has been dropping since participation in the sport peaked in the early 2010s. Still, USA Triathlon officials remain optimistic about the sport’s wellbeing, citing several positive signs:
New athletes coming into the sport: Triathlon is still attracting many new athletes each year; membership growth is primarily driven by new members not seen before, accounting for nearly 50% of membership sales in 2024.
Shorter-distance race expansion: More races now incorporate sprint, super sprint and relay formats — making triathlon more accessible to new athletes.
Diversification of race formats: Growth in aquathlon (run-swim-run), duathlon (run-bike-run), aquabike (swim-bike), gravel triathlon and off-road races expanded multisport opportunities beyond traditional swim-bike-run races.
Steady youth racing engagement: Youth-focused racing remained strong in 2024, with 209 sanctioned youth events — reinforcing the next generation of triathletes.
“These trends suggest a shift in how athletes engage with the sport, with a focus on quality event experiences, accessibility and diverse race formats driving participation,” USA Triathlon noted in a statement, adding that USA Triathlon sanctioned 825 unique adult multisport events in the U.S. in 2024. “The constriction and elimination of adult events is the greatest risk to the overall sport and ecosystem. Supporting race directors and events is core to the go-forward focus for USA Triathlon.”
The report also noted that U.S. Olympians and Paralympians “shined bright” at the Paris 2024 Games, collectively winning nine medals. Additionally, Age Group Team USA won 50 medals at the World Triathlon Multisport Championships, 49 medals at the World Triathlon Age Group Championships, and three medals at the World Triathlon Long Distance Duathlon Championships.
Meanwhile, the USA Triathlon Foundation raised $3.4 million, including $2.65 million in committed estate gifts — supporting initiatives that enhance youth participation and diversity in the sport. As a result, according to the report, more than 9,000 kids were introduced to triathlon, $45,000 in donor pledges launched the USA Kids Tri program and $850,000 in grants supported the expansion of NCAA programs.
In the coming weeks, USA Triathlon is expected to unveil the organization’s new strategic plan, titled “Elevate 2028: Focus Forward,” which in part will focus on renewed transparency and data-driven decision making.
Meanwhile, USA Triathlon’s global counterpart, World Triathlon, has approved revisionsto its August 2022 Eligibility Regulations for Transgender Athletes. Effective immediately, the revised regulations introduced a new Age-Group Open Category that replaced the Age-Group Men’s Category, and they apply to athletes competing in all World Triathlon and Continental Triathlon Age-Group competitions.
“Age-Group Transgender athletes, male and female, can compete in the new Open Category without any medical or legal eligibility criteria,” according to a statement from World Triathlonpublished on Jan. 25.
“Though no statistics are available on transgender athletes in triathlon, currently there are no openly transgender women in elite triathlon,” Triathlete.comreported at the time. “The Ironman race series, which established an “Open” category in 2023, told Triathleteafter its first yearthat it could not share specific stats on how many age-group athletes participated in the category but that they were ‘very excited’ about the response from the triathlon community.”
Meanwhile, shorter and more action-packed indoor triathlon racing is trying to become more of a thing, according to the endurance sports news website Slowtwitch.com— thanks to efforts by Supertri (formerly Super League Triathlon), the Professional Triathletes Organization (PTO) and World Triathlon. Citing the upcoming Supertri E World Triathlon Championship at the London Aquatics Centre on April 5, Slowtwitch.com noted that hosting indoor tri events make sense for organizers:
“Unless people buy a ticket, they can’t get in — a completely different scenario to even races like the Olympics last year. There were lots of people who just lined up on the streets and got a pretty awesome show. Television coverage is considerably easier, too — you’re not chasing athletes through multiple [miles] of racing. And you don’t have to keep things exclusively to pros, either — the Lievin [Triathlon World Cup] race [in France on March 22] includes age group and kids races, while the Supertri E race will offer free tickets to children. … What’s great is that World Triathlon, Supertri and the PTO are all putting their hats into the mix to at least try to ensure these events can be successful. How long they’ll be willing to continue that support if these events can’t start making money will be the big question.”
