You’ve heard about the four-minute mile, but what about the 10-minute triathlon? That’s the order of the day tonight in Lievin, northern France, where the first T1 Indoor Triathlon World Cup is due to take place.
The short-course event consists of a 200m swim, 2.8km cycle and 1km run and, uniquely, all takes place in the same arena near Lille. More than 100 elite male and female triathletes are set to take part, with the fastest expected to finish inside 10 minutes.
Part of the Lievin Triathlon Indoor Festival, it took place last year as the World Triathlon Indoor Cup but has now been rebranded as a T1 event in collaboration with the Professional Triathletes’ Organisation (PTO), which runs the T100 tour.
That also means it will be available to watch on TNT Sports in the UK, thanks to the PTO’s close relationship with Warner Bros Discovery. The broadcaster is a minority shareholder in the organisation and televises its T100 events.
Athletes scheduled to take part in Lievin include Olympic champion and home favourite Cassandre Beaugrand and New Zealander Hayden Wilde, who was pipped to gold in Paris last summer by Britain’s Alex Yee.
“The fact that the Lievin event has achieved so much momentum in such a short space of time is testament to the electrifying atmosphere and excitement it creates, both in the stadium and for those watching at home,” said World Triathlon president-elect Antonio F Arimany.
“The broadcast product this year will be the best yet and the TV audience the biggest, with the fans’ favourite and Olympic champion Cassandre Beaugrand ready to raise the roof.
“The future for this enthralling format looks incredibly bright as we continue to develop our partnership with PTO.”
The T1 Indoor Triathlon World Cup is held in a single arena in Lievin, France
What is the T1 Indoor Triathlon World Cup format?
The competition format is the same for both men and women, with five heats followed by a repechage deciding which 36 athletes advance to the semi-finals.
In the three semi-finals, the top four qualify for Final A while those finishing fifth to eighth go into Final B, which decides who finishes in places 13-24 in the final standings.
The event comes a fortnight before the first leg of the T100 Triathlon World Tour season in Singapore, and days after a $10m investment by niche fund Cordillera.
The T1 Indoor Triathlon World Cup is live on TNT Sports 4 from 8:30pm. It will also be shown on the PTO’s T100 YouTube channel and PTO+.