USA Triathlon

Olympics Mixed Relay Watch Party - VENUE CHANGE

For those of you attending the Olympics Mixed Relay Watch Party on Friday, July 30 from 6-8 p.m., the venue has moved down the street at Liberty Center to Sabin Hall. Please go to Sabin Hall, 7539 Haskell St, Liberty Township, OH 45069. It's just a short walk west of the Foundry (indoor mall) where the party was originally scheduled.

Don't miss the excitement with the live broadcast at 6:30 p.m. ET!

Calling All Youth & Junior Triathletes!

USA Triathlon is headed back to West Chester, Ohio for its ninth year! The 2021 Zone3 Youth & Junior Nationals will take place on July 31-Aug. 1, 2021 at Voice of America Park. Youth athletes of all experience levels are invited to participate in this fun and iconic event.

West Chester first hosted rising youth and junior triathlon stars in 2012 and is a prime location for the National event, with more than 20 of the 38 active High Performance Teams within a day's drive of the venue. Youth & Junior Nationals is scheduled for July 31-Aug. 1, 2021, and tentatively scheduled for the first weekend in August in 2022. The event has sold out for the last five years, with nearly 1000 athletes ages 7-19 competing annually. The two-day event is contained within Voice of America Park and supported through a strong partnership with the Butler County Visitors Bureau and other community organizations. Click here to read more on this continued partnership in West Chester, Ohio. 

Olympic Mixed Relay Watch Party at Youth and Junior Nationals

Join four-time Olympian Hunter Kemper, your fellow Youth and Junior Nationals athletes, and the USA Triathlon staff for the Olympic Mixed Relay Watch Party at Youth and Junior Nationals! The FIRST EVER Olympic Mixed Relay will start at 6:30 p.m. ET on Friday, July 30 and will be broadcast live from Tokyo on USA Network. The watch party is free and open to the public and will take place at center of the indoor mall at Liberty Center, a vibrant new shopping and entertainment district just one mile west of Voice of America Park.

Liberty Center is home to dozens of kid-friendly restaurants, entertainment and shopping options and is located at Sabin Hall, 7539 Haskell St, Liberty Township, OH 45069. The watch party will take place from 6-8 p.m. No reservation is required – simply show up and cheer on Team USA for the first ever mixed relay gold medal!

Pre-Race Briefings:

New 2021 Schedule of Events!

July 31, 2021

• Youth Age Groups 13-18: 300m swim, 10k bike, 2.5k run
• Junior Elite: 750m swim, 20k bike, 5k run
• Youth Elite: 375m swim, 10k bike, 2.5k run

August 1, 2021

• PC Open (Ages 7-18): 200m swim, 10k bike, 2k run
• Youth Age Groups 11-12: 200m swim, 10k bike, 2k run
• Youth Age Groups 7-10: 100m swim 5k bike, 1k run
• Mixed Relay: 250m swim, 5k bike, 1.2k run

Coronavirus Safety Precautions

Please know that the health and safety of all athletes, staff, volunteers and the community at large is USA Triathlon’s highest priority. We are dedicated to providing a safe environment at all USA Triathlon events, and our race logistics and safety plans for 2021 are specifically designed to prevent COVID-19 exposure and transmission. Youth and Junior Nationals will be held with stringent COVID-19 safety precautions in place according to USA Triathlon’s Safe Return to Multisport initiative. Additional details will be communicated to athletes on a regular basis in the lead-up to the event; however, participants should expect the following safety measures to be in place:

• Self-screening before arrival at venue
• Contact reduction for all athletes, staff and volunteers
• Pre-race briefings held virtually instead of in-person
• Increased cleaning and disinfecting practices onsite, including hand sanitizer stations throughout venue 
• Masks are optional, but strongly encouraged for those persons not vaccinated

These practices are subject to change based on the evolving COVID-19 situation and any restrictions put in place by the host city, county and venue itself. 

To learn more about USA Triathlon’s Safe Return to Multisport Initiative, visit usatriathlon.org/safe-return. Athletes may be interested in the Return to Racing Recommendations for Athletes, which outlines the changes event participants should expect when racing in the COVID-19 era, why these changes are necessary and how to prepare for them. To download the Safe Return to Racing Recommendations for athletes, click here. 

American Development Model (ADM) Adjustments

Beginning in 2021, ZONE3 Youth & Junior Nationals will see several changes to align with the American Development Model (ADM), a concerted effort between the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee and its sport National Governing Bodies to apply long-term athlete development principles in a way that resonates with the culture of sport in the United States.  The ADM aims to create early positive experiences for youth athletes across all sports by promoting sustained sport participation. Emphasis is placed on developmentally appropriate activities, including foundational skill development, coordination and motor control. Click here to read the full press release about the changes to Youth & Junior Nationals.

The major adjustments to Youth & Junior Nationals include:

• The word “Championships” will be removed from the overall event name (Youth & Junior Nationals) in an effort to emphasize participation and personal goal setting over competition for younger age groups.
• The youth age group race is now open to athletes up to age 18 (previously limited to ages 7-15).
• National Champion titles will only be awarded to athletes ages 13-18. Athletes aged 7-12 will still receive placement awards, five places deep. In the PC Open division, the top male and female finishers overall will earn national champion titles.
• The Youth and Junior Elite and Mixed Relay races will remain in the same format as previous years.
• All athletes will record their goal times for their races as part of the registration process. A “goal time board” will also be available at the venue for athletes to write down their goals and finishing times. As part of the ADM, this process encourages athletes to focus on advancing their personal bests versus placement relative to other athletes.
• The High School National Championships, historically held in conjunction with the Collegiate Club National Championships, will be removed from USA Triathlon's championship schedule. High school-aged athletes will be encouraged to participate in either the youth age group or junior elite races at Youth and Junior Nationals.
• There are slight adjustments to the schedule to accommodate the older athlete. Click here to view the current event schedule.