Bilbao becomes the great triathlon capital

Not even the pandemic could with the Bilbao Triathlon in 2020. And, with the virus still conditioning everything, the test returns tomorrow faithful to its appointment to celebrate its tenth anniversary. Alberto Larrucea, one of its leaders, says that this event is the result of a “passion” and the daughter of a previous economic and non-health crisis. When the financial world collapsed in 2008, the Innevento company was forced to stop organizing events and festivals. To do? Create something. And that is how the Bilbao Triathlon emerged a decade ago, which tomorrow will bring together 800 participants, including figures such as Gustavo Rodríguez, Helene Alberdi, Eneko Llanos and Kristian Quintans. At stake is the Spanish Medium Distance Championship, which last year, also in the capital of Biscay, Javier Gómez Noya won.

The axis of the test will be the esplanade of the Maritime Museum. There will be the transition zone between the three sections of the competition: 1.9 kilometers swimming through the estuary, then take the bicycle and travel 83 kilometers through Galdakao, Larrabetzu, Morga, Meñaka, Maruri, Unbe, Erandio and return by the estuary to Bilbao, where the 21-kilometer race will begin on a circuit along the Paseo de Abandoibarra that will show the postcards of the Euskalduna Bridge and the Guggenheim Museum.

Sanitary protocol

The swimming test will begin at 2:45 p.m. and the organizers estimate that the first to finish the competition will cross the finish line at around 7:30 p.m. The entire design and schedule of the event is aimed at minimizing its effect on city traffic. In the official presentation of the event, held at the Bilbao City Hall, both Xabier Ochandiano, Councilor for Economic Development, as Cristina Mujika, General Director of Tourism of the Provincial Council, and Alberto Larrucea, from Innevento, highlighted the role of this triathlon in the recovery of the estuary as a leisure space, in the promotion of sport and, also, the tourist claim that it represents for the city and the territory.

Jorge García, technical manager of the Spanish Triathlon Federation, underlined the “spectacular potential” of Bilbao as the venue for this type of event. “Few cities can offer what Bilbao and Bizkaia offer us,” he stressed. And he recalled that last year there were 500 participants and that now there will be 800, including those of a new modality, the Aquabike, intended for those who only opt for swimming and cycling events. In 2022, Bilbao will host the European Championship.

This edition will apply the same health protocol that allowed the test to be carried out in 2020, the only one that could be held in Bizkaia. The start and finish areas (in Abandoibarra) will be limited. They will become a bubble to which the public will not have access and where the use of a mask will be mandatory. Fans who come to cheer on athletes are asked to keep a safe distance. The promotion of Bilbao, sustainability, the empowerment of women’s sport and the recovery of the estuary continue to be the basis of this project that was born out of an economic crisis, which is still afloat in the midst of a pandemic and which has turned Bilbao into the capital of the triathlon.