Well, what a difference a year makes! This years annual pilgrimage to the triathlon mecca that is ‘TNSW / TACT Super Sprint and the TNSW / TACT Mixed Relay Team Championships saw the strong racing field of 150+ athletes greeted with cold, rainy and muddy conditions. A direct contrast to the 30+ degrees athletes experienced last year!

Race weekends of this nature are a critical part of the TNSW / TACT Development Pathway, as they allow athletes to learn critical lessons required to mould their triathlon careers including building resilience, grittiness and draft legal racing in all kinds of conditions.

A full weekend of racing was offered including participation in the Mixed Relay team format of the sport, which made it’s Olympic debut in Tokyo 2020.

Proudly hosted by Orange Triathlon Club, the two-day festival offers something for everyone, inclusive of Para athletes from the Development Pathway and Non Drafting events for locals in Orange and those in the pathway not yet draft legal endorsed.

Adding the hotly contested competition is the unique mixed gender environment, which ensures that every athlete taking part has close competitive races against athletes of similar capability.

The event also doubled up as ‘Race 3’ of the Billigence Pathway Championships Series, and we extend our thanks to Billigence for their ongoing and continued support of the sport of triathlon. We love their passion, their commitment and their dedication. Thanks to Jana and Michael.

TNSW / TACT Mixed Relay Teams Events (Saturday 27^TH November)

Athletes first hit the water in the Mixed Relay Team Event. It was not only the spectacular view of Mount Canobolas that took the athletes breath away, it was also the rather fresh water which maxed out at 16 degrees. Featuring teams compiled of various Regional Academies of Sport, the Emerging Talent and U23 Squad, ROSTA and TACTTA, this event also doubled as the TNSW /TACT State Mixed Relay Championships.

TNSW / TACT recently announced a continuation of the partnership with Palladium Property to support young triathletes in their future quest for international and Olympic medals in this fast and furious race format. After having seen this format of the sport make its debut in Tokyo, it is clearly here to stay and a significant strategic priority of Triathlon Australia and the STTA’s moving forward.

Robyn Low-Hart, TNSW / TACT Coach and Education Pathway Manager stated, “Whilst the conditions in Orange were challenging, the athletes in the Pathway were resilient, flexible and accepting of changes that were necessary for safety. The recent unprecedented times has taught us to be that way, the Pathway athletes were impressive in their ability to shift their plans and adapt. The Super Sprint Race weekend in Orange is a pivotal piece in the development of these up and coming athletes – the fact that they can be racing in the same heats as some of Australia’s best Pathway athletes is inspirational as well as educational. The younger athletes see the more experienced athletes in action, and learn from them. In multiple formatted racing, athletes need to be able to recover and back up for the next event. Nutrition and recovery are crucial to maximise performance, the athletes in the pathway were able to recover and prepare for all of the events, a credit to the athletes and their coaches”.

CLICK HERE to view to full podium results from 2021 TNSW / TACT Mixed Relay Team.

A technological issue with the timing system unfortunately called for a late alteration to the selection policy meaning that the TNSW / TACT No. 1 Mixed Relay team was selected from the Sunday individual races. Irrespective, we are proud to once again select this team who will represent NSW in the Australian Youth & Junior Mixed Relay Championship in Werribee Victoria (29^th January 2022), and the Triathlon Australia MR invitational event, currently penciled in for later in the season. (Date TBC).

All members of the team will receive a unique and originally designed Triathlon Suit, Team Polo and hat to ensure they look and feel like the No. 1 NSW / TACT team.

The Palladium Property logo will be proudly displayed in their apparel, and the teams will be known as the:

• ‘Palladium Property’ TNSW / TACT No. 1 Youth Mixed Relay Team
• ‘Palladium Property’ TNSW / TACT No. 1 Junior Mixed Relay Team
• ‘Palladium Property’ TNSW / TACT No. 1 U23 Mixed Relay Team

The suit design has been inspired by a local indigenous artist Kylie Tarleton who is from the Wiradjuri land. Our No.1 NSW / TACT Team is being chosen on Wiradjuri Land & our Tri suit will acknowledge this.  Kylie provided the platypus design, which is a piece from her private collection, and it represents the totem of Orange, the Biladurang! (Wiradjuri for platypus). 

TNSW / TACT Super Sprint Championships Finals (Sunday 28^th November)

Athletes were graded into five finals based on their cumulative times after competing in an Aquathon and a ‘Transition’ event on the Saturday afternoon. The results (times) of those events were added together and all athletes were ranked into 5 finals, which were run on Sunday.

To say the A-Final was hotly contested was an understatement, and for those who were lucky enough to be out on course, spectators were privileged to see some amazing athletes in action. No doubt the current and future stars of our sport, showing off all the skills and hard work they’ve put in over winter.

Particularly exciting at this year’s event in Orange was the inclusive of Paratriathletes. It’s absolutely wonderful to see these inspiring para athletes joining us and gaining some superb experience for their triathlon careers.

Join us in congratulating the podium of the Paratriathlon Event:

Join us in congratulating the winners of the TNSW / TACT Super Sprint Championships

Lastly, we are thrilled to announce the following athletes have been provisionally selected pending appeal into the TNSW.TACT Palladium Property Mixed Relay Teams.

Palladium Property TNSW / TACT No. 1 Youth Mixed Relay Team

Palladium Property TNSW / TACT No. 1 Junior Mixed Relay Team

Palladium Property TNSW / TACT No. 1 U23 Mixed Relay Team

Triathlon NSW extends our thanks to Steve Martin and the entire volunteer workforce of the Orange Triathlon Club for once again conducting a smooth and seamlessly event, worthy of a state title.

Thank you also to Billigence, our series sponsor; and to the Regional Academy or Sport coaches who once again supported the event by bringing their full teams, Grant Holman for attending as Technical Official, Nathan Breen for the commentary and entertainment and all the parents for a tough but worthwhile weekend.

CLICK HERE to access the appeals policy.

All the results from all races can be found here.