The Edge Sports Blackwater Sprint Triathlon is on in Fermoy on August 12th. It's now open for entry for individuals and relays through www.triathlonireland.com. 10 years after the inaugural Edge Sports Blackwater Triathlon the club is delighted to announce the addition of an Olympic distance event to our race program. For 10 years our annual Sprint triathlon has been going from strength to strength. The sport of triathlon is growing in popularity every day and the demand for races is growing apace. As more people take up the sport they are keen to push themselves further with longer races. While Cork is home to many sprint distance races, up until now the county has only hosted one Olympic, or standard, distance race each year, the Jailbreak Triathlon in Cobh. Taking into account this dearth of Olympic distance, events the committee decided to look at the possibility of holding a longer race this year. There were huge challenges to overcome to facilitate a longer race, while at the same time ensuring that our sprint and Try-a-tri races wouldn’t be adversely affected. Last year we had two events taking place on the day, a sprint triathlon comprised of a 750m swim, 20km cycle and a 6km run and a try-a-tri event with a 250m downstream swim followed by a 20km cycle and a 6km run. Between the two events we had nearly 300 competitors competing on the day. This year we will be running the sprint and Try-a-tri races as usual and adding the new race and are hoping for over 400 athletes to take part. The Olympic distance race will consist of a 1500 metre swim, followed by a 40 km cycle and a 10 km run. Fermoy is uniquely situated to hold an event such as this. The town is based in the heart of Munster with excellent road links and of course we also have the River Blackwater, which is ideal for the swim.

In order to facilitate the extra numbers and the longer duration of the race, we have, in conjunction with the Fermoy Town Council and Gardai, made the decision to move the race from its usual Saturday afternoon slot to a new 9 o’clock Sunday morning start. While it will mean a very early start for the Triathlon Club members who are organising the event and for the athletes taking part, it will also ensure that the town of Fermoy itself suffers the least possible amount of disruption. The race will be over by lunchtime and the competitors and their families and supporters will be able to relax and enjoy the hospitality of Fermoy for the afternoon. Once again we will be relying on the good will of the people of Fermoy and hopefully they will come out in large numbers to support the athletes during the race. Entry to the races is available via the Triathlon Ireland website. For further information please check out the Blackwater triathlon Club website and Facebook page.