THE Saint Lucia Tourism Authority (SLTA) is once again spearheading efforts to stage the sixth annual Tri St. Lucia Triathlon to be held this Sunday. Last week saw the official launch of the event at the Landing Resort in Rodney Bay.
Tri St. Lucia 2017 is designed with all ages and fitness levels in mind, with three separate competitive distances available, including relays. The course includes a swim in the beautiful clear waters of Rodney Bay, a tough hilly volcanic bike ride to Cotton Bay and a flat run to Pigeon Island and back.
Event distances include: The Dagger: 200 metres swim, 6.6 km bike, 2.5 km run, The Pistol: 750 metres swim, 13.2 km bike, 5 km run and the Cutlass: 1500 metres swim, 26.4 km bike, 10km run.
Organizers seemed pleased with last year’s participation from Martinique, the United Kingdom, Trinidad and Tobago, and Saint Lucia. This year, they are hoping to attract well over 250 participants with entry numbers pacing well ahead of last year’s.
Like previous years, the special guest is Daley Thompson, the Event Ambassador, who is expected on island sometime this week.
General Manager of Cap Maison, Ross Stevenson, said, “In taking the event forward, there needs to be an organized body in Saint Lucia that can really develop the Triathlon. It is a fantastic sport and the beauty of it is to organize a smaller event and gradually have a big one.”
Ross said the event benefits Saint Lucia in terms of sports tourism. He also expressed his gratitude to the many sponsors on board.
Social Manager at The Landings, Cypriana George, said, “This is the fifth time the Landings is participating to do this event and we are absolutely thrilled. Sports tourism is an area that needs to be further developed, particularly for the youth of our island.”
“The Landings is very big on social responsibility, so we look forward to a holistic participation from every age range this year. The Landings looks forward to working with the Tri team, the Saint Lucia Tourism Authority and other partnering hotels in the years to come to further execute a successful event,” she added.
SLTA’s Chief Marketing Officer, Sybil Brown, indicated that the SLTA has done quite an extensive research on the fastest-growing trends in travel and tourism today. Fitness, health and wellness, tourism revenues worldwide are experiencing double-digit growth annually, a growth rate of more than twice as fast as tourism expenditure.
She said, “We are moving in the right direction by building events like this and leveraging our diverse and ideal tourism product for this experience. The SLTA is committed to supporting this event annually and to working with you and to ensure that we strengthen the quality of the triathlon experience every year.”
She continued: “At the SLTA, we are committed to ensuring that we are successful using this experience as a significant marketing asset for the destination. Tour operators around the world are looking for fresh ways to satisfy these new powerful travel requirements in order to ensure that travelers are satisfied with and enriched by their travel experiences.”
