Sports Management Issue 1 2012 - Leisure Opportunities

Triathlon gives people
the chance to be part
of something that
becomes a lifestyle
Triathlon – combining running,
cycling and swimming events – is
the fastest-growing sport in the UK
©ISTOCKPHOTO.COM/ DAVID MANTON
their membership, if they take part in
other activities offered within the club.”
Not only that, but members of in-club
clubs also take part in social activities,
building a sense of community and buyin
and further boosting retention.
“Triathlon gives people the chance to
be part of something, which then becomes
their lifestyle. This can only be a
good thing for club operators,” says Julian
Nagi, the British Triathlon Federation
Level 3 coach who heads up the in-club
triathlon club at The Park Club, part of
The Hogarth Group. “Our triathlon set-up
helps with club loyalty. There’s no question
that it keeps members coming back
for more, renewing their membership
fees each year and passing on positive
word-of-mouth recommendations.”
Training and events
Andrew Taylor is sports manager at DLL
Hampton. His club offers a weekly swimming
session, plus another session in
the week that covers either running or
cycling on a fortnightly rotation. There is
no additional charge to members. “We
see the triathlon club as another benefit
to DLL members who are looking for
more intensive group training,” Taylor
says. “As we do not charge, we receive
no direct extra revenue. However, we
believe that the extra sense of achievement
will encourage participants to
keep their membership.”
British Triathlon is keen to work with any venue
wishing to run multi-sport activities. We’re happy to
help any club operator generate a triathlon club
Taylor believes the main considerations
for operators wanting to set up an inclub
triathlon group are time, space and
credible trainers. “As long as you have cycles
or Spin bikes and treadmills, you can
do this,” he says. “I’d advise operators to
look at peak and off-peak membership
and consider whether to offer sessions
for both. We have no specific zones as
we do the training at a time that won’t
affect other gym users. Outdoor sessions
can also be done if the trainer and members
are happy to do so.
“Having a pool is a big help, although
you can just offer training for run and
bike. Staff don’t need to have specialist
training for run and bike, although it helps
if they have some experience, as members
will have more belief in the trainer.”
“Not all clubs will have a pool,” agrees
Nagi. “They could offer specific running
or Spinning sessions, or recruit triathlon
coaches to organise outdoor group bike
and run sessions. Duathlon (run/bike/run)
is a good way to encourage people to
try multi-sport. Some may then want to
move onto triathlon.”
As Barfield suggests, facilities can also
offer triathlon events themselves or in
partnership with local triathlon clubs,
providing an opportunity to drive revenue
as well as retention. “The multi-sport
nature of triathlon lends itself to many
opportunities: a dry triathlon challenge
in the gym, an aquathlon (swim/run), a
full triathlon or any combination of the
three sports,” says Barfield. “British Triathlon
is keen to work with any venue
©ISTOCKPHOTO.COM/ALAIN LAUGA
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