Collegiate Recruitment Program

Can you answer yes to the following?

Runners

• I recently graduated from college with 5k/10k PR’s faster than 17’/35’ for women and 14:45/31’ for men.

• I have a swimming background, either in age group club or high school or have been told while cross training in the pool that I look smooth and efficient.

• I do not want to pursue running post-collegiately, but I still have that competitive fire within!

Swimmers

• I am an NCAA Division I, II, III Championship qualifier or Division I Conference consolation finalist.

• I have a running background from high school, excel at dryland run training, or have been told I'm a fluid, competent runner with future potential.

• I have little desire or insufficient ability to compete in professional swimming post-graduation.

• I have the potential to have a "runner's build" once my swim emphasis changes to a run emphasis.

If you said, “Yes”
If you answered yes to all of these, then you share those answers with half of our Olympic triathletes. Of our 15 Olympians, seven ran for a Division I team, six swam for a Division I team and only 25 percent did a triathlon before they graduated from college. Following the Beijing Games, USA Triathlon started the Collegiate Recruitment Program to identify and mentor collegiate runners and swimmers who have a background in the other sport into triathlon. We feel that our next Olympians will come from the NCAA ranks.

What is triathlon?
Triathlon comes in a variety of distances and formats. We are recruiting for the draft-legal (DL) Olympic distance - 1500 meter swim, 40k bike, 10k run. For the women, this race takes about 2 hours, and for the men about 1:45. In the Olympics, the bike portion of the race is draft-legal, meaning you can ride right behind someone on the bike to take advantage of their draft. Most age group, non-elite, races are non-drafting, where it is illegal to ride within a certain distance of a fellow competitor. Because of the draft-legal nature of the Olympic Triathlon, the swim is important to "get you in the game," while in most races the run is what wins it. The closing 10k times in Beijing for the Olympic Gold medalists were a 33:16 for the women and a 30:45 for the men. 

The Program
The Collegiate Recruitment Program offers a mentorship with a U.S. Olympian who guides your transition from single sport to multisport athlete. As you start your triathlon journey, you will be asked to do a swim benchmark test of 200 meters all out, 1 minute rest, 800 meters all out. If your swim meets our standards, you will be invited to participate in the Collegiate Recruitment program. The benefits include: being connected with a local, experienced triathlon coach who has agreed to work pro bono for a year as you get into the sport; opportunity to take part in clinics at key U.S. races; invitation to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs for a week long summer camp with other recruits; assistance with equipment through USAT sponsors.

Next steps
If you fit the above criteria and are interested in finding out more about triathlon, visit the links below, or contact USA Triathlon Collegiate Recruitment Coordinator, Barb Lindquist, at barb@usatriathlon.org.

Follow USA Triathlon Collegiate Recruitment Program on Facebook.