Lance Armstrong is Back!

Lance Armstrong recently made his return to triathlon at the 70.3 Panama Half-Ironman in very impressive fashion. The following video features his Panama result broken down, as well as what I believe is to be expected from Lance in the future.

                        

(Refer to graph above and images below)

                                    

Olympic Qualification Process Explained

With the 2012 London Olympics on the horizon, it’s getting closer and closer to the time when each National Olympic Committee (NOC) must announce who they will send to compete in the triathlon. There is a total of 55 spots for both men’s and women’s events. The number of athletes that each country is allowed to send depends on the performance of its athletes based their. The countries ranked top 8 in the world are allowed to send 3 athletes to the games. Countries ranked below top 8 in the world may only send a maximum of two athletes. The home country is always granted one female and one male spot.

This chart indicates important dates with regard to the team qualification process.

Date	Mile Stone
1 June 2010 – 31 May 2012	Period of Olympic Qualification
1 May 2011 – 30 April 2012	Period for ITU Continental Olympic Qualification Events Locations:
6 – 7 August 2011	2011 ITU World Olympic Qualification Event Location: London, GBR Aug. 6 - 7
1 November 2011	IOC will contact all NOCs who are eligible to apply for Tripartite Commission Invitation Places
16 January 2012	Deadline for NOCs to submit their requests for Tripartite Invitation Commission Places
1 May – 9 July 2012	The Tripartite Commission will confirm, in writing, the allocation of Invitation Places to NOCs.
8 June 2012	ITU to inform NOCs of qualification places
22 June 2012	ITU to confirm final allocation of qualification places
2 July 2012	ITU to confirm final allocation of qualification places
9 July 2012	Deadline for London 2012 Organizing Committee to receive entry forms

While world rankings decide how many athletes are allowed to attend the games from each country, they are not the deciding factor with regard to team selection. The National Federation for each country determines their own criteria for their athletes to meet in order to qualify for the games.  For example, Canadian and French federations require their athletes to come top eight overall in a predetermined race to be automatically qualified for the Olympic games; top nine in the U.S.A; and top ten in New Zealand. Australian athletes have it tough, as they must win to be guaranteed selection to the Olympic triathlon in London.

Triathlon.org compiled lists of the winners of these important qualifying events to date:

Men’s - http://www.triathlon.org/files/events/rankings/olympic-simulation-men-2012.pdf

Women’s - http://www.triathlon.org/files/events/rankings/olympic-simulation-women-2012.pdf

Athlete Podcast Discussion - London 2012 Olympic Games Triathlon

On Wednesday, February 9th, Triathlon-Daily had the opportunity to have an online podcast discussion with a few of Ontario, Canada's elite triathletes regarding hot topics related to the upcoming Olympic Games in London, England.

The podcast topics include:

• Guest introduction
• Who should we expect to see on the podium in London 2012?
• What will it take to defeat the Brownlee brothers?
• Impact of teams
• Will Chris McCormack make the Olympic team?
• Top underdog
• Can Simon Whitfield earn another medal?

Podcast

Alex Vanderlinden and Rachel Skubel are both elite triathletes training out of Multisport Zone in London, Ontario. They are coached by Cliff Worden-Rogers, who is also located in London, Ontario.

Andrew Yorke is a professional elite triathlete coached by former Olympic coach, Barrie Shepley. Andrew is currently training out of McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario.

2012 SRAM Red released

Since SRAM received a 234.8 million dollar investment from Trilantic Capital Partners in 2008, the Chicago, Illinois based bicycle component company has continued to show significant increase in popularity year after year. February 1st, 2012 SRAM released their upgraded top of the line groupo, Red.

Rather than falling into the trends of electronic shifting, or eleven-speed rear cassettes, SRAM has kept it simple and stuck with ten-speed, cable shifting. The 2012 SRAM Red has a claimed weight of 1,739g which will make it 100g lighter than the already feather-weight 2011 Red groupo. Notable improvements from the 2011 groupo include an improved front derailleur for solid, more reliable shifting; upgraded lever ergonomics, including textured hoods for improved grip; truly hollow carbon fibre cranks; and finally, SRAM has moved to cam-actuated rim design brakes which are proven to be lighter, while having greater stopping power.

SRAM continues to become more and more popular among triathletes and cyclists alike. I feel that it will only be a matter of time before SRAM becomes the most popular top-of-the-line bicycle components on the market.