NEWS

ETU Statement - Covid-19 Update

By Joanna Doran | 15 Mar, 2020

Please see below ETU Statement on Covid-19, updated 15 March 2020.


To all members of the European Triathlon family,

We all have one common passion and that is triathlon and all related multisports. There is almost nothing which can stop us from being involved in triathlon in general and races in particular. From the 10-year-old kid who makes his first steps on his triathlon career to our Age-Groupers of all ages, we were all looking forward to the first European triathlons of the Olympic 2020 season to take place this month.

But just like everyone in Europe we are faced with the substantially changed European sport landscape due to the rapid and massive spread of the COVID-19 virus throughout our continent. The health and well-being of all European triathlon family members is our primary concern. Therefore the ETU executive board has decided to, in line with the decision of the ITU executive board as published online March 14, to suspend all ETU activities until the 30th of April. This includes races, championships, TO, LOC and coaching seminars and courses, development camps and the ITU mentor program. In Appendix I you can find a list with all the events which will be affected by this decision.

ETU President Renato Bertrandi said: “This is a hard decision to take as it will involve not only the athletes who have devoted their time, hard work and effort to be fully prepared for the upcoming season, but also all the volunteers who have put so many hours of time in putting up the best events for all the athletes. However, the current situation leaves us no other choice. As a citizen of Torino living in the hard-hit northern part of Italy, I am fully aware of what consequences the COVID-19 virus has for those who get infected and what it means for all the professionals who do their utmost best to treat and cure them. It is our responsibility as European Federation to the society to help prevent and stop the spread of the virus.”

The ETU strongly recommends the National Federations, in line with the ITU, to extend these measures in their country and also urges all the clubs and individual athletes to put the health of the society as their number one priority. We should all follow the instructions from the national and local authorities. All ETU staff and volunteers will be working from home during these weeks.

It is a great sign of commitment from all the organisers and national federations that all the races that have been affected so far are postponed and not cancelled. During the coming weeks the ETU will work in close alliance with all the organisers to find solutions for the postponed events after 30th of April. As soon we have further information we will publish this on our website  and on our Facebook page. 

The ETU and its executive board will continue evaluating the situation on a daily basis in alliance with the affiliated national federations and will announce as soon as possible any changes in the policy concerning the COVID-19 virus. For now we wish all Europeans the best, together we will be strong.


Appendix I List of all Events Affected

Date Event Place, Country New Date and Place
3rd April ITU Technical Officials And Event Organisers Level 2 Seminar Eindhoven, Netherlands October, Amsterdam, Netherlands
13th April ETU - ITU Development Continental Camp Pula, Croatia TBA
24th – 26th April ITU Mentors Course Brussels, Belgium TBA
29th April OS-ITU Coaches Level 1 Course Ankara, Turkey TBA


Appendix II List of already Affected Events

Date Event Place, Country New Date
15th March 2020 Huelva ETU Triathlon European Cup Huelva, Spain TBA
21st March 2020 Liévin ETU Indoor Triathlon European Cup Liévin, France TBA
29th March 2020 Mellila ETU Sprint Triathlon Cup and Junior European Cup Mellila, Spain TBA
5th April 2020 Quarteira ETU Triathlon European Cup and Junior European Cup Quarteira, Portugal TBA
19th April 2020 Alsdorf ETU Powerman Middle Distance Duathlon European Championships Alsdorf, Germany Cancelled for 2020