Wu Yufan (middle) from Xiamen won the MD 35-49 Female AG championship on her birthday.

Triathletes rushed to the sea and started the race.

On October 22, when the 4th Asian Para Games opened in Hangzhou, an event that was of absence for four years, was also greatly held again in Dongtou, Wenzhou, a place embracing the land and the sea. At 9 a.m. that day, the 2023 China Wenzhou International LD Triathlon Open officially kicked off at Dong’ao Beach in Dongtou, with 376 competitors from all over the world, who were professional athletes, or from triathlon associations and clubs, or amateurs, to participate.

Masters Gathered: A grand event for Dongtou was launched

The modern triathlon originated from a discussion of “the best of sports”: “What sport is most challenging and can test people’s will and physical fitness the most?” Triathlon is undoubtedly the ultimate contest of speed, strength and endurance that the competitors need to do swimming, cycling and running one after another and uninterrupted.

Three races of the Long Distance (LD), Middle Distance (MD) and Aquathlon were set to provide a diversified participation experience for the triathletes. The LD race consisted of 2km of swimming, 80km of cycling, and 20km of running; the MD race required 0.75km of swimming, 20km of cycling, and 5km of running; and the aquathlon race included 0.3km of swimming and 3km of running.

Ranging in age from 8 to 66 years old, domestic athletes came from 15 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities), and the 28 foreign athletes came from 14 countries (regions) including France, Germany, and the U.K. Triathlon masters such as Peter Wolkowicz (who was called the “big demon” of the field), Benjamin David Deady (who had been promising in the past two years and just won the championship in the 2023 China Triathlon League – Wuxi held by the China Triathlon Sports Association), Li Qisheng and Fang Zhou (top male triathletes in China), and Hu Yan, Li Xin, and Qiao Beibei (top female triathletes in China) were gathered in Wenzhou.

As a local international competition, it was joined by a large number of native participants: the Wenzhou Triathlon Sports Association sent 67 competitors, of which more than 40 people were from the Longgang Triathlon Sports Association. Ma Pengkun and Zhu Haiqun (the famous local triathlon couple who were police officers from Yongjia County), Zhao Jing, Zhou Renyan, Yan Rongyun, Xiao Ziying, and other masters also participated in the races. It was worth mentioning that the Shanghai United International School (Wenzhou Campus) and Yueqing Hongma Club respectively formed “small ironman” teams to participate in the aquathlon race of the youth group.

Road for the Brave: Triathletes spared no pains to compete

At 9 a.m., the 25.75km MD race started first. An hour later, the highlight of the event – the 102km LD race initiated. After fully warming up, the athletes rushed towards the sea, who would first swim 2km, then cycle 80km along the Dongtou coastline, and finally run 20km back to Dong’au Village.

Indulged in the lands and waters, athletes enjoyed a pleasing triathlon. The French triathlete, Degham Toumy, was the first to cross the finish line with a time of 01:08:00, for the MD 35-49 Male AG race, while Hu Xiaodong, a native of Ouhai, Wenzhou with 12 years of experience, won the MD 50+ Male AG championship. The police couple Ma and Zhu had participated triathlon races for three consecutive years. Each athlete left their own unique memories in Dongtou, and also contributed a hearty triathlon competition to the audience.

What was it like to have the award ceremony turned into a “birthday party” instantly? On her birthday, Wu Yufan from the Xiamen Triathlon Sports Association won the MD Female 35-49 AG championship with a time of 01:25:14. When the birthday song played, Wu excitedly raised her hands at the award podium with a smile on her face: “This is my first year to challenge triathlon. I signed up for the race, as it would be held on my birthday. I’m very happy to prove myself today by winning the championship and interpreting the triathlon spirit.”

City of Triathlon: Dongtou created the brand of holding events

The success of an event cannot be separated from the hard work of volunteers and staff. Among them, a group of young people born after 2000 were particularly eye-catching. Two students from Wenzhou Medical University Renji College came to the site early in the morning and were responsible for providing drinks, towels and other supplies to the athletes in the transition area. “We hope the athletes can compete at a high level and show their charms, and we enjoy helping them at the first instance when they need assistance,” they said.

Since 2018, the Wenzhou Triathlon Sports Association has recorded more than 600 times of participation of triathlon events with 29 championships, 43 runner-up prizes, and 27 second runner-up prizes. Dongtou is surrounded by sunny beaches and blue seas, making it a perfect place to host triathlon events. From the introduction of the triathlon championship for the first time in 2018 to the continuous successful hosting of international events and being awarded the title of “Important Contribution City” by the China Triathlon Sports Association, Dongtou is gradually becoming an important event base for triathlon in China.

In recent years, Dongtou has actively promoted the development of integrated sports and tourism, and achieved remarkable results, with the word “sea” as the core, by innovating mechanisms and systems, fostering new business formats, and developing new products. In the future, Dongtou will continue to make efforts to cultivating the three major branded events of triathlon, saltwater fishing invitational tournament, and lucid waters and lush mountains leisure sports challenge.