“The loss of the World Triathlon Championship event in the last quarter of 2021 is certainly a blow to the sector,” BTA CEO Charles Jeffers II said, adding that “while we share in the disappointment, we know that safeguarding Bermuda’s reputation, and health and safety is key.”
This follows after officials confirmed that the 2021 World Triathlon Sprint & Relay Championship — which Bermuda was scheduled to host next month — will not take place this year.
The event, which Bermuda’s Olympic gold medalist Flora Duffy was scheduled to compete in, will not take place, with organisers citing an analysis that “considered the island’s recent spike in Covid-19 infections in addition to the Bermuda Hospital’s elevated Covid-19 patient intake.”
Mr Jeffers said, “The loss of the World Triathlon Championship event in the last quarter of 2021 is certainly a blow to the sector which has looked forward to this economic shot in the arm over the past eighteen months.
“While we share in the disappointment, we know that safeguarding Bermuda’s reputation, and health and safety is key. However, the postponement is a speed bump not the end of the road and we are currently in talks with the World Triathlon body to replace the event with a series of World Triathlon sanctioned international endurance events over the next three years.
“Flora Duffy’s iconic status as World and Olympic Champion will go a long way in shining a light on Bermuda’s continued triathlon ambitions.”
