ITU World Triathlon Grand Final Edmonton 2014
Sep 26, 2014
This is going to be epic. It was all over the City of Edmonton on bus boards, banners and word of the event buzzed throughout the community. The ITU World Triathlon Grand Final, which wrapped the final week of August in Edmonton, definitely was of epic proportions. With over 3,000 athletes coming in from all over the World, their excitement for the event was contagious. It was impossible not to be caught up in the exciting events kicking off with the opening ceremonies & their Parade of Nations, to the Sprint and Olympic age group races to seeing some of the best athletes in the World competing in the Elite races.
Our clinic group was invited to be on-site providing Physiotherapy to the athletes with locations in Athletes’ Village in Hawrelak Park and Churchill Square. During the week, we had the opportunity to meet athletes from all over the globe and share stories of their time in our city and how impressed they were with how green and cyclist friendly it is. The feedback from everyone that stopped by our booth was overwhelming; they were extremely impressed with the World Class event our city was hosting.
There were many highlights throughout the week but it was really cool to be able to cheer on local athletes from our clinic and the community in World Championship races. Congratulations to the James Dean, his wife, Celine; brother Matt, Thomas and Mark, Kiel, Mike, the Kelly Family, and many more on a great race.
It was amazing to be able to catch so many elements of their race so easily (accessibility on the grounds and surrounding areas was great). It was so cool to see how each day of the event brought so many people together collectively cheering on their countries in Hawrelak. Their excitement and enthusiasm for each element of the event was awesome.
Another major highlight of the ITU was being able to watch some of the best athletes in the world in the Elite races. It was so cool to be able to see Alistair & Jonny Brownlee, Javier Gomez (who ended up winning the ITU series overall), Gwen Jorgensen and local favourite Paula Findlay in action. Having the opportunity to catch the elite athletes on the run course through Hawrelak Park was amazing; it’s absolutely incredible how fast they all are.
It was a privilege to be a part of such a world-class event. Thank you to Aiofe for taking such great care of us in Athlete Services, to Sheila, thank you for organizing such anepic event and bringing the World Triathlon Final back to the City of Edmonton, and thank you to all of the ITU volunteers who contributed to the event. Thank you to our fantastic team from Active Physio Works for all your support throughout the week, I truly appreciate everything you all did for the event.
Lastly, I had received this email following the ITU, which I’d like to share. Sometimes in the role of the Physiotherapist especially at events, you treat a patient and then usually don’t see them again as they race the following day or head home to continue with a therapist in their home country; so it was lovely to hear feedback from one of the athletes James had treated earlier in the week and the success they later had with their race:
“James Dean treated me for a knee injury which had stopped me running completely a few days before the ITU Worlds in Edmonton. His treatment was great and his advice on exactly how to minimize the impact on my knee allowed me to finish the race and to take several places on the run. Thanks James!”
- Alistair from GB
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