Dear All,

I have just passed my 250th day in the role of Chief Executive Officer of Welsh Triathlon. While I know that there are books out there giving ideas, suggestions and directions for the first 100 days, I have to be honest and say that that milestone came and went! That said, I thought it would be helpful to contact you all and share a few thoughts.

Firstly, I want to start with some thanks. I know that I would be nowhere without the amazing Staff and Board of Welsh Triathlon who have been supportive and patient as I have found my feet. I am also exceptionally grateful to the amazing members, including technical officials, athletes, club officers and coaches. People have taken the time to chat, advise and gently guide me! I am open to all suggestions. Thanks also to the phenomenal clubs across Wales who are doing great work. I look forward to visiting more and cheering club members on at events . I also want to recognise and thank the amazing event organisers that deliver sanction events, with us, all across Wales. We are almost back to the pre-covid numbers of events and participants. It is through events that we have been able to deliver a Junior Race Series, a Super Series (soon to be back on your television sets) and our National Championships. Finally, I know that we could not do our business without some really effective partnerships; key amongst those being Sport Wales, British Triathlon Federation and the other National Governing Bodies of Sport across Wales.

I am highly ambitious for our sport in Wales. We host some of the best races, in the most beautiful places, cheered on by the best supporters, are inspired by athletes from age 8 to 80, and are able to support and develop the talent to compete on the national and world stage.

I have always been a glass half full sort of person and love to share good news, so here goes:

• Membership is growing
• We have a thriving club scene and several who feel that they have the best kit in Wales!
• 22,000 people stood on the start line of events across Wales last year and the 2024 event season is underway, champions have been crowned and the stories of achievement and adventure shared
• Some members have been kind enough to permit their stories to be shared by us social media channels, where they have been received really well
• We have active and successful pathway and performance programmes and a growing number of Welsh based professional triathletes for us to support
• We have a monthly membership prize on offer, with 4 winners so far this year
• We have had the opportunity to share some of the concerns of triathletes positively with assembly members at the Senedd

A few Asks from me:

• Membership - Please can you check whether the triathletes that you know are members and if they aren’t, please encourage them to join? I don’t need to tell you this, but by joining they can secure different levels of insurance cover for themselves and other member benefits, be eligible for super series points and junior or national championship awards, and support the development of clubs and the sport in Wales. We are still a minority sport, but I think that there are more people taking part than we know about.
• Stories - Please can we have more stories? – you are all amazing and each one will carry an important message for other triathletes or people thinking about taking part in triathlon
• Volunteering – Think about the different volunteering opportunities; events can’t run without volunteers. Could you be the next technical official or coach?
• Keep talking. We ran a series of Club forums at the start of the year and are acting on many of the suggestions made.

Finally, I am keen to develop more commercial partnerships. We have a range of assets that may be of interest to individuals or businesses:

• Some individuals, who have a love for the sport and are in a position to do so, have sought to contribute in some way to get more people involved or support people starting out in the sport. We have a range of options in this area.
• Some businesses work with us as it supports them to deliver their environmental and social impact aims, as well as their commercial ambitions and interests. We have also worked with some businesses as part of their activity and wellbeing programmes to develop a healthier workforce, giving people an opportunity to try our great sport and link them to local clubs. Again, there are options for all sizes of businesses, so if you are leading or working in a company that might be interested please do let me know.

If you want to discuss any or part of the contents of this message, please get in touch catherineroberts@welshtriathlon.org

Thank you for all that you are doing!

Catherine Roberts

CEO Welsh Triathlon