The Hy-Vee Triathlon is no more – after eight years of pulling in big-name athletes to the city of Des Moines, USA, the title sponsor has decided to call it a day. Midwestern retailer Hy-Vee says that it plans to shift its focus to a new event series promoting health and wellness in children, with a formal announcement expected next month.
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There may yet be hope for Iowa multisporters though, as the organiser plans to keep the triathlon going, according to reports – starting this summer. “We still have the permits for the city,” the Des Moines Register quotes race director Bill Burke as saying. “And we will be doing the new, inaugural Des Moines Triathlon.”
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With whopping prize purses of as much as $200k for the male and female victors (each), the Hy-Vee Triathlon pulled in some of the sport’s biggest names since 2007, including Britain’s Brownlee brothers, Javier Gomez (who won convincingly in 2012), 220 columnist Tim Don and Jodie Stimpson.
“Winning the Hy-Vee Triathlon in 2014 was a highlight in my career, and I want to thank Hy-Vee for their tremendous support of the sport over the last eight years,” said US athlete Hunter Kemper. “A legacy has been created here. And I look forward to learning more about the new event series Hy-Vee will announce.”
The first Hy-Vee Triathlon in 2007 drew in just over 1,000 competitors, and peaked in 2012 at just shy of 3,000 athletes, before dropping slightly in terms of participation numbers to around 2,500 in 2014.
(Images: Delly Carr)
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