Stefan Daniel was first introduced to the sport of triathlon at a Kids of Steel race as part of the Cochrane Footstock Triathlon at 9-years old. With his focus on swimming and soccer at that time, Stefan added two more disciplines to his summer day challenges – biking and running. Shortly after, he got his first competitive test during an annual family trip to Kelowna at the  Kelowna Apple Triathlon, with a bike that was way too small for him! It was a good family vacation choice. Stefan has since gone on to become a two-time Paralympic medallist, six-time World Champion, and one of the most successful Paratriathletes on the planet.

“I’d encourage anybody with a disability to try triathlon! My brother, who has cerebral palsy, and I benefited from doing them at a young age. It gave us the confidence that we could do any sport we wanted to and not see our disabilities as something holding us back in life.”

Emy Legault’s parents Sylvain Legault and Monica Martel always wanted their girls, Emy and Elissa, to stay busy to keep them away from any bad plans or bad friends. Growing up in Montreal, Emy dabbled in many things, including ballet, but her interest was truly piqued when her big sister began to run competitively. She followed suit. Shortly after, a school teacher who belonged to a local triathlon club, asked Emy to come out. She was only nine. And that’s when her Olympic journey began. Emy’s first race was at a local event in the U9 category. She had a big mountain bike and was wearing a two-piece swimsuit!

“We didn’t have Kids of Steel in Quebec, but now there’s a program called 1-2-TRI GO, and I really wish that had been around when we were starting out. I still remember that first race how all of the volunteers were cheering for us kids and helping us along the way, it made the experience so much fun, and still does racing at the Olympic Games. Triathlon has such an amazing community around it. I truly believe kids will find so much joy in racing with their friends and learning more about all three disciplines.”

Tyler Mislawchuk put it all on the line at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games – the same as he did in his first two Olympic starts: Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020. Racing at the front of the pack, Tyler had the podium in sight until the final two kilometres when he ran out of gas. After finishing a best-ever ninth place on the ultimate sporting stage, Tyler quickly remembered where and when it all began. Mislawchuk — who, as a kid, had been struck by Simon Whitfield’s courageous silver-medal performance at the 2008 Beijing Olympics — says athletes simply have the power to influence kids to hop on a bike, dive into a pool, or simply go on a run. Even better – this can be done together in communities across the country at kids triathlon races.

“I’m just a kid from Winnipeg, well, specifically Oak Bluff, where it’s –50 in the winter, and I’ve now competed at three Summer Olympics. You know, I came fourth at the Manitoba Games, I couldn’t even get on the podium there. 15 years later, I’m fighting for a medal at the Olympics.  That’s where it all clicked. It’s mind blowing the power we, as athletes, have to influence kids to try this sport now. I still look to athletes for inspiration every day. It is why we do what we do.”

Leanne Taylor’s introduction to the sport of Paratriathlon was a bit different. It actually began in the hospital. After a life changing cycling accident in 2018 left her paralyzed from the waist down, Leanne at 25 years old, had to rebuild her life from the ground up. She decided laying in the hospital, realizing she would never walk again, that she was going to be a Paratriathlete. Determined to create a fulfilling life and move forward, Leanne quickly set a lofty goal of completing a triathlon, using only her arms, just eight months after her injury. And she did it. Fast forward seven years, Leanne has become one of the top ranked Para-triathletes in the world and a Paralympic bronze medallist while adapting to life in a wheelchair.

“My first race as a Para was the 2019 Sarasota- Bradenton CAMTRI ParaTriathlon American Championships. I had no idea what that meant at the time but it’s funny to me now that I started racing at that level. I competed in that race just eight months after my spinal cord injury. When we did the course familiarization it was actually my first time riding my handcycle outside and I remember it being a really special experience to be out on the bike again so soon after my injury. Becoming paraplegic took a lot away from me. Many of the things that I previously enjoyed in my life like sport, travel and work seemed impossible as a wheelchair user, but I was really committed to not letting my disability take away anymore that it had to. Completing my first triathlon brought me so much joy because it allowed me to prove to myself that disabled or not, I could still be an athlete.”