#TriThis

The start — and everything that followed — was an extension of his wonderful sense of adventure.

This kid just wanted to play, plain and simple.

Crashing soccer and volleyball matches on the beach. Skateboarding. Fence-hopping for after-hour dips.

Whizzing through the neighbourhood on his banana-seat bike to prove that he was the speediest around.

Embracing a fantasy game like Dungeons & Dragons to the point where he and his chums decided it would be awesome to take an escapade off the tabletop — and into real world.

So, at 11 years of age, there stood Simon Whitfield.

On a floating dock at Sharbot Lake, Ont., five bucks sealed into a ziplock bag, the precious cargo tucked into his wetsuit. The mission for Whitfield and his pal? To swim the 11 kilometres to the far shore, wade out of the water and straight into the store — and make a big production out of buying a jug of milk.

Away the boys went. And the stunt, including the milk purchase, was executed to perfection. Except that the wild scene they had hoped to create fell flat.

“We thought this was hysterical,” recalls Whitfield, laughing. “But I don’t think anyone noticed. We thought all the people would be staring out the window and thinking, ‘Where did they swim from?’ But they didn’t care.”

And the distance? Not 11 kilometres, as it turns out. More like 1,500 metres.

Nevertheless, for a couple of summer-killing youngsters, the accomplishment had been meaningful, says Whitfield. “Because we determined that we could do the Sharbot Lake triathlon.”

Which, Whitfield knew, would be an absolute rush.

While the first-race details of Canada’s most famous triathlete have been lost in the mists of time, he undoubtedly set a blistering pace — for fun.

After swimming, Whitfield clambered aboard a borrowed 10-speed mountain bike to spin through the next stage. Kickstanding his ride, he pulled cow-pattern boxer shorts over his Speedo and tugged a Mickey Mouse hat onto his head. Beaming, he galloped to the finish line.

“It was a blast,” he says. “Sure, it was supposed to be a race, but we were just traversing from here to there, much like we were when we got the milk.

“It was just an excuse to listen to the music playing at the grandstands, spend time with family and friends, then brag, ‘A-ha — I did this. I swam there, I rode there, I ran there, and I happened to come in whatever place.’

“That was the beauty of it.”

As Triathlon Canada embarks on a national campaign — to heighten awareness of the sport, to widen the participation base, to create a more diverse and inclusive community — there could hardly be a better ambassador than someone who captured Olympic gold the very first time it was offered.

The upcoming promotion is called #TriThis.

Whitfield indeed tried this — loved it — and never looked back.

In Sydney, Australia, that unforgettable day — Sept. 17, 2000 — Whitfield had been, well, Whitfield. Joking about sharks before the event and musing, in-race, about the nearby botanical gardens where, once upon a time, he’d carved his initials into bamboo shoots.

En route to making history and becoming a household name, the young man, in characteristic fashion, had a riot.

Whitfield personified the joy of sport.

Which is one of the messages Triathlon Canada — through the #TriThis pilot — plans to convey in the coming weeks. To illustrate the welcoming and rewarding nature of triathlon, there will be eye-catching video content as well as human-interest storytelling, showcased via social media and captured on triathloncanada.com.

Sure, Olympic and Paralympic success — Paris, ahoy! — boosts a sport’s reach, but so does amplifying the inspirational journeys of athletes, coaches, families, organizers, officials and volunteers.

“Oh, I think it will definitely make an impact,” Mark Hahto, interim CEO of Triathlon Canada, says of #TriThis. “Stories generated about the benefits of the sport of triathlon will have impact on building awareness, on building the profile.

“The stories that we can share with parents and kids are astronomical.”

Because trying triathlon — or any activity — is a positive experience. There are few drawbacks.

“We need to get kids excited about participating,” says Hahto. “If it’s swimming, if it’s athletics, if it’s cycling, that’s fantastic. But it could be soccer, it could be beach volleyball, it could be taekwondo, it could be anything.”

For those who do make the choice, personal growth awaits, even if Olympic glory is a long shot. But don’t worry — dividends come in many shapes and sizes, according to Whitfield. “It’s whatever people find as their, quote-unquote, golden moment.”

It’s less about filling trophy cases and more about chasing goals, whatever they happen to be.

Head coach of Canada’s para-triathletes bound for Paris, Carolyn Murray agrees, noting that her mom Laurie raced in the world age-group championships when she was 60 years old.

“We all know being active is good for your mind, body and soul,” says Murray. “To have a variety of sports that you can do to stay active, that is a really healthy balance. Moving in different ways, it’s good for everybody.”

Murray remembers her own decision to #TriThis. A varsity track athlete at Simon Fraser University in the late-1990s, she had been casting about for fresh challenges. A teammate talked her into signing up for a local triathlon. A downpour — and slippery roads — cancelled the cycling stage, but, no matter, an impression was made.

“The thing that stood out, even in that small encounter, was how positive the atmosphere was — it was really a community,” says Murray, who went on to race at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. “It was just a really welcoming environment, a refreshing space to come into.”

She acknowledges that there is room for growth in triathlon. For an insider, the concept can be baffling. Because what’s not to like about her favourite sport?

“We think it’s big, we think everyone knows about triathlon,” Murray says. “People that organize the events, people that volunteer, they’re passionate about the sport and they really want to share it, which is super cool. But the profile isn’t as big as we think it is.

“Any way we can increase awareness and encourage people to come in is great.”

 

Triathlon Canada Nation. We Can. We Will.
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