SAM RENOUF 9

The Professional Triathletes Organisation CEO on the plan to rival tennis and golf, the PTO’s Kiwi connection, exorbitant age group entry fees, the threat to Ironman and the possibility of a race in New Zealand

TQ: With the athlete-first DNA, sweet-spot 100km races, media-focus and power shift towards your brand, you have the most exciting job in triathlon don’t you?

SR: Not just triathlon - this has to be one the best jobs in sport! There seems to be a real appetite for change within triathlon, especially amongst top professionals who recognise the opportunity ahead and started this all with the PTU several years ago. Our first season of the PTO Tour and the PTO Open races we staged in Canada, the US and the Collins Cup in Samorin felt a real step forward. To have these broadcast live to an engaged audience of millions around the world in our second year is testament to the potential. That said, there is still much to do. We are in the triathlon equivalent of the sprint to the first turn buoy – we have many miles to go before the finish line could be in sight. But I am confident that we are on the right path and that this is an exciting opportunity to modernise our sport and give professional triathletes the opportunity to showcase their extraordinary talents, while being rewarded appropriately.

TQ: You’ve recently been quoted as saying the PTO can be as ‘big as tennis or golf’, sweet music to triathlon ears. Simple question…how and when?

SR: Well, that’s certainly the ambition.

But in that interview I also said that those sports have had a 100+ year head start on us. The ATP or WTA in tennis or the PGA or LPGA in golf were formed by groups of professional athletes who wanted to make their sport better. And that’s exactly what happened with the PTO.

Professional triathletes have seen the rise of our sport but the growth at the pro end hasn’t necessarily tracked the participation growth. Football, the NFL and tennis have been multibillion-dollar sports for a long time. Triathlon has really been in the dark ages from a commercial and broadcast perspective, and that’s why the PTO was formed.

Triathlon appeals to the executive and the professional class which is a very attractive group to market to. The whole point of the PTO is that although you’ve got this incredibly valuable market that’s global, it’s completely fragmented by the lack of a media product. I think two important announcements at the end of last year signposted our ambition. The first was the appointment of Chris Kermode as our Executive Chairman. Chris has held a number of leadership positions in tennis, rising to the role of Executive Chairman and President of the ATP where he was responsible for promoting the sport globally to the next generation and attracting audiences with innovative broadcasts and formats.

The second was the decision by Warner Bros. Discovery to become an investor in the PTO rather than simply our global broadcast partner. Our strategy is underpinned on making triathlon a broadcast sport. Having one of the largest broadcasters buy into that journey is a great validation of the potential.

TQ: What’s worked since the PTO’s inception. And what hasn’t?

SR: Well, I think we’ve learned a lot and would repeat that we’re only at the start of our race. In the first place, I think it was a significant achievement that the PTO got created and all the professional triathletes united behind one organisation.

Personally speaking, I think our coownership model is one of our secret weapons and has been influential in how we’ve gone about things. For example, the early PTO Rankings bonus payments to athletes during Covid, then the creation of a sport-leading ‘paid leave’ maternity policy that has helped our female athletes, like Chelsea Sodaro, to be world class athletes as well as moms. More recently we’ve had a committee of athletes working on a new version of our PTO World Rankings.

So while it’s been great to hear over the last week or so how the likes of Ashleigh Gentle (pictured above), Alistair Brownlee and Kyle Smith are really embracing the PTO Tour races, I think there’s also much more we can do with them as well as for them.

On broadcast, we’ve been excited to see the progress we’ve made to bring long distance triathlon to a broader audience, which included a global dedicated TV and streaming audience of 23.1 million for the 2022 PTO Tour. But I’d have loved to have introduced more live data into the broadcast product to enhance the storytelling further. We’ve certainly got work to do there. We’d also have liked to get our full 2023 PTO Tour calendar out there much earlier. That’s something we’re committing to doing moving forward. It becomes much easier to do once the calendar becomes established.

TQ: What new broadcast and storytelling innovations will be unleashed in 2023 and beyond?

SR: Well, as I’ve mentioned, I think that in some respects we’re far ahead of where we’d expected to be with the global broadcast of our races. In other respects, we’ve still got a lot of work to do. I think the introduction of live athlete data would be a significant move and that’s certainly something we want to progress.

Beyond the new technology and storytelling innovations, I think it’s also worth remembering the core ingredients that make a successful, professional sport. It’s about having the world’s very best athletes going head-to-head on a consistent basis at the biggest races, what’s often referred to in the industry as a ‘season long narrative’. And in having that season narrative established, it’s then about bringing those athlete backstories to life and making fans really care who wins.

I also think it’s about staging our races in great venues. The Tour de France has proved the importance of the backdrop to an endurance sport. Hence our desire to expand the tour into different continents where we can test our athletes on different courses, in different climates and see different winners.

TQ: What surprises has the PTO’s Athlete Board, which includes New Zealand’s own Dylan McNiece, brought to the overarching vision?

SR: The PTO Athlete Board plays a very important role. We talk about co-ownership, but it’s important that translates into action and outcomes rather than just nice words.

The athletes felt passionately about introducing new policies like the ‘paid leave’ maternity policy I mentioned earlier. But they’ve also been unanimous in their feedback that our ranking system needed to change - and then picked up the baton to really run with the project.

Dylan’s been a very important cog within the organisation and played a key role in making all this happen. His ability to juggle time zones, not so easy from New Zealand, has to be seen to be believed.

TQ: The PTO has an intrinsic relationship with the team behind RaceRanger, fronted of course by James Elvery and Dylan McNiece. How important is this tech to the organisation and to the sport as a whole? Will we see it rolled out in 2023?

SR: The best tech fuels the progress of any industry and the sports industry is no different. So it’s important we embrace it and find the tech that will help us achieve our mission to take professional triathlon to the next level.

Live data will be the big thing in sports production over the next five-10 years. It’s what fans want to see. It helps them contextualise what they’re watching. Especially in an endurance sport like ours.

RaceRanger is a great example of technology that can help solve a problem. How can we objectively and fairly help race officials apply the 20 meter drafting rules.

I don’t have any exclusive for you I’m afraid. But it was encouraging to hear about the successful trial RaceRanger did at the Tauranga Half in New Zealand a couple of weeks ago.

TQ: The PTO is Asian bound. How important is it to spread further? When will we see a Australasian stop?

SR: Very. The PTO Tour has to go to new and exciting places. Singapore will be a great destination as well as a great race

PTO 2023 Schedule

Back To Start List

TQ: Ironman has owned the age group market till now and with race entries rising in a tough economic climate globally, weekend warriors are feeling the pinch. Why should I jump ship to a PTO race or can both brands happily co-exist?

SR: Ironman is a phenomenal business and has lots of races, which certainly proves there’s a strong appetite from the age group market.

The PTO wants to make each PTO Tour event an experience, something you’ll remember and tell your friends about, and that means more than just flying in, racing and flying out. With the chance to watch the men’s and women’s pro races at close quarters and then take on the same course yourself, or try out extra events like open water swims or night runs, all in stunning destinations that can be explored during race week, we think we’re offering something a bit different.

Our 100km races (2km swim, 80km bike, 18km run) certainly offer a new distance for age groupers to take on. And because our model is more around broadcast and media, we are focused on keeping the events as accessible as possible which should help in this tougher economic climate.

As to jumping ship, that’s not the way to look at it at all. Athletes, both pro and age grouper, have the opportunity to do both and we very much hope they do. Not only can both brands happily exist, the success of the PTO in growing triathlon’s profile will be a very positive force for Ironman’s growth for the simple fact they have most of the places for these new triathletes to race.

TQ: Finally, with the beauty of hindsight, what’s the biggest untapped opportunity for the sport and how will the PTO capitalise on this?

venue. And whilst our focus for 2023 is on the races we’ve announced, we’re already thinking about 2024 and how we turn things up. Australasia would certainly fit that bill, so let’s see.

SR: I think it’s about unlocking the true value of our amazing professional athletes. Triathletes are some of the most talented athletes on the planet but the vast majority of the world doesn’t know they exist. This is what we’re here to fix, by getting the best racing against each other consistently, telling their stories in compelling ways and giving them a global broadcast ‘stage’ on which to really perform.