Round-Up of 2nd annual Triathlon Industry Conference powered by GiveWheel

reference Endurance Biz

Delegates from across the triathlon community gathered at Loughborough University for the second annual Triathlon Industry Conference powered by GiveWheel on Monday December 8, 2025.

The event, powered and supported by GiveWheel, continued the Triathlon Industry Alliance (TIA) rebirth after the pandemic and was once again run in conjunction with The Running Conference and Running Industry Alliance (RIA).

The day’s programme was hosted by three-time Olympic commentator and former professional athlete Annie Emmerson, and was split into sessions including Showcasing the Multisport Experience, Engaging with the Audience, Building the Triathlon Growth Opportunity, The International Perspective, Innovation and Where Next for Triathlon?

TIA chairman Iain Hamilton opened proceedings by saying that “triathlon is in a decent position in the UK, with events selling out and retailers doing better,” but called for greater involvement to help drive TIA forward as a member-led organisation with a few words from RIA CEO Rebecca Richardson about the TIA x RIA collaboration so far.

This sentiment was echoed later in the day by Philip Hatzis of Tri Training Harder and Rob MacLeod of Epic Events, who are leading the creation of a TIA charter as a ‘kite mark of professionalism’ for the industry body. MacLeod summarised the challenge by saying “TIA is a great group of people with amazing ideas and ambitions, and we need to glue everyone together more than once a year – both business-to-business and public-facing.”

The opening panel, Showcasing the Multisport Experience, saw 220 Triathlon editor Helen Webster explain that after 30 years in specialist journalism, the need to engage audiences in new ways and explore alternative revenue streams is increasingly pressing. However, she stressed that the variety of events and the power of storytelling remain central, particularly when featuring high-profile figures such as Spencer Matthews and his recent endurance feats.

Jack Schofield of 226Photography, who specialises in delivering high-quality edited race images of mass participation events overnight, shared his view that Gen Z participants are increasingly “swapping the pub for the park”, with exercise becoming a new form of social currency. He cited the success of HYROX pairs events and even the rise of Strava as a de facto dating platform.

The next session, Engaging with the Audience, featured a presentation from Luke Howard, founder of Deffo Media, which manages media and video production for organisations including World Triathlon and the Diamond League.

Howard categorised content into three areas: short-form (around three seconds), long-form storytelling and community content. He explained that when content strikes the right chord it can attract millions of views across platforms and generate thousands of new subscribers. For smaller, time-poor organisations, he suggested that content creation could be as simple as a staff member wearing a head-mounted camera to capture behind-the-scenes footage.

Jo Redfern, founder of Furthood Media, shared her experience of more than 20 years working in children’s animation across broadcast, YouTube and gaming. Now working with organisations such as the Premier League and The R&A, she explained how she helps rights holders communicate with what she described as the “trickiest generation”, as media habits shift, formats change and fandom fragments.

Redfern highlighted that quality is now defined by audiences rather than broadcasters, and that younger generations have never experienced content scarcity. As a result, brands need to be present across platforms while ensuring content always feels native to its environment. She also challenged the idea that attention spans are shortening, suggesting instead that younger audiences want to “swim around” content before committing – at which point they often become hyper-focused.

IRONMAN’s Global Social Media Manager, Aaron Wyn Nicholas, introduced himself as “the guy holding the iPhone who shouldn’t be in the broadcast,” before outlining how IRONMAN’s social strategy has evolved.

With multiple IRONMAN sub-brands to align, his key message was that “organic social media sells your brand, but trying to sell on organic social media kills organic social media.” He stressed that rough-around-the-edges content can work if it is authentic, and advocated an “inspire loudly, sell quietly” approach.

He referenced a recent IRONMAN World Championship post from France which avoided explicitly stating that three Norwegians had swept the podium, instead framing the result as “three best friends on top of the world” to better connect with audiences. His guiding principle for social media was simple: “If I were sending this to a friend, what would I write?”

The session on Building the Triathlon Growth Opportunity featured Amy Hall, community and sport development lead at British Triathlon. She explained how the governing body aims to be “here for everyone, however they want to meet us”, supporting flexibility and convenience while recognising those who sustain the sport day in, day out.

Multiple triathlon world champion Tim Don also joined the panel, referencing his work with Supertri as he spoke about the importance of keeping first-time participants engaged through new races and formats beyond traditional distances. He emphasised the role of community in his own development and argued that it must be protected if the sport is to grow.

Charis Palmer-Smeaton, Head of Charity at the Brownlee Foundation, discussed the organisation’s mission to encourage children to be active through school partnerships and mini triathlon events. The aim, she said, is to ensure every child has a “fun, positive experience of being active”. She highlighted challenges in swimming participation since the pandemic, with increasing numbers of children unable to swim a width of the pool, and a rise in scooter provision due to more children being unable to ride bikes.

The International Perspective session was led by Thom Richmond, CEO of Cal Tri Events, who delivered a candid overview of the US triathlon market. He explained that participation has declined from a peak of 500,000 annual finishers in 2011 to around 300,000 today. Richmond challenged the narrative that Covid harmed triathlon, calling it “absolutely false”, and outlined how Cal Tri Events operates as a non-profit to provide affordable racing opportunities.

HUUB founder Dean Jackson MBE reflected on how the pandemic disrupted supply chains and how brands continue to face challenges from international tariffs. However, he argued that it is currently a strong era for professional athletes due to increased sponsorship opportunities, and questioned why more events are not shown on terrestrial television to inspire wider participation.

Linsey Carr, Head of Product and Revenue at Nirvana, the specialist sports travel company, explained that an emerging trend is athletes combining event travel with family holidays.

The penultimate session featured Charlie Hart, co-founder of GiveWheel, alongside Laura Devereux, Trade Partnership Manager at Sigma Sports, and Will Senior, founder of My Tri Ranking.

Hart discussed how fundraising platforms could better support triathlon, noting that fewer than 10% of triathletes currently fundraise through the sport. He outlined GiveWheel’s donor-led model, where supporters choose their preferred charity, and highlighted the impact of GiveReel – a personalised, shareable event highlight reel designed to boost fundraising.

Will Senior introduced My Tri Ranking, which aims to answer the question, “How good am I?” by comparing performances across events despite varying conditions and formats. He explained how organisations, including those in Ireland, are adopting the platform to provide athletes with richer performance data.

The day concluded with a Where Next for Triathlon? discussion, covering topics such as the potential impact of the Enhanced Games and the future visibility of Swimrun following World Triathlon’s involvement, before conversations continued long into the evening over dinner and drinks with fellow members of Running Industry Alliance (RIA).

Save the Date for TIC26: 7th December 2026

www.triathlonindustryalliance.com
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