THE 2015 GRAND FINAL
While many Chicago-area athletes are looking forward to the 2014 World Triathlon Series event purely because it’s an ITU event, the race is special for another reason: it will be a preview of what will go down in 2015, when Chicago will serve as the ITU World Triathlon Series’ Grand Final, where elites, age-groupers, under-23 athletes, junior athletes and paratriathletes who have qualified for the Grand Final will all compete for world championship titles. The 2015 race likely will serve as a 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games qualifying event for American elite athletes.
In other words, if you know you’re not up for attempting to qualify for the 2015 Grand Final, which requires that you nab one of the 18 Team USA spots available per age group at the USA Triathlon Age Group National Championships in Milwaukee in 2014, then the 2014 ITU Chicago race is the perfect opportunity to experience what it will feel like to race the 2015 Chicago Grand Final event without having to qualify for it.
“If I’m somebody who may not be able to make the team down the road, what a great opportunity to live the dream,” said Barrie Shepley, an age-group coach who also announces for the ITU’s live telecasts.
Indeed, many who are involved with the ITU say that racing in a World Triathlon Series Grand Final is unlike any other experience you’ll get in the triathlon world, and that age-groupers who are unlikely to qualify for the Grand Final in 2015 will get a similar experience in 2014 just by entering the race.
“All I have to do is send in my entry fee and make a road trip to Chicago for the weekend,” said Shepley.
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