FEATURES

Affordable Triathlons...

Saturday, 30 March 2019 23:10

By Tom McAllister (triathlete.com)

Thom Richmond wants to tear down this financial barrier to triathlon entry. “There’s an area that’s completely ignored,” he says of tri’s demographics, which skew toward mostly male, white, high-income earners in their middle 40s. “That’s not where most of the country is.” Pointing to U.S. Census Bureau data, Richmond believes there’s growth potential for triathlon, but costs must be lowered in order to attract newcomers—from all socioeconomic backgrounds—to the sport.

A 49-year-old engineer by trade and an age-grouper triathlete by passion, Richmond is a former Southern Californian who now lives in Virginia. He followed his wife to “Old Dominion” after she received a sweet job offer: VP of admissions at Washington and Lee University. The family made the move in 2015, but ...

Richmond maintains strong California ties. He used to work at the Walt Disney Company (lots of friends) and in 2010 he helped found the non-profit California Triathlon—a now nearly 5,000-member strong tri team—where he still serves as a very active board member.

The main mission of California Triathlon is to make multisport affordable by providing resources, coaching, and support for all. In the team’s early days, Richmond felt California Triathlon was leaving a lot of people behind, so board members worked to “level the playing field in terms of access,” he explains. READ MORE