As much as many pro triathletes compete in triathlon because they're passionate about the sport, they're naturally also trying to make a living.
And over the past few years the Professional Triathlete Organisation (PTO) has been attempting to make that easier for pros racing over longest distances.
That's in part thanks to the bonuses they get at the end of the year based on the PTO athlete rankings, but it's also down to the prize money on offer at events that form part of the PTO Tour.
But just how much can athletes earn from the PTO?
How much can athletes earn from the PTO Tour?
Before answering that, it's first worth noting that the PTO has reduced the size of the field so that only 30 pro athletes can compete at the recently announced European Open and US Open, while 20 will be eligible to compete at the Asian Open in Singapore.
We're still waiting to hear details on the final Tour event and the Collins Cup.
The total prize fund for each confirmed event is $600,000 (down from $1,000,000 in 2022), with equal prize money shared between men and women.
The top three athletes at each of the three events announced so far will be awarded the same prize money: $100,000 for first, $50,000 for second and $35,000 for third.
From there, the prize money drops off quite quickly. Below, we've shared a full list of the prize money available to athletes at the US and European Opens and included last year's figures alongside it for comparison.
- 1st: $100,000 (same in 2022)
- 2nd: $50,000 ($70,000 in 2022)
- 3rd: $35,000 ($50,000 in 2022)
- 4th: $15,000 ($40,000 in 2022)
- 5th: $10,000 ($35,000 in 2022)
- 6th: $8,000 ($30,000 in 2022)
- 7th: $7,000 ($25,000 in 2022)
- 8th: $6,500 ($20,000 in 2022)
- 9th: $6,000 ($18,000 in 2022)
- 10th: $5,500 ($16,000 in 2022)
- 11th: $5,000 ($14,000 in 2022)
- 12th: $4,500 ($13,000 in 2022)
- 13th: $4,000 ($12,000 in 2022)
- 14th: $3,500 ($11,000 in 2022)
- 15th: $3,000 ($10,000 in 2022)
- 16th: $3,000 ($9,000 in 2022)
- 17th: $3,000 ($8,000 in 2022)
- 18th: $3,000 ($7,000 in 2022)
- 19th: $3,000 ($6,000 in 2022)
- 20th: $2,500 ($5,000 in 2022)
- 21st: $2,500 ($2,000 in 2022)
- 22nd: $2,500 ($2,000 in 2022)
- 23rd: $2,500 ($2,000 in 2022)
- 24th: $2,500 ($2,000 in 2022)
- 25th: $2,500 ($2,000 in 2022)
- 26th: $2,000 ($2,000 in 2022)
- 27th: $2,000 ($2,000 in 2022)
- 28th: $2,000 ($2,000 in 2022)
- 29th: $2,000 ($2,000 in 2022)
- 30th: $2,000 ($2,000 in 2022)
Last year, anyone finishing from 30th to 40th would also get $2,000 in prize money.
At the Asian Open, there'll only be 20 athletes taking place, so the prize money will be split slightly differently. As we've already mentioned, the top three athletes will get the same as the other two confirmed events, but subsequent finishers will get marginally more.
For example, fourth will get $20,000, fifth will get $14,000 and sixth will get $10,000. From then on, finishers will get between $1,000-1,500 more per place than the list above, until 17th place, where the prize money aligns for the final few places.
Top image credit: James Mitchell/PTO
