The Professional Triathletes Organisation (PTO) has this morning announced the details of the first ever PTO European Open.
The new event will be held in Ibiza on 6 May and will feature both a women's and men's race over a distance of 2km swim, 80km bike and 18km run.
Based out of Ibiza Town, the event will take place against a beautiful backdrop and will take in some of the island's most iconic sights.
The event will also be co-hosted alongside the 2023 World Triathlon Multisport Championships.
Speaking about the news, PTO CEO Sam Renouf said: “We’re excited to confirm that Ibiza will host the inaugural PTO European Open and kick off the 2023 PTO Tour.
"It continues the expansion of the PTO Tour and our journey to different continents, courses and climates and will be a fantastic way to start the season.”
The course will start with a swim at Figueretas Beach and will then be followed by a multi-lap bike course, with each lap heading out toward San Antonio.
Athletes will have to return to the race start to go through transition once more before passing through Ibiza Port and then running laps through the World Heritage area of the city.
One big name is already targeting the race, with German ace Jan Frodeno announcing he intends to race here when outlining his plans for his final ever season as a pro.
The PTO Tour: What's confirmed so far?
Now that the PTO European Open has been announced, we know how the tour will kick off.
It'll be followed by the PTO US Open in Milwaukee on 4-5 August and the PTO Asian Open in Singapore on 19-20 September.
There is also one more tour date yet to be announced, with the details expected to be confirmed soon.
Both the European and US Opens will be open to the top 30 men and women who qualify from the PTO World Rankings, while the PTO Asian Open will be open to the top 20 men and women in the rankings.
This means that less athletes will be able to compete at these races than in 2022, while the total prize fund available for each race has also been reduced from $1,000,000 to $600,000.
Speaking about this decision, Renouf said: “Establishing a more regular consistency of ‘world championship level’ events is imperative to grow the sport through TV audiences, media coverage and sponsor opportunities for our athletes.
“So we needed to think carefully about how we kept the momentum of the first season going as we simultaneously work on plans to establish more of a season-long schedule and narrative for the Tour in 2024 and beyond.
"We believe the steps we are taking in 2023 to increase the number of races and spotlight the very best athletes, whilst balancing prize funds, will help ensure we continue to grow in a sustainable way.”
Commenting on the changes, PTO Athlete Board member and pro triathlete Skye Moench said: “The PTO Athlete Board was unanimous in approving these changes for the 2023 season.
“While we understand the changes may not be popular amongst all athletes, we also understand the context of the changes and the direction the PTO is trying to go.
"We also appreciate the need to grow the PTO Tour and go to different markets, which sometimes means compromising on different elements like the number of athletes racing or the prize money.”
Top image credit: Anton Petrus
