A new dating app has been launched for triathletes, allowing them to search for their forever partner by their age, interests - and athletic prowess. Is it a good idea - or your worst nightmare?
What do triathletes look for in a partner?
The app allows you to choose what you’re looking for, whether that be a romantic relationship, friendship, training partner, or simply “my tri friends made me sign up”. Details even include entering your body type, with options ranging from athletic, muscular, to “big and beautiful”. This begs the question, what are the most important qualities to look for in a partner and do these really differ for triathletes as opposed to non-multisport muggles?
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Do you think people can be matched on their athletic ability?
Some may find questions like what your swim pace is, 5km pace and racing accomplishments a bit too CV-esque. Indeed, when checking out potential matches you are provided with such a host of fitness information that we had to remind ourselves we were not stalking the competition on the powerof10 or Strava. In spite of the unique approach, competitiveness is a well-known trait of a triathlete, so could they be onto something?
What is most important in a relationship as a triathlete?
The app asks you to list your favourite way to spend time when not tri training and whether you are a dog or cat person. In fact, they even ask you to pick your favourite discipline (like asking a parent to pick their favourite child comes to mind). But what out of these would you class as important? The app's USP and where it mostly differs from conventional dating apps is its unique focus on sporting hobbies, to the extent of your triathlon ability, and the focus on extremely specific questions such as "what's the longest distance triathlon you have completed?" and "what distance race are you training for right now?" Take also into consideration that on a normal dating site, the 'triathlete' card can be a great way to impress your date and make you stand out from the crowd. No such precedent exists on the app as doing triathlon is a given, you have to therefore draw on other hobbies (if you have time for any besides tri), in order to impress your date.
More about the app
Triathlon Dating launched in June of 2020 and was founded by Pro Triathlete Angela Naeth and Joel Larson with the goal of helping single triathletes connect and find love in the sport. The platform started off as just a website and on 17 February 2021, they officially launched their app, which is available on the App Store and Google Play. There are over 1,800 triathletes on the platform and currently growing at around 20 triathletes per day.
Would you sign up to a triathlon dating app? Let us know your thoughts on Twitter @220Triathlon
