Warrnambool Tri Club to hold 2020 Killarney Triathlon in-person

Warrnambool Tri Club wants to get people of all ages and abilities involved in its events this summer.

The Allansford-based Gaffys are a great example of a family getting in and having a go at this Sunday's Killarney Triathlon.

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Siblings Lucy, 5, and James, 3, are set to participate in the under 7s Triathlon Taster and they can't wait.

Lucy made a 15-day countdown calendar in preparation for the event and has been crossing off the days.

She and James did the Killarney Triathlon this time last year and got a big cheer as they completed it.

The big difference now is James is off training wheels and is raring to go for the bike leg. Distances will be adjusted to their ability.

They'll be joined by their parents Fiona and Peter who will supervise one child each at Killarney Recreation Reserve.

"It's just exciting for the kids to have an inclusive event where it's fun and they're dong something that's active," Fiona said.

Peter, who will also compete in the open sprint course, echoed that sentiment.

"The committee is really keen to see everyone give triathlon a go," he said.

"So we're trying to make it available for everyone to get involved and a good entry point is to start triathlons with a team."

Peter has focused on his riding this year.

He's taking on the 90-kilometre bike leg, as part of a team, in February's Geelong Ironman.

There are two open-aged distances at Killarney this Sunday.

There's a sprint course which involves a 500-metre swim, 16km bike ride and 4km run.

The short course is a 250m swim, 8km ride and 2km run.

There are junior events for under 7s through to under 12s. It's strictly online registration for all events.

The club has benefited from the state government's easing of coronavirus restrictions.

Premier Daniel Andrews on Sunday announced outdoor sport could progress with a cap of 500 patrons with groups limited to 50 people (subject to density quotient).

The club, which ran its first calendar event virtually, was aware in-person numbers could be capped for its second event.

But thanks to the latest round of restrictions the club is welcoming all those who wish to participate.

"We'll take registrations from anyone who wants to get involved," race director David McIntyre said.

"But if we do get more than 50 we'll organise things so it's not everyone meeting and starting at the same time."

The club has measures in place to prevent too many people from being in one space.

The sprint course and short course are scheduled to start at 9am but participants will start in separate waves.

McIntyre said more waves could be created depending on numbers.

"There's a chance we'll split our transition area in half," he added.

The race director said kids events had been pushed back half an hour to 11.30am to prevent a crossover between adult and junior competitors.

He said the club wanted participants to wear masks pre-race and at the race briefing.

McIntyre said the club would be posting briefing material on its Facebook page to keep the in-person briefing to a minimum.

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