Dubai, 27 April 2010 - Marisol Casado, president of the International Triathlon Union and member of the International Olympic Committee, today emphasised that cities hosting the sport of triathlon are benefited by global exposure through live television broadcasts and the promotion of a healthy balanced lifestyle. Casado spoke while participating in the 2010 SportAccord International Convention in Dubai.
Casado who was on a panel of City Forum 2010, one of the key programmes in the global convention discussing values and social rewards of cities hosting international sporting events, said, "The sport of triathlon is genuinely recognised as a spectacular event for presenting a city. A unique aspect of our events is that they are not hosted in a stadium and the city streets and waterways are its venue. Cities and local communities are benefited by international live TV coverage on national broadcasters, showcasing the cities iconic landmarks to audiences across the globe.
Casado added, "Promotion of fitness and healthy lifestyles is also valuable to host cities. Triathlon does not just provide a stage for elite competitions, but also each of our events includes a mass participation race that allows people of all ages and abilities to compete on the same world class stage as the elite athletes. As an example, we had more than 8,000 participants in our Hamburg event last year.
"Many of our events also include a kids introduction to triathlon where we have children aged 5 to15 participate in a controlled and safe environment. So the 'Sport for all Concept' is a key aspect in today's world where obesity is a global problem and cities and governments are anxious to find ways to curb this epidemic.
"It is also important to recognise that the sport of triathlon involves many volunteers, which we believe, is of great benefit to cities as a social programme. Volunteer programmes represent a mutually beneficial relationship between ITU and host cities to create successful and sustainable events."
Moderated by Don Schumacher, chairman of the National Association of Sports Commissions, the panel also included Hans den Oudendammer, director of Rotterdam Top Sport Foundation; Guru V.S. Malladi, Partner-Advisory Services-Infrastructure, Government, Ernst & Young India PVT Limited; and Shane O'Leary, CEO of Sydney 2009 World Masters Games Organising Committee.
The SportAccord International Convention is an annual meeting event gathering more than 100 international Olympic and non-Olympic sport federations and organisations. Led by President Casado, ITU delegates are Vice Presidents Dr. Sarah Springman, Bill Walker and Kyung-Sun Yu, along with ITU Sport Director, Gergely Markus.
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