Interactive map showing the way for Columbia Threadneedle World Triathlon Leeds

Residents and businesses near or impacted by the route of the Columbia Threadneedle World Triathlon Leeds are being encouraged to regularly visit a new interactive map for the latest information about the event.

The map which can be seen via www.leeds.gov.uk/leisure/Pages/Triathlon-route.aspx was launched at the end of last month showing the route the Leeds leg of the prestigious ITU World Triathlon Series will follow when it takes place on Sunday 12 June.

Starting in Roundhay Park, the event route takes in Roundhay, Moortown, Meanwood, Weetwood, Headingley, Woodhouse and the city centre before ending in Millennium Square.

Created by Leeds City Council, the map allows those impacted by the route to see the latest information for residents and businesses. Properties directly impacted were sent letters when the route was revealed, and the map also now offers information for a secondary level of properties further away from the route that will be impacted in a lesser way. All of the properties on or near the route will be receiving further details in a letter in April.

The map has already been visited by more than 700 people since it was launched on January 29 and the council, which is organising the event alongside Lagardère Sports, British Triathlon and the International Triathlon Union (ITU) with support from UK Sport, is encouraging all those impacted by the route to regularly check it for updates as they become available.

Leader of Leeds City Council Councillor Judith Blake said:

“From the success of hosting the Tour de France Grand Départ we know the importance of informing those impacted by the event as early as possible with key details such as event timings, road closures, parking arrangements and traffic and travel information.

“It is the same with the Columbia Threadneedle World Triathlon Leeds – we want everyone to know well in advance how the day will work so everyone can enjoy what will be a fantastic event for Leeds. So I would encourage people to regularly visit the interactive map and the supporting pages on our website for the latest information.”

The interactive map shows the route to be followed by the world’s finest triathletes in the elite men’s and women’s races to be held on the Sunday afternoon. These races are expected to feature homegrown stars Alistair and Jonathan Brownlee as well as Leeds-based duo Non Stanford and Vicky Holland, taking on their rivals from across the globe in the British athletes’ final event on home soil before the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

They will be preceded in the morning by the mass-participation events offering approximately 5,000 amateur triathletes the chance to take on the same course as the professionals, with the only slight differences being variations to the bike and run elements to cater for the different distances being completed and the second transition point being on the former site of the Leeds International Pool. All competitors will enjoy the chance to cross the same finish line on Millennium Square.

Final places in the sprint and beginners events are available and can be booked through the official event website at http://leeds.triathlon.org.

Access for emergency vehicles will be maintained through the event and emergency services, health and social care providers, community meals at home and other agencies are working together to ensure care and support individuals may need is provided.

Details will also be announced in the coming weeks of the activities and events taking place in Roundhay Park on Saturday 11 June, offering people of all ages a sample of triathlon the day before the main event.

For the latest information on the Columbia Threadneedle World Triathlon Leeds, which is part of UK Sport’s National Lottery-funded #EveryRoadtoRio events series, visit http://leeds.triathlon.org/

Anyone keen to volunteer at the event can express their interest via http://leeds.triathlon.org//event_info/volunteer

Event information for Leeds can be seen at www.leeds.gov.uk/leisure/Pages/World-Triathlon-Leeds-2016.aspx, while anyone interested in receiving the latest email updates can sign up to do so by contacting worldtriathlonleeds@leeds.gov.uk.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

British Triathlon - Helen Gorman on 07739 456644 or helengorman@britishtriathlon.org or Tom Goldspink on 07795415452 tomgoldspink@britishtriathlon.org

Leeds City Council – Roger Boyde at roger.boyde@leeds.gov.uk

NOTES TO EDITORS:

Columbia Threadneedle World Triathlon Leeds 2016 – elite route detail

The elite races will take place on the following route following the swim element which will take place in Roundhay Park’s Waterloo Lake:

Bike course:

Transition swim to bike (Car park at Roundhay Park) then Park Avenue, Princes Avenue, Street Lane, Stonegate Road, Meanwood Road, Grove Lane, Shaw Lane, Otley Road, North Lane, Cardigan Road, Burley Road, Burley Street, West Gate, The Headrow, Calverley Street, Millennium Square (START OF CITY CENTRE LAPS), Cookridge Street, The Headrow, Briggate, Albion Place, Albion Street, The Headrow, Park Row, South Parade, East Parade, The Headrow, Park Square East, St Pauls Street, Park Square West, Westgate, A58, Westgate, The Headrow, Calverley Street, Millennium Square, (END OF LAP).

Following transition two on Millennium Square, the run course is as follows:

Millennium Square, Cookridge Street, The Headrow, Briggate, Albion Place, Albion Street, The Headrow, Park Row, South Parade, East Parade, The Headrow, Park Square East, St Pauls St, Park Square West, Westgate, The Headrow, Calverley Street, Millennium Square (END OF LAP/FINISH LINE).

About British Triathlon

British Triathlon is the governing body for the sport in Great Britain. It is responsible for raising the profile and delivering elite performance for Triathlon, Paratriathlon, Duathlon and Aquathlon in Great Britain. Triathlon is a fast growing, dynamic and modern Olympic sport with talented world class athletes, coaches and support staff, focused around delivering world-class events and medal winning performances. Visit www.britishtriathlon.org for more information.

Visit www.britishtriathlonmedia.org for downloadable image galleries, detailed athlete profiles, results, stats and information.

About Leeds City Council

Leeds City Council is the second-largest local authority in England with a population of around 776,000. Leeds has a very proud sporting heritage and we are committed to encouraging sport as a way of promoting the city and healthy lifestyles, as well as bringing world-class events. This can be seen in the success of the 2014 Tour de France Grand Départ and the Rugby World Cup 2015, building towards our ambition to become European Capital of Culture 2023. The council works in partnership with the city’s three universities, national governing bodies and key stakeholders to develop sport from grassroots to elite level. Visit www.leeds.gov.uk for more information.

About Lagardère Sports

Lagardère Sports is one of the world's leading sports and entertainment agencies and forms part of Lagardère Sports & Entertainment. The events division of Lagardère Sports specialises in the promotion, marketing, organisation and delivery of televised events. Its business in the UK includes the delivery of mass participation endurance sports (triathlon and cycling) for elite and lifestyle participants. Events include the Columbia Threadneedle World Triathlon Leeds and Velothon Wales.

About the International Triathlon Union (ITU)

The International Triathlon Union is the world governing body for the Olympic sport of Triathlon and all related MultiSport disciplines including Duathlon, Aquathlon, CrossTriathlon and Winter Triathlon.

ITU was founded in 1989 at the first ITU Congress in Avignon, France. It has maintained its headquarters in Vancouver, Canada since then and also has offices in Lausanne, Switzerland and Madrid,Spain. It now has over 167 affiliated National Federations on five continents and is the youngest International Federation in the Olympic Games. Triathlon was awarded Olympic Games status in 1994 and made its Olympic debut in Sydney 2000.

Triathlon is also featured in the Asian Games, Pan American Games and Commonwealth Games. Paratriathlon was accepted into the Paralympic Games in2010 and will make its Paralympic debut in Rio 2016. ITU is proudly committed to supporting the development of the sport worldwide through strong relationships with continental and national federations, working with its partners to offer a balanced sport development programme from grassroots to a high-performance level.

For more information, visit: www.triathlon.org

About UK Sport

UK Sport is the nation’s high performance sports agency responsible for the strategic investment of National Lottery and Exchequer funding into Olympic and Paralympic sports and bringing major sporting events to the UK.

Columbia Threadneedle World Triathlon Leeds is part of UK Sport’s #EveryRoadtoRio events series, which will feature over 30 world class sports events the length and breadth of the UK, with over 900,000 tickets available to the British public to support their athletes.

This ambitious National Lottery funded programme will support British athletes’ preparation and qualification for Rio 2016, with up to 95 direct and over 300 indirect qualification spots available, while generating economic impact for host cities and regions of over £37 million.

Throughout the #EveryRoadtoRio series UK Sport will be promoting exclusive ticket offers, opportunities to meet the athletes and get privileged behind the scenes access to events. Sign up now at www.uksport.gov.uk/events

About Columbia Threadneedle Investments

Columbia Thread needle Investments is a leading global asset management group that provides a broad range of actively managed investment strategies and solutions for individual, institutional and corporate clients around the world. With more than 2000 people including over 450 investment professionals based in North America, Europe and Asia, we manage £320 billion ¹ of assets across developed and emerging market equities, fixed income, asset allocation solutions and alternatives.

Our priority is the investment success of our clients. We aim to deliver the investment outcomes our clients expect through an investment approach that is team-based, performance-driven and risk-aware.

Columbia Threadneedle Investments started its successful relationship with the ITU World Series in 2013 and has since become Global Financial Services Partner.

www.columbiathreadneedle.com

All figures as at 31 December 2015. Columbia Threadneedle Investments is the global brand name of the Columbia and Threadneedle group of companies.

¹ Source: Ameriprise Financial Q4 2015 earnings release. Past performance is not a guide to future performance. The value of investments and any income is not guaranteed and can go down as well as up and may be affected by exchange rate fluctuations. This means that an investor may not get back the amount invested. This material is for information only and does not constitute an offer or solicitation of an order to buy or sell any securities or other financial instruments, or to provide investment advice or services.

The Columbia Threadneedle Rankings

As a global asset manager Columbia Threadneedle Investments recognises the importance of being the best in the field, not just at home, but on a global basis. The Columbia Threadneedle Rankings are used to determine the best performing triathletes across the ITU World Triathlon Series.

The Columbia Threadneedle Rankings Leader Trophy is presented to the top male and female elite athlete at each ITU World Triathlon Series event. In 2016 the Columbia Threadneedle Rankings Leader will continue to wear the bespoke race markings and carry the colours of the Columbia Threadneedle Rankings logo on their bike rack in transition.

Launched in 2015, the Columbia Threadneedle Rankings Report identifies the trends and interesting statistics after each event throughout the season.

The official Columbia Threadneedle Rankings can be accessed at www.wts.triathlon.org/ColumbiaThreadneedleRankings. Engage with the conversation on social media using the hashtag #CTrankings, or follow @CTinvest_Tri

ENDS

For media enquiries please contact:

Roger Boyde,

Leeds City Council press office,

Email: roger.boyde@leeds.gov.uk