Morzine has seen so many amazing sporting events this summer, from the French Downhill Mountain Bike Championships to regulars like the Trail des Hauts Forts. Next up on the sporting events calendar is the brand new Morzine-Montriond Triathlon. Organised by our friends at Buzz Events, who also run Buzz Performance and Tri-Montagne, the Morzine-Montriond Triathlon combines their years of experience in the triathlon world while being fun and inclusive. This first event will be a sprint-distance triathlon consisting of a very doable-sounding 750m swim, 5km run and 20km cycle, in one of the valley’s most picturesque settings, Lake Montriond. We caught up with Buzz co-founder, Joe Pearson, to find out more.
What can keen triathletes expect from the first Morzine-Montriond Triathlon?
We will also be holding a Junior TriStars event for kids aged between eight and fifteen years and the course will see kids running the finishing chute with the open competitors, which should great fun! And what would a triathlon be without finisher medals and a fully stocked recovery area at the end of the race!?
What made you decide to organise a triathlon in Morzine? Is this the first one you’ve organised?
We have been in the area for about eight years now and have dreamed about organising a triathlon based at Lake Montriond since we arrived. The lake is made for it and as we mention in our tag lines, this could be the most beautiful triathlon in the world, and we really mean that. This will be Buzz Events first Triathlon, however, in the past our team has had great experience in organising a variety of events. Our team has over 30 years experience in the sport and has been involved in organising a variety of events. Some of the larger triathlon events I have race directed include the 2012 Australian Youth Triathlon Championship, the Elite Oceana Championships and the School Sport Australia Triathlon Championships in 2009. We have a great team at Buzz Events with a wealth of experience and knowledge, which has made the planning of this year’s race as smooth as possible.
It’s great to see you guys working with the Montriond Mairie, has their support been crucial to the event happening?
The Montriond Marie has been fantastic and very supportive. They too can see the potential of such an event and are very keen to be involved in an event that showcases the area and encourages people in the community to be active.
This one is going to be a sprint distance triathlon – if all goes well will you be organising longer distances in the future?
We’d love to grow the event and have plans for a longer race in the future, however at the moment our focus is on making this year’s event as safe and fun as possible for all involved.
Is there a deadline for sign-ups? How many people will be competing?
Entries are coming in and yes we do have a maximum number of space available. Entires will close at midnight on Friday the 31st of August. We’d love to see 100 entrants in the sprint race; as this year will be a pilot event we are limited to 130 total, but also have space for a number of teams, and of course, the Junior TriStars as well.
And there you have it! Even if you’ve never done a triathlon before, this one is the perfect event to get you started, and there’s still two weeks left to sign up.
If triathlons aren’t your thing, Buzz is looking for some keen volunteers to help out during the day – drop Joe a message on joe@buzzperformance.com if you’re keen. Don’t forget to follow the event on Facebook and Instagram to keep up to date with all the latest news. As well as the Montriond Mairie, the event is also supported by Morzine Immobilier.
