Active QT managing director Adrian Bailey said he was asked if he would be interested in taking over the former Triathalon NZ and today it will be held under the new name of TriFactor.
"A lot of these smaller, more community-type events, are disappearing which is really sad and it is nice from my perspective that we can keep these events alive and offer something for everyone," Bailey said.
He said a lot of people within the Otago region would use these smaller events in the build-up to Challenge Wanaka, "so it just fits nicely within the scheme of things". Bailey represented his native country Wales in cross-country and ultra marathon events before moving to New Zealand and establishing Active QT in 2009.
Since then, he has organised more than 150 sporting events and over 250 individual races in Queenstown, Wanaka, Mount Cook and Rotorua. He said more than 200 athletes had entered the Wanaka TriFactor races and more were expected to enter this morning.
Races included trail running, sprint and olympic distance running, swimming and biking, as well as children’s triathlons and a novelty "splash and dash".
"Wanaka is a beautiful location to host a fantastic event. All the distances are achievable for all and we’ve got some great prizes to give away, as well," Bailey said.
First races start at 8am.
