Jenson Button Trust Triathlon Crosses The Finishing Line For National Award
The Jenson Button Trust Triathlon has won a prestigious national industry award for the first time after it was relocated to Derby.
The event, which previously took place near Luton, was held at Markeaton Park for the first time in July 2015 and will return to the city on Sunday July 17. The 2015 JBTT, organised by Derby-based HUUB Events, won Event of the Year award for a race with under 500 entries in the 220 Triathlon Awards held in London on Saturday evening.
Sister company HUUB Design also clinched two top awards again this year for its innovative range of triathlon wetsuits and tri-suits. And four athletes in the HUUB ‘family’ won their categories. Derbyshire’s paratriathlete Phil Hogg, who won the GP National Championships in 2015 and is vying for Paralympic selection at Rio, won the Men’s Paratriathlete award with Lauren Steadman, who has automatically qualified for Team GB at this year’s Olympics, winning the Women’s Paratriathlete award.
Meanwhile Ben Dijkstra (18) from Loughborough, who is set to compete in this summer’s JBTT, won Young Triathlete of the year and Lucy Charles (22) clinching the Women’s Age Group award.
Dean Jackson, owner and founder of HUUB Design and HUUB Events said: “There was a very strong Derby contingent at the 220 Triathlon Awards this year and we were delighted to come home with three trophies and to be celebrating the recognition for athletes who are part of the HUUB family. “HUUB Design has won a host of trophies in these annual industry awards over the past few years and I am particularly delighted that the Jenson Button Trust Triathlon won the Best Event award. “Equal credit needs to go to Jenson Button and his team for their belief and trust in Derby as a city that delivers and to our partners Derby City Council and the businesses who helped make this fantastic event happen. “These awards are hugely anticipated in the triathlon industry. Our trophy tally shows that Derby is truly a city of sports innovation – for product design, staging a hugely successful high profile sporting event and in developing top triathletes.”
Jenson Button continued: “This is fantastic news and I am sure that this year’s event will be even better.”
Claire Duffin, Event Director at HUUB Events collected the trophy for the JBTT. She said: “We were over the moon to have reached the final of the Event of the Year and ecstatic to have won the trophy. “This year’s Jenson Button Trust Triathlon will be even bigger than last year – attracting a wide range of novice and elite individual triathletes and teams. “I am sure that this award will attract even more competitors from all over the UK and the world to Derby on July 17 for the event.”
On July 17, elite, seasoned and novice triathletes as well as teams of three in the Team Challenge, sponsored by Midlands business advisers and accountants Smith Cooper, will compete alongside Formula 1 racing driver Jenson Button in a day of sport.
Everyone will get the chance to race twice. The preliminary will consist of a 200m swim in Markeaton Lake; 10km cycle from the park and on closed roads into the city centre before returning to the park to complete a 2.5km run. In the individual event, the top male and female performers will then go on to the finals – completing a 400m swim, 20km cycle and 5km run, with the runners up entering the wooden spoon race.
The Team Challenge participants will race again in the afternoon over the Super Sprint distance and the team with the fastest average time will emerge victorious.
During the lunchtime break – the ‘Be More Bailey’ family challenge will start with a 50m swim in the lake then head out onto the closed roads for a 2.5km cycle before a 750m run – crossing the same finishing line as the JBTT triathletes.
To register for the Jenson Button Trust Triathlon and the Be More Bailey Challenge, please visit www.jensonbuttontri.com and, for latest news and training tips, please follow on Twitter @JBTrustTri