TSP9: The First British Triathlon Shown On TV
The video above is the Grandstand highlights of The Heineken Southport Triathlon that took place on 18th June 1989. It was shown on the Saturday after the race. And was the first British Triathlon shown on TV. 220 called the race, “a truly historic day in British Triathlon.”
Although I’d read plenty of triathlon magazines, watching the Southport race was the first time I’d actually seen top athletes in motion. I also managed to record it using the family Betamax. And made sure to push out the tab on the underside of the cassette so nobody could record over it.
Most weekends after that would involve getting home from my Saturday job at Thompson’s Garage, watching the tape and then heading out on my bike to recreate the race in Burnham Beeches or Windsor Great Park.
Image: Tri-Athlete (UK) June 1988
Already the year before, in 1988, the Southport race was a big deal. In their August 1988 race report Tri-Athlete (UK) said that the event, “put triathlon on a plane not previously attained in the UK.”
High praise considering the 1986 European Short Course Championships had been held in Milton Keynes and a round of the 1987 Le Coq Sportif European Cup had taken place in Canterbury.
The 1988 Southport event was sponsored by Warburtons Bakery and was called The Warburton’s Big Bread Triathlon. A member of the Warburton family, Jonathan, was a triathlete. Which almost certainly helped drive the sponsorship decision. £6000 of total prize money was on offer. The largest ever UK purse at the time. English and French race reports are below.
Images:
Tri-Athlete (UK) August 1988
Tri-Athlete (FR) Aout 1988
The race was promoted by the team behind Winning and Tri-Athlete magazines. Winning was a colourful publication focusing on the European Pro cycling scene. And Tri-Athlete (UK) was a spin-off from the original California based Triathlete magazine, which was now owned by Jean Claude Garot’s company, OffPress, based in Brussels.
The women’s race in 1988 was won by Sarah Springman. This victory came just a week after she won her first European Short Course title in Venice. Adding to her two individual gold medals at the Ironman distance and five individual silver medals won since the ETU championships began in 1985.
Springman was one of the first British triathletes, having taken part in the UK’s first national Short Course triathlon championships at Kirton’s Farm near Reading on 5th June 1983, the first National Long Course Championships at Kielder Water later that summer and then the 2nd Nice International Triathlon at the end of the 1983 season.
As well as having an elite triathlon career that extended into the mid-1990s, Springman also served as the President of British Triathlon and the Vice-President of the International Triathlon Union.
As a young triathlete in the late-80s and early-90s I was a big fan of Sarah. Because although she raced internationally, she could also be spotted regularly at UK races.
The men’s race was won by Robin Brew, riding without the aid of aerobars. He explained why in the September issue of Tri-Athlete: “I’m not too happy on them. I’ve tried them out, but I just don’t feel comfortable. Maybe I’ll work on that.” Robin swam in the 1984 LA Olympics and then in 1985 won the made-for-TV British and International Superstars competitions.
The International Superstars event took place in Cyprus and the field of 12 athletes also included Mark Allen. In his book Total Triathlete, Allen explains that, although he finished 5th overall, he found many of the events pretty challenging, especially the polo. In his best event, the 800m run, he finished second to... Robin Brew.
By 1986 Brew was dabbling in triathlon and in 1987 had started to get some solid domestic and European results. These included winning the British Grand Prix Final in Milton keynes and finishing second in the final of the 1987 Le Coq Sportif European Cup that took place in Barcelona.
Image: Tri-Athlet (DE) August 1988
In the August 1988 issue of the German language Tri-Athlete Magazine I found this mini race report (above) written in the style of a telegram sent from Tri-Athlete UK editor Chip Rimmer to the offices of Tri-Athlete Germany. Here’s a translation:
Big Bread Tri was a great show. Stop. Qualification race for Stein (Euro MD Champs). Stop. Even bookmakers on site. Stop. Cook and Springman favourites. Stop. Coope injured. Stop. But hello Robin Brew! Stop. As expected. Best swimmer. Stop. Also crazy on the bike. Stop. Behind Cook and Bondeel in tandem. Stop. Hard course. Stop. 1:15 lead into transition. Stop. Half way on the run now only 55 seconds. Stop. But Brew does it. Stop. Blondel second. Stop. In the last 200 metres. Stop. Springman without competition. Stop. Take care. Stop. Regards. Chip Rimmer.
But now let’s get back to that 1989 race that was on Grandstand. The August 1989 issue of 220 and the June 1989 issue of British Triathlon Scene both had in-depth race reports. These magazines had debuted earlier in the year and were only available from race venues or specialist triathlon shops.
Image: Tri-Athlete (FR) Mai 1989
Although I was making occasional visits to Total Fitness in Swindon, I also lived just down the road from Dave Russell Cycles. Dave was building bikes for lots of triathletes back then and his shop also stocked triathlon-exotica such as aerobars, lace locks, tri-suits and magazines.
Although the front of the Southport race looked amazing to me on television. And there were strong British performances from Carlsberg Grand Prix regulars. The event had its problems. Both magazines didn’t hesitate to point out the good points and the bad points.
Images: 220 (UK) August 1989
220 (above) praised the national TV coverage, the hype created around the participation of Mark Allen, the decent prize-purse, the large number of spectators helped by the San Diego-style weather and the free beer.
But 220 was also worried that, “If the TV coverage of the Heineken event shows the bunches, and any senior police officer is watching, we can kiss goodbye to the sport ever being allowed to grow.”
British Triathlon Scene ran their full back-page as a picture of a draft-pack. They also suggested that the drafting packs were as big as 50 riders and this severely impacted the races of some of the top British women.
Although I’ve watched the Grandstand coverage many times, I really think you should get on your turbo trainer and spin along as Mandy Dean leads from gun to tape and Mark Allen dominates from early in the bike.
This was the only time that Mark Allen raced in the UK. Southport was 7 weeks before Allen’s victory at the first ITU World Short Course Championships in Avignon and 16 weeks before his first win in Kona.
Between coming to Europe for the Nice Triathlon on 28th May and racing Southport on 18th June, Allen flew back to the states to qualify for the US team for Avignon at the President’s Triathlon in Dallas on 11th June.
Mandy Dean was part of a group of South African triathletes that came to Europe to race in the late-80s. I’ve linked to an article about her on Athlete Natural in the show-notes. This group of South Africans also included Simon Lessing. Who, at 18 years old. Finished 6th at Southport.
Other fun parts from the video for me include:
Bob Wilson’s wacky explanation of what a triathlon is
Sarah Springman fixing her brake cable at 2:50
Lots of sleeveless wetsuits near the front from 5:55 onwards
Glenn Cooks Quintana Roo with tiny wheels at 7:38
Mandy Dean riding from her rack like we used to do at 8:18.
Mark Allen overtaking a tandem at 11:15.
Patrick Barnes probably doing the best flying-mount of the day at 12:12.
Phil Liggett calling the Big Four the Top 4 at 13:08.
Mark Allen’s super-smooth running style at 13:35
Julie Moss’s sock-racers at 15:50
Jon Ashby finishing 2nd at 20:30. I was still racing him in the mid-90s.
The June 1989 issue of British Triathlon Scene also stated that, “Heineken were pleased with their investment and look likely to sponsor again in 1990, but admitted improvements need to be made by both the organisers and themselves for the future.”
In fact, Heineken did continue their sponsorship for another year. And the race was moved to Portsmouth. With live BBC coverage this time.
In 1991 tennis brand Donnay took over from Heineken and the Tri-Athlete Magazine / Winning organisation produced the last edition of the race. Again, with live BBC coverage. More on that in a future episode.
I’ve also got the Tri-Athlete (FR) race report (below) written by bi-lingual Karin Zeitvogel. I’m sure the same report ran in Tri-Athlete (UK)
Images: Tri-Athlete (FR) Aout 1989
Look. The 1989 Southport Triathlon on Grandstand wasn’t the first glimpse of triathlon on British TV. But I’m pretty certain it was the first coverage of an actual race from gun to tape. Albeit in highlights form.
So what had been shown before?
In 1984 a magazine programme on Channel 4 called Wheels, Wings and Water, hosted by Olympic swimmer David Wilkie, showed a triathlon in Milton Keynes. But I think it was an invitation only event and put on just for TV purposes. Some of the leading British athletes at the time were involved, including Sarah Springman, Peter Moysey and Martin Dyer.
I couldn’t find anything about the Wheels, Wings and Water triathlon online or in my archives. But here’s a clip introducing the show. And thanks to Martin Lee, an excellent triathlete in the 1980s, for telling me about it.
In 1983 and 1984 there was also coverage of the Fosters Quadrathlon. Here’s a clip from a video I found on YouTube. It's an edit of the TV coverage and a home video made by Mick and Danny Mannion, who took part in the event. You really need to watch it. It was quite the adventure.
And who knows. Maybe some of the ABC Hawaii Ironman coverage was shown on British screens. The American broadcasters first filmed the race in 1981. Here’s the first of six clip from the race.
Links:
BBC Grandstand Coverage of the 1989 Southport Triathlon
TSP5: UK Triathlon Magazines 1986-1990
Athlete Natural. Mandy Dean.
1983 Fosters Quadrathlon
1981 Hawaii Ironman
Sources:
Tri-Athlete (UK) September 1988.
Triathlon: The Complete Guide To Multi-Sport Success by Karin Zeitvogel with Sarah Springman.
Sarah Springman’s Results at World Triathlon
Superstars on Wikipedia
220 (UK) November 1992
Mark Allen’s Total Triathlete by Mark Allen with Bob Babbitt
Tri-Athlete (UK) Nov-Dec 1987
1989thestory.com
Wings, Wheels, Water Video
