The Grand Finale: Busselton Festival of Triathlon

Every year, over 2000 local and international triathletes descend upon Busselton in the last weekend of April or first weekend of May to compete either solo or as a team in a host of races.

While the premier race, the Busselton100, is an elite event, the festival is renowned for its inclusiveness and community spirit, and the variety of races offer something for everyone, says event co-ordinator, Rebecca Bury.

“We try make it as accessible to everyone as well. It’s not just aimed at the elite, we want everyone to be involved. We usually have 130 teams compete, which is fun, some will dress up, and we have competitions for the best team names. We make the courses fun, we have DJs,” she says.

The event is now in its 23rd year, and initially began in Collie before it was moved to Margaret River and Rottnest. It’s now found its full-time home in Busselton, where it has been an annual community event since 2002.

“It’s a massive part of the local calendar,” says Rebecca.

“A lot of locals love it, and we do get a lot of local entries every year.”

The calm waters of Geographe Bay, pristine surrounding forest, and generally flat topography make it an ideal place to host a triathlon, says Rebecca.

“It’s just an ideal location for a triathlon course. The water is beautiful, calm and protected, infrastructure is good, the City of Busselton are great to work with, we have a huge event space with Barnard Park, and the Tuart Forest up there is beautiful. It’s a good, flat, fast course.”

While many triathletes travel from around the world and the country to compete in the Busselton100 and the second tier Busselton Foreshore Triathlon, the FunRun and Kids events are an enjoyable way to introduce people to the fun of triathlon and challenge themselves, says Rebecca.

Each race offers competitors a variety of choice to cater for all abilities and preference.

Distance for the Busselton100 is fixed, with a 2km swing along the iconic Busselton Jetty, an 80km ride through the Tuart Forest, and an 18km run along Geographe Bay, but participants can compete in this race either individually or as part of a team.

In the second-tier Busselton Foreshore Triathlon, participants can choose between a 200m swim, 8km ride, and 2km run; or a more challenging 750m swim, 16km ride, and 4km run.

The Busselton FunRun offers a choice of a 500m, 1.5km, or 5km walk or run. In the Kids Triathlon, children can race either a 100m swim, 2km ride, and 500m run, or double those distances again.

The festival runs from 4-5 May 2024 and is presented by Triathlon WA, a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to bringing the gift of triathlon to the community.