We have been documenting the issues that international athletes registered for events in Great Britain have been facing – this spring athletes received notice that they could not get a British Triathlon one day pass, and were required to have personal liability insurance with £5 million of coverage.
Athletes were notified of the insurance requirements in June, although British Triathlon has said that the rules have been in place since 2021 and international athletes should not have been purchasing a one-day race pass. British Triathlon suggested that “non-UK athletes reach out to their national federations first and if they do not provide it, they will need to find an insurance provider that can offer Public Liability insurance to allow them to race in the UK.”
The problem is that finding liability insurance coverage of £5 million isn’t available for the Canadian athletes who reached out to us, and apparently isn’t available for American athletes, either. Canadian athletes can access international liability insurance as part of an extended plan through their provincial associations, but that coverage is limited to CDN$5 million.
“Recommended” vs “required”
The modification to the rule that now allows international athletes to compete at British Triathlon permitted events is that the £5 million “minimum level of cover” is now a recommendation, not a requirement.
You can see all the details regarding the Race Pass here.
While this is obviously a huge relief for athletes who have registered, for some the solution comes too late. Concerned that there wouldn’t be a solution found in time, some athletes have already cancelled their accommodation and flights. As we reported last week, Ironman has offered “alternate race options or deferrals” to athletes who found themselves in this situation, but one athlete who has reached out to us has asked for a refund.
The post Insurance woes for international athletes competing at British events (sort of) resolved appeared first on Triathlon Magazine Canada.