USAT Long Course And Club Nationals Head To Oklahoma City

The 2012 USA Triathlon national championship season comes to an end this weekend with the USA Triathlon Long Course and Club National Championships, held in conjunction with the Redman Triathlon in Oklahoma City, Okla.

Read the race preview from USAT below:

The two-day event kicks off Saturday at 7:15 a.m. with the Long Course National Championship, which consists of a 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike and 13.1-mile run. Visit Redmantriathlon.com for event details, including a complete schedule of events.

Adam Otstot (Williamsburg, Va.) and Jolene Wilkinson (Boise, Idaho) claimed the overall titles at Long Course Nationals in 2011 when the event was held in Myrtle Beach, S.C.

In addition to chasing national titles, these athletes will be competing for spots on Team USA for the 2013 ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships, which will be held in Belfort, France, in June 2013. The top 20 athletes per age group (rolling down to 25th place) will earn a Team USA spot.

The USA Triathlon Club National Championship titles will be decided based on the finishes of club members in six different distances, including the long course event. Saturday’s iron-distance triathlon and the half- and full-aquabike events will contribute to team scoring, as well as Sunday’s sprint- and Olympic-distance races.

Clubs from across the nation have signed on to compete for championship titles in five divisions based on their membership size.

2011 club national titles went to: Columbia Multisport Club (Division I, 250-plus members), Upstate Triathlon Club (Division II, 130-149 members), Team Fraser Multisport (Division III, 80-129 members), Myrtle Beach Tri Club (Division IV, 30-79 members) and Compass Elite Lower Triathlon Squad (Division V, 29 members or less).