Will the U.S-Iran War Ruin the End of the 2026 Triathlon Season?
There may only be another month officially left in summer in the Northern Hemisphere, but that does not mean that the triathlon season is anywhere close to finished globally. When racing calms down in North America and Europe, it will ramp up in the Middle East, with major events slated for November and December in the region.
The three biggest triathlon race organizations — IRONMAN, World Triathlon and T100 — all have events planned in Middle Eastern countries toward the end of 2026. At the moment, all of these races are still scheduled to go ahead as planned, but the ongoing conflict between the U.S., Israel and Iran has been casting a shadow (and significant concerns) over these competitions for most of the year. Now just a few months away, those tensions in the Middle East continue to put these events at risk — although organizers are holding onto the hope they can be run without a hitch.
Triathlon in the Middle East
The first major event in the region took place in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) – the Abu Dhabi International Triathlon, organized by IMG, which ran from 2010 to 2014, offering a huge $250,000 prize purse, an event that helped spur on the tremendous growth the sport has seen in the Middle East in the past decade. In May 2015, the triathlon world saw the launch of the Bahrain Victorious 13, an exclusive pro team that featured star athletes such as Jan Frodeno and Daniela Ryf. Later that year, in December, IRONMAN debuted in the region with the introduction of the 70.3 Middle East Championship in Bahrain. A month after that, the organization added 70.3 Dubai to the race calendar.
The World Triathlon Championship Series (WTCS — although it was known as the ITU World Triathlon Series before 2020) also got its start in the region in 2015, adding Abu Dhabi as a host city. On top of being a regular stop on the WTCS calendar since then, Abu Dhabi was the site of the series Grand Final in 2022.
In 2024, the Professional Triathletes Organisation (PTO) launched the T100, which is in part funded by Saudi investments, that culminated in Dubai that November. The series returned to more locations in the Middle East in 2025, hitting Dubai once more, then Saudi Arabia and finally Qatar for the season finale.
This year promised even more racing in the region. The T100 has plans to return for the same three events from 2025, IRONMAN is set to head to Oman for the brand’s first-ever full-distance race in the Middle East, while World Triathlon is stopping in the UAE for both the age group multisport world championships and WTCS Abu Dhabi (which has already been postponed once due to the war).
Triathlon has benefited from all of the investment in the sport in the Middle East, but each of these race organizations could be hit with significant blows if the conflict in the region forces them to cancel their upcoming events.
WTCS and the World Championships
WTCS Abu Dhabi was originally set to run in March as the 2026 series opener, but the war in Iran forced World Triathlon to postpone it. Looking for a new date to host the event, organizers eventually decided to line it up alongside the World Triathlon Multisport Championships in November.
Slowtwitch reached out to World Triathlon for comment on the events and the ongoing conflict.
“The situation is changing every day and quite fluid,” a spokesperson said. “We are closely monitoring the situation in the region and all the travel advices […] For the moment, we are all moving on with all the events as planned.”
World Triathlon may be set on racing in November, but not everyone is ready to commit to sending their athletes to the UAE. A representative from Germany’s Deutsche Triathlon Union said their team has not “made a final decision yet” on the matter and hopes to have a more “definite” stance in the coming weeks.
USA Triathlon has not gone so far as to back out of racing in the UAE, but the organization has taken steps in that direction and offered an alternative for anyone who wants it.
“USA Triathlon is […] is closely monitoring publicly available information from World Triathlon and local event organizers,” the team said in a statement. “To provide flexibility for qualified athletes, USA Triathlon is offering the option to defer participation in the 2026 Abu Dhabi event to the 2027 World Triathlon Multisport Championships in Edmonton.”
Triathlon Canada is a national federation that is leaning toward skipping the event. Canadian athletes who had qualified and registered for the Multisport Championships recently received an email alerting them that the federation does not plan to send a team at this time.
“In alignment with the travel advisories provided by the Government of Canada, Triathlon Canada has determined that sending athletes or staff to races in the Middle East is not possible at this time,” the email reads. “Triathlon Canada is obligated to prioritize athlete safety and wellness above all other considerations […] We will continue to monitor these advisories and will hope for improved conditions in the near future.”
In a statement sent to Slowtwitch, Triathlon Canada’s interim CEO Rachel Macatee echoed the words from the email to athletes, saying the federation is “committed to making responsible decisions as early as possible” while recognizing “that the global situation can change quickly.”
Both the email and statement leave room for Triathlon Canada to change course, but only if the situation in the Middle East improves.
Closing Out the T100 Season
The T100 season has four events left, three of which are set in Middle Eastern countries. All three of these races will host both pros and age groupers. Unlike World Triathlon, the PTO hasn’t had to move or postpone any dates so far, and as things stand now, they reportedly don’t see that happening.
“We continue to closely monitor the evolving situation in the Middle East and will remain in regular contact with relevant authorities, partners and athletes as we continue to assess developments,” reads a PTO statement. “The safety and security of all our athletes, staff and suppliers is our highest priority. At this time, our Dubai/Saudi/Qatar races will go ahead as planned.”
Eyeing IRONMAN Oman
The 2026 race season marked the first with Experience Oman (the country’s official tourism board) as the title sponsor of the IRONMAN Pro Series. The relationship got off to a fantastic start in early February (three weeks before the war began) with a successful running of the 70.3 Middle East Championship in the Omani capital of Muscat.
The next step in the partnership was IRONMAN Oman. Although the situation in the region continues to leave many people uncertain, IRONMAN officials say the race is still a go.
“All events are currently proceeding as planned,” IRONMAN said in a statement to Slowtwitch. “We continue to monitor official travel advisories closely and remain in regular contact with relevant authorities. Athletes requiring support should contact the Athlete Services team for their registered event.”
Travel Advisories
None of the countries hosting races are directly involved in the conflict, but they have each been drawn into it purely due to geography. All four of the countries — Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE — have been hit by Iranian drone and missile strikes this year. Saudi Arabia and the UAE have engaged in attacks, with the latter sending retaliatory airstrikes against Iran in March and with the former launching airstrikes alongside the U.S. in Iraq in July.
To date, Oman and Qatar have yet to actively participate in the conflict or commit any attacks. Despite being an innocent bystander, Oman continues to be the subject of threats. U.S. President Donald Trump has said on multiple occasions that he will not hesitate to take action against the country if it “gets in the way” of American moves in the Strait of Hormuz.
Due to so much uncertainty, many countries are warning their citizens to avoid travel to the Middle East. The Canadian government has said there is “an ongoing threat of terrorism” in each of these countries. The Canadian advisory for Qatar even says terrorists attacks are “likely” there.
The U.S. travel advisories are very similar, with all of Qatar, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Oman listed as Level 3 — “Reconsider travel” — out of four (parts of Oman are up to Level 4 due to “terrorism and armed conflict”).
UK advisories state that there is a “risk of more attacks and unforeseen escalation in the region,” saying “terrorist attacks […] cannot be ruled out” in these countries. The French government has urged its people to avoid non-essential travel to the region. Germany has lifted a blanket “do not travel” advisory for all Middle Eastern countries, but still notes that citizens should exercise a high degree of caution when in the region.
What’s Happening?
At the moment, nothing has changed — at least in terms of the triathlon schedule. Races that have been scheduled to run in the Middle East will go ahead as planned. Every organization involved has acknowledged that this could change overnight, but they are holding onto the hope and possibility that things could flip for the better at a moment’s notice, too.
The big factor for every one of these races is athlete participation. With tens of thousands of dollars on the line for the pros at these events, many top athletes will certainly be in attendance at these races if they are not postponed or cancelled. The age group races, however, could be a different story. There is no predicting what the turnout at these events will be until they finally arrive, but it will be interesting to see what happens (or doesn’t happen) with all of them in the coming months.
Really the question with drones flying around, threats by the prez of the US to bomb an ally (Oman), who is title sponsor of the Ironman series, UAE deplying the Israeli Irondome system (at least they now have more coverage vs Oman, Qatar, Saudi), how many athletes from outside the region want to go there. There are plenty of local athletes that these races can nevertheless service.
With regard to the T100, I’m curious what exactly the Middle Eastern hosts are paying the PTO for. Is it to bring the PRO race to the country, or attract age groupers? The more it is about the former, the better for the PTO (call me Captain Obvious). A place like Dubai already attracts tourists in numbers that make the 1k or 2k that come with the PTO laughable. Qatar - probably not, but is it their priority? Saudi Arabia wants to be a tourist destination and is nothing but, so are they deluded enough to think they’ll become one any time soon?
IRONMAN is paid by Oman to promote Oman in the world, not to bring a race there. I mean yes they were going to do a 70.3, but it can’t be the primary driver of the sponsorship.
And with Trump’s new ridiculous trade war on Canada, and his executive order today renaming Lake Ontario to Lake America (no I’m not making this up!) will Canada finally say enough is enough and close its borders to the US? Probably not if I’m being realistic. But geez, I wouldn’t blame Canada if they finally have had enough of us! Come over to the Trump Watch Thread in the Politics is Life Forum where we discuss this idiocy further. The executive order to rename the lake actually happened this afternoon.
I’ve been looking at all kinds of race options for next year as my “retirement” is not lasting long and want to do something sort of epic next year. IM Ottawa is in the mix for things I’m looking at. And I’d love to go back to Mont Tremblant in the future. I love my Canadian neighbors and so tired of this constant embarrassing behavior from the White House.
As it stands currently I don’t see any world in which T100 can have those events.
He just signed an executive order renaming Canadian Geese to Donald’s ducks
Okay, that is funny,
and I have no doubt they are the best ducks.
Roughly answering your questions, Individual Canadians and companies want to keep engaging with Americans, but many of us right now want to spend our money at home to help local economy. We also want American friends to come over and spend here to help our economy.
Back to racing in the gulf, Qatar 70.3 or Qatar/Dubai T100 are easy races for me, in the sense that I drive 1.45 minutes to Montreal, take a 13 hrs flight with 9 hrs of sleep, take a taxi to race hotel locally and I’m all good to go.
However, not going to that region until things calm down. I was not planning to go to any this fall or next spring, but if I was, I’d just cancel the entire trip, Not that me/age groupers cancelling matters, I think the local authorities want the pro races to happen to showcase that its business as usual
T100 Dubai (13-15 November) - over 1600 are registered for the various amateur events.
The PTO are not yet taking entries for T100 Jeddah (27-28 November): “Entries opening soon”
As for Qatar (mid December): “The T100 Age-Group World Championships is [apparently] the ultimate test for amateur triathletes worldwide . . . and race for the coveted title of T100 Age-Group World Champion.” For the main 100km amateur event, entry is by qualification only - athletes will have to have raced a previous T100 and finished top 10 in AG.
I hope things calm down for all kinds of reasons. Sadly I do not foresee things in the region improving anytime soon. Trump opened a huge can of worms. He knows very little about the region. Iran is now mocking us. We look weak and I really don’t see how this will be resolved any time soon. I hope I’m wrong. Putin thought his unprovoked war with Ukraine would be easy peasy but Ukraine has turned out to be very formidable. And over 4 years later, Putin has no endgame. Trump has no endgame either and is surrounded by grossly incompetent yes-men. He has fired anyone with any common sense. Both Russia and the US have been made to look weak and grossly unwise after their very poor decisions.
I hope you get to go back and race there someday. I’m sure there are some awesome race venues in the middle-east. Maybe not for me personally. But I understand the appeal.
I qualified last year for the T100 finals at London, but had to defer to this year as I was called in for an ablation the day after the race and qualified again at Pamplona this year.
I’ve been holding off on booking anything for December as it still appears to be very unstable in the region, but whenever I do a bit of research, the race is listed as still going ahead.
Has anyone booked flight/hotels and national kit yet?
What am I missing? The winner of the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize said the war was ‘finished’ in March.
The T100 races are definitely happening. Or at least that’s what they planned. They finally announced the date for the race in Saudi Arabia. So doesn’t seem like they have a plan B.
Well, if that is all you care…this was the stupids decission ever…first dropping out of nuclear contracts, than panic, thank war….putin opened champagne after seeing this….so it ruined much more and asking if it ruins this end of triseason? Man..
No, it’s not all ‘we’ care about. But this is a triathlon forum and it’s a reasonable question: athletes have to plan.
will-the-USA-Iran-war-ruin-the-end-of-the-2026-triathlon-season?
For some but not others.
Not ruined: Most SC athletes will be minimally affected: loss of the rescheduled WTCS Abu Dhabi race, not part of the 2026 WTCS series - Beaugrand and Vilaca will have won at Pontevedra.
Not affected: All long distance Pros who are not dipping into T100. They will ‘end’ their season on the Big Island in mid-October. Middle East events not on their calendar.
Affected but not ruined: Those Pros campaigning the T100 Tour. Loss of a lucrative event (for each sex, two in total) to win great prize money. The Jeddah T100 will be not be affected (by the US v Iran war/fallout). I expect the PTO to announce (no hurry) that the ‘Race to Qatar’ is now a race to Jeddah. They will, no hurry, cancel Dubai and Qatar and designate the Jeddah event (end November) as the ‘Grand Final’ of the T100 Tour decide World Champion (Wilde and Derron or GTB, 2 scores + GF to count). ‘Ruins’ Noodt’s season (though the Swansea ambulance did that for him) as he hoped to be back in time for Jeddah and Qatar.
Ruined: All the (mostly SC but all the esoteric disciplines) amateurs planning and training for their ‘Multi-Sport’ World Champs on Hudayriyat Island, Abu Dhabi, UAE will be gutted. I guess World Tri might find a replacement venue at short notice but that’s a challenge given the wish to delay the decision to the last moment.
I doubt any of the races will be cancelled. I expect numbers to be way down. Might be a good chance of qualifying for worlds at 70.3 Bahrain and IM Oman.
Right now (here in Bahrain) life is back to normal, and a side from the odd overnight siren and delayed flight nothing is impacted. It’ll just be the risk that people are willing to take.