Ultra-triathlon Ultra-triathlon An ultra-triathlon is a long-distance triathlon. The term generally refers to all triathlon events of distance greater than the Ironman Triathlon. Thus, every ultra triathlon event must involve more than of swimming, of cycling, and a full marathon () of running. The most common distances are the double, triple, quadruple, quintuple and deca triathlon. Unlike a standard triathlon event, an ultra-triathlon event may not necessarily involve the three component disciplines of triathlon (swimming, cycling and running) in direct consecutive order, but may instead consist of multiple consecutive individual triathlons performed on consecutive days. The IUTA is the official governing
Triathlon conditioning. Triathlon is considered by some to have its beginnings in 1920s France. According to triathlon historian and author Scott Tinley (and others), the origin of triathlon is attributed to a race during the 1920s–1930s that was called variously "Les trois sports", "La Course des Débrouillards", and "La course des Touche à Tout." This race is held every year in France near Joinville-le-Pont, in Meulan and Poissy. An earlier tri-sport event in 1902 featured running, cycling, and canoeing. There are documented tri-sport events featuring swimming, cycling, & running ( in that order) in 1920, 1921, 1945, and the 1960s. In