Triathlon at the Summer Olympics for the 2008 Beijing Olympics and remained the same for London 2012. In London, the women's triathlon took place on Saturday 4 August, with the men's event on Tuesday 7 August. Thirteen nations have split the thirty medals awarded in the triathlon events. Qualification spots in the triathlon are allotted to National Olympic Committees (NOCs) rather than to individual athletes. There are five ways for NOCs to earn spots in the triathlon. NOCs can earn a maximum of three spots, though only eight nations may earn that many. Nations beyond that may earn only two spots. The first five spots
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