Milwaukee confirmed as host city for Professional Triathletes Organisation (PTO) Tour US Open in August

The Professional Triathletes Organisation (PTO) has revealed that the US Open will take place in Milwaukee on August 4-5, 2023, alongside USA Triathlon’s National Championships event.

Partnering with Sports Milwaukee to host, and with over 7,000 participants and 20,000 spectators expected to attend, it is set be one of the largest-ever weekends of triathlon in North America.

A specially designed course around Milwaukee will host the world’s top female and male professional triathletes as they battle it out for the PTO US Open title over the 100km PTO Tour distance (2km swim, 80km bike and 18km run).

Athletes will swim in Lake Michigan, which provides cool water temperatures and a breakwater in Milwaukee’s bay, and then bike down Lincoln Memorial Drive. The run course travels out along Lake Michigan on paved trails through Veterans Park, returning on the shaded Lincoln Memorial Drive.

PTO CEO Sam Renouf said: “Partnering with USA Triathlon at their National Championships in Milwaukee will give our professionals a fantastic backdrop to this year’s PTO US Open as well as vociferous support.

“Having worked with USAT last year, we’re building a great understanding and have a very clear vision for this year’s races.”

Leading US athletes welcomed the move. PTO world No. 4 Taylor Knibb, who finished second in last year’s event, said: “This is great news and I’ll definitely be trying to plan the race into my schedule and then go one better in 2023”.

Reigning men’s PTO US Open champion Collin Chartier said that he was “excited about defending his PTO US Open title in Milwaukee”.

In its first season, the PTO US Open was part of a three-race PTO Tour that delivered on its goal to take longer distance triathlon to a broader audience.

“With three days of all-day racing we are able to host three distinctly different events – sprint and Olympic-distance national championships, Zone3 Youth and Junior Nationals, and the PTO US Open – and give every competing athlete their well-deserved time in the spotlight,” said USA Triathlon chief sport development officer Tim Yount.

“This triathlon festival will showcase one of the things that makes our sport both unique and great – athletes ages seven to 87, age group and professional, from all over the US and around the globe, racing at the same venue over the same weekend and we look forward to celebrating our multisport community with so many.”