PTO heading to Singapore in August as first Asian event added to calendar for 2023

The Professional Triathletes Organisation (PTO) will head to Asia for the first time with the inaugural staging of the PTO Asian Open in Singapore.

Taking place on 19-20 August, 2023, the Marina Bay Financial District will host the world’s top male and female professional triathletes.

The PTO Asian Tour joins the PTO calendar as part of a multi-year partnership between the PTO, The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) and Sport Singapore (SportSG).

The first-ever PTO Asian Open will feature a women’s and men’s 100km race (2km swim; 80km bike; 18km run) that will be broadcast live around the world in partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery.

Reacting to the news, one of PTO’s leading athletes Ashleigh Gentle was quick to signal her approval.

“It was very exciting to have the opportunity to race in the first full professional tour,” said the Australian who won the PTO Canadian and US Open events in 2022.

“The athletes are hugely appreciative of the work the PTO has been doing to show off triathlon to the world. There were some very successful events in 2022 that delivered on the PTO vision and also signposted some of the opportunities going forward. Today’s news on the 2023 calendar shows that things are moving in the right direction.”

Commenting on the news, Sam Renouf, CEO of the PTO, said:

“When we were planning the first PTO Asian Open, the opportunity to stage the event in Singapore and seeing the world’s best triathletes race around the iconic Marina Bay was something that made sense on many levels. It is important that the PTO Tour goes to different continents, different kinds of courses and different climates – that will enable us to see who really is the greatest endurance athlete on the planet. Singapore will be a great destination as well as a great race venue.”

He added: “Singapore has become famous for hosting world class events like the iconic F1 Night Race, the WTA Grand Final and has also seen tremendous growth in endurance sports through the staging of the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon. With this long term partnership with the PTO to create a ‘sporting major’ in the city, Singapore will become known as the premier destination for Triathlon in Asia.”

Alongside the professionals, amateur triathletes and fitness enthusiasts will also have the opportunity to get involved with the brand new event with a series of age-group races over the race weekend.