Garmin Expands Relationship with Professional Triathletes Organisation and New T100 Triathlon World Tour

Garmin sponsors at least 9 of the professional triathletes in the recently rebranded T100 Triathlon World Tour. There is also an interesting take on the nature of Garmin’s recently renewed sponsorship with the PTO

Garmin Pro Triathletes

Here’s the list. Maybe there are more.

• #1 Anne Haug
• #3 Taylor Knibb
• #13 Skye Moench
• #12 Marjolaine Pierre
• Marten Van Riel
• #7 Rudy Von Berg
• #2 Magnus Ditlev
• #3 Jason West
• #8 Leon Chevalier

Garmin Sponsors T100

The Professional Triathletes Organisation (PTO) has announced that Garmin will renew its contract as the Official Transition Sponsor of the PTO and the upcoming T100 Triathlon World Tour covering 8 race locations in 2024 starting with Miami on 9 March

We are excited to expand our relationship with the Professional Triathletes Organisation and its elite tour of events. Both Garmin and the PTO have a shared desire to improve and grow the global triathlon community, and we look forward to supporting this year’s top triathletes on the world stage [S Lyman, Garmin]

Garmin will be the Official Transition Sponsor. Although the pros get through streamlined transitions much quicker than we do, it’s a place where they linger momentarily and where there are often larger crowds seated in stands. It’s a good place to sponsor if you have to sponsor somewhere.

Garmin has announced that its sponsorship will be integrated with on-screen broadcast graphics, real-time social media posts and a leaderboard posted throughout the season. Fine.

Garmin Auto Activity Detect Transition for multisport profiles – how does it work?

One Possible Take. Well, Two Actually. Make That Three

1. Garmin could have some new ability to monitor race position. Perhaps integrating that with on-screen displays. I VERY HIGHLY DOUBT that’s the case as there are existing companies in that complex space. Instead it most likely means Garmin gets to put its logo on the various screens and leaderboards rather than signalling to us some race-ready use of LTE about to hit the next generation of devices.
2. Sponsoring transition is interesting because Garmin’s latest beta features include automated transitions. I tested that out recently here. There is almost certainly some marketing logic here to associate professional transitions with a techy feature that we might talk about, like the idea of, and then buy a Garmin triathlon watch. It’s a good way to promote a new feature
3. But it’s a very expensive way to promote a new feature. VERY expensive, the Forerunner 965 that it currently works on is a year old for all intents and purposes. Garmin makes money from selling hardware not new features. Why spend all that money on a year-old watch? Of course, the speculation in me says that this points to a new Garmin triathlon watch about to hit the streets. Indeed the first T100 race is on 9 March, less than 3 weeks away. Based on historic activity, Garmin would launch a new watch on either Tuesday 20/21 Feb or  Tue 12/13 Mar. And that would be alongside the new Forerunner 165 which certainly exists and which probably isn’t a triathlon watch…a new Forerunner 965 Pro would be a triathlon watch 😉 and one that is certainly worth sponsoring the T100 for.

2+2=5?

Garmin Fenix 7 gets CIQ 7 – Epix too – Big Connect IQ Boost for 2024