DENVER – Ahead of its first full fall season, the University of Denver Division of Athletics and Recreation has converted the triathlon program's part-time head coach position to a full-time position and has retained
Barbara Perkins as its first head coach following a national search, Vice Chancellor for Athletics, Recreation and Ritchie Center Operations
Karlton Creech announced on Wednesday. Going forward, Perkins will drop her swimming and diving assistant coach duties and focus solely on the triathlon program.
In July 2020, women's triathlon was announced as the University of Denver's 18
th intercollegiate varsity sport. The Pioneers became the 37
th institution to sponsor the sport and the ninth at the Division I level. Denver's addition of women's triathlon was made possible through a grant from the USA Triathlon Foundation. The
USA Triathlon Foundation Women's Emerging Sport Grant is distributed to select NCAA membership institutions to develop, implement and sustain women's triathlon programs at the varsity level.
"We continue to believe that our institution can provide future triathletes a great opportunity to pursue success at a high level in the classroom and in competition, with our campus and the Rocky Mountains providing a beautiful backdrop for their high-level training day in and day out," Creech said. "We're excited about the opportunity to make this a full-time position and trust that Barbara was the best candidate to be able to continue to move this young program forward. Barbara is going to be a great recruiter and has a deep passion for wanting this sport to succeed at a national level in pursuit of full NCAA status."
In the Pioneers only race of their inaugural season,
Grace Arlandson led the program with a third-place finish in the Division I race at the Clermont Challenge in Florida.
Amanda Ballard took fifth, and
Luma Randolph finished ninth.
FULL RECAP
Triathlon was approved in January 2014 as the next Emerging Sport for Women for NCAA Division I, II and III institutions. Women's triathlon is a fall sport, and the varsity season includes three regional qualifiers followed by the Women's Collegiate Triathlon National Championships. Races are sprint distance, featuring an open water 750-meter swim, draft legal 20-kilometer cycling and a 5K run.
"I'm excited to step into the full-time role as the triathlon coach and continue to build the program from the ground up," Perkins said. "Over the past year, we have faced some of the toughest times most of us will ever have to go through. Despite this, we've already seen so much success in such a short period of time. With the opportunity to focus solely on the triathlon team, I can't wait to see where this program goes. I have very high expectations and ambitions for this program. In our first regular season this fall, it will be even more thrilling as we bring the roster to 10 student-athletes.
"It's been a pleasure to work with the swim and dive program over the past two years, and it's bittersweet to leave the team that brought me to Denver. I'll always be cheering for their team and will never forget the experiences we shared, the athletes I coached and the staff of Alicia, Mark, Kyle and Aaron. I will cherish these memories for the rest of my coaching career. I can't wait to see both of these programs continue to flourish!"
Perkins ended 2019 ranked 30
th in the world in the women's 30-34 age group, the ninth-best ranked American in the division. The former Air Force assistant is a two-time Kona IRONMAN World Championship finisher (2017 and 2019) and a six-time IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship qualifier (2015-20).
"USA Triathlon couldn't be happier with the official hiring of
Barbara Perkins as the full-time head coach for the DU Triathlon program," USA Triathlon Chief Sport Development Officer Tim Yount said. "She has proven to be a great recruiter, is an athlete's coach as a triathlete herself and someone who will position this program to be a national power in a few short years."
Denver's training facilities include a 50-meter Olympic size swimming pool, treadmills and space for a smart bike trainer studio. Washington Park is less than a mile away from campus and is the ideal set up for close circuit bike rides, runs or brick work outs, and 15 minutes away from a multitude of rides in the mountains.
About USA Triathlon
USA Triathlon is proud to serve as the National Governing Body for triathlon, as well as duathlon, aquathlon, aquabike, winter triathlon, off-road triathlon and paratriathlon in the United States. Founded in 1982, USA Triathlon sanctions more than 4,300 events and connects with more than 400,000 members each year, making it the largest multisport organization in the world. In addition to its work at the grassroots level with athletes, coaches, and race directors — as well as the USA Triathlon Foundation — USA Triathlon provides leadership and support to elite athletes competing at international events, including International Triathlon Union (ITU) World Championships, Pan American Games and the Olympic and Paralympic Games. USA Triathlon is a proud member of the ITU and the United States Olympic Paralympic Committee (USOPC).
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