Jon Shaw is the South West region’s officials coordinator and we caught up with him to hear about his experiences of officiating and why he’s keen to help others get involved.
“I'm not a triathlete, yes I run, I swim and I cycle, but one discipline at a time for me,” commented Shaw. “My involvement with the world of triathlon started a number of years ago as a volunteer marshal for a local triathlon event company, LPS Events, based in the South West region.
“I was actively involved for a number of years, primarily as a member of the Water Safety Crew at their open water events in the Cotswolds and it was the event organiser, Luke Shipway, who first suggested that I should take the next step and get involved as a Technical Official.”
Event organisers and Technical Officials work closely together to help make sure that British Triathlon permitted events are both safe and fair for everyone taking part.
“I was aware of the role of the Technical Officials from my time as a marshal but had no idea that this path was open to all,” Shaw added.
“Once I started to look into the role further it quickly became apparent that you do not need to be a triathlete in order to become a Technical Official and from that point I was hooked and keen to qualify and progress from Local Technical Official, to Regional Technical Official and beyond.”
There is a pathway available for Technical Officials to follow, starting with Local Technical Official, where qualified officials can officiate at pool based triathlon and aquathlon events along with duathlons, including children's and paratriathlon events.
Progressing along the pathway enables officials to officiate at open water and larger events, including domestic championships and qualifiers as well as World Triathlon and Europe Triathlon Championships internationally.
“As a Technical Official you also see the event from the competitors side and you can't help but appreciate the commitment and dedication of the elite triathlete's to their sport,” said Shaw. “You also see the grit determination and enthusiasm of the first timers and the novices when they turn up ready to meet the challenge of the day.
“There's a lot of hard work that goes into organising an event and as a Technical Official you are part of this, often working with the event organiser prior to the event, during the event and post event.”
Shaw, who was named Triathlon England’s Official of the Year in 2019, is keen to help others get involved and support local events around the South West by qualifying to be a Technical Official.
“The level of satisfaction that I get from each event is immense, a real natural high, regardless of the size of the event, it's simply addictive,” he concluded.
“As a Technical Official you are there, you are part of it, you are immersed in the action either flying solo or as part of a team. I would encourage anyone to take up the challenge, regardless of being a triathlete or not.”
If you’re interested in becoming a Technical Official, please email officials@britishtriathlon.org to be added to the waiting list for future courses.
Find out more about officiating on the button below.
