Big race for local children

Action from the start of the swim leg at the Weet-Bix Kids TRYathlon. Photo: Jason Oxenham.

The location for the Northland stage of the 2016 Sanitarium Weet-Bix Kids TRYathlon has been confirmed, with the Bay of Islands securing the opportunity to debut the popular event.

With 24,000 children taking part New Zealand-wide last year, the Northland fixture will run on a site adjacent to the historic Waitangi Treaty Grounds on April 10.

Sport Northland chief executive Brent Eastwood said the central Northland location will be ideal logistically.

"With its centrally-located venue at Waitangi in the Bay of Islands, the event will be very accessible and Sport Northland is looking forward to supporting the event so that more Northland kids get to experience the thrill and challenge of participating in a triathlon, many for the first time ever."

Community groups including Sport Northland, the Paihia Business Association, Far North District Council, the Waitangi National Trust, Te Tii marae and several other local stakeholders worked alongside Sanitarium to bring the event to the region.

The opportunity cost, unfortunately, was the demise of the Ray White Allens Kids Triathlons - which dates back to 2004 - to make way for the new event, with the 2015 event in Whangarei the last of its kind.

Instead, the Sanitarium Weet-Bix Kids TRYathlon will be held in the Bay of Islands for the first time, offering local youth the chance to participate in the world's largest under-16 triathlon series. Entries are open at try.weetbix.co.nz.