Duathlon is an athletic event that consists of a running and cycling.

Athletes have a running segment, followed by a cycling segment and then another running segment.  It is a similar concept and format to Triathlon which also has 3 segments.  In Triathlon, however, the first segment of the race is swimming, followed by cycling and running segments.  Duathlons are conducted at sprint, standard, middle and long distances.

At The World Games, the “standard distance” is used for the individual event and a "super sprint"  distance is used for the relay event with each athlete on the team completing the entire course (leg) prior to handing off to the next athlete on the team.

The athlete/team finishing the entire course and crossing the finish line in the shortest time will be declared the winner of the competition.

- There is no qualification round, all athletes will start in the medal round.

- In the individual race, all athletes will compete on a standard distance course consisting of three segments: running, cycling and running.

- In the relay race, all athletes will compete two super sprint distance legs of running, cycling and running in the order female, male, female, male.

- The first three finishers will receive Gold, Silver and Bronze.

Athletes assemble at the start line for a mass start for the first run segment.  At the end of the first run segment, athletes "transition" from the run to the bike in the "Transition Area" and proceed to the bike segment. Once the ride is completed, athletes return to the Transition Area and "rack" their bicycles in their designated spot before heading out on the last run segment.  Athletes finish the competition by crossing the finish line at the end of the second run.

For the Standard Distance, the athletes complete a 10 km run, 40 km cycle and another 5 km run.

In the 2x2 (2 athletes x  2 legs) Mixed Relay, each team consists of one male and one female athlete, usually from the same country (mixed-nation teams may be allowed for certain specific competitions).  In mixed relay, a leg consists of 3 segments (run, bike, run).  The order of competition is female, male, female, male where each athlete will complete the “super sprint distance” leg twice in the previously mentioned order. The exchange is completed by the in-coming athlete using their hand to contact the body of the outgoing athlete within the exchange zone.

The total time is from the start of the first team member to the finish of the second leg of the second athlete. Time is continuous and the timing does not stop between athletes.

During the cycling segment, drafting is allowed.

A fixed cut-off time may be introduced before the event, for each section of the race.  If any competitor takes longer than the pre-determined cut-off time in any segment of the event, that competitor is then eliminated from the competition.

Athletes lapped during the bike segment will be withdrawn from the course.

Information about the Technical Officials can be found here.

There are two types of penalties:

- Time penalties: penalty appropriate for infringements which do not warrant a disqualification. This is for “minor” infringements on Run1, Bike, Run2 and transitions.  Time penalties are served in a designated penalty box on the run course.

- Disqualification: penalty appropriate for severe rule violations and/or dangerous or unsportsmanlike conduct.

During transitions, all used equipment must be placed in a box.  If not, the athlete will be sanctioned with a time-penalty.

For relay exchange: If the exchange occurs unintentionally outside the exchange zone, the team will receive a penalty of 10 seconds, which must be served in the penalty box. If the relay exchange was done intentionally outside the relay zone or is not completed, the team will be disqualified.

More information can be found here as well as here.

Individual Men

1. Rob WOESTENBORGHS (BEL)
2. Emilio Antonio MARTIN ROMERO (ESP)
3. Benoit Jean NICOLAS (FRA)

Individual Women

1. Ai UEDA (JPN)
2. Sandra LEVENEZ (FRA)
3. Jenny SCHULZ (GER)