There are two Olympic triathlon events – one for men and one for women.  Contested on separate days, they will use the same course for the 1.5km swim, 40km bike and 10km run.

Triathlon will be held in one of London's best known parks, Hyde Park, which has successfully hosted events in the ITU World Championship Series.  The park contains an 11.34 hectare lake called The Serpentine which was created in the 1730s.

London 2012 Storylines:
Canadian phenom Paula Findlay admits to still being starstruck when she sees stars such as the Emmas from Australia – Moffatt and Snowsill – in the pre-race meetings.  Findlay has been nearly unbeatable since debuting in the World Championship Series midway through the 2010 season but it remains to be seen whether her lack (and the Emmas' wealth) of Olympic experience will come into play in London 2012.

There were some critics of Canada's use of a domestique in Beijing 2008, but Colin Jenkins played a vital part in Simon Whitfield's silver medal.  It is unknown if any other country will try the same ploy in London 2012, but the host Brits have two brothers, Alistair and Jonathan Brownlee, who could work together to control the pace of the race and find themselves both on the podium, as they did at a World Championship Series event in June 2011.

Canada's Outlook:
The veteran leader of the Canadian team is Simon Whitfield, who came from behind to win gold in the inaugural Olympic triathlon in Sydney 2000 and claimed silver in an exciting sprint finish in Beijing 2008.  Whitfield will be 37-years-old in London 2012 when he looks to become the first triathlete to win three Olympic medals.

The breakout star of the Canadian team is Paula Findlay.  She was victorious in her World Championship Series debut in 2010, which happened to be on the Olympic course in London.  Through 2010 and 2011 she took three more wins in her next four WCS races, tying her for the most career wins by a woman on the circuit.  Findlay will be just 23-years-old when she makes her Olympic debut in 2012.

Other International Athletes to Follow:

MEN

Javier Gomez – Spain

• Will be looking for his first Olympic medal after entering Beijing 2008 as the favourite and finishing fourth
• A consistently strong performer who won the overall World Championship Series title in 2010 after finishing second in the 2009 WCS rankings

• Shared the podium at a World Championship Series event for the first time in June 2011 when Alistair finished first and Jonathan finished second at the stop in Madrid
• Shared the podium once again at the 2011 ITU World Championship Grand Final in Beijing with Alistair finishing first and Jonathan third
• Alistair has won world championship titles at the junior (2006), U-23 (2008) and elite (2009 and 2011) levels while Jonathan won the U-23 World title in 2010

• After winning the Olympic bronze medal in Beijing 2008, she took back-to-back overall World Championship Series titles in 2009 and 2010

• Considered an exceptional runner, she won gold at the 2008 Olympic Games
• Able to win the big races in inconsistent years, she won World titles in 2003, 2005 and 2006 and took the victory in the 2010 World Championship Grand Final