The 2010 USA Triathlon Age Group/Sprint/Elite National Championships featured such initiatives as:

Providing 125-gallon water coolers on the racecourse at the aid stations instead of plastic bottles

All plastic, paper and cardboard used to ship any product to the race venue was recycled

A reusable mesh cooler bag was used for goodies instead of a plastic bag

"Pickup Pal" was offered as a way for athletes to share rides to the event and reduce their carbon footprint

Athletes for a FitPlanet Native Green Tags were available for athletes to purchase to help offset their carbon footprint

No paper registration was used and event registration was conducted online to reduce paper waste

At the finish line, athletes were offered pre-filled Gatorade squeeze bottles that they could reuse and take home, which reduced the amount of plastic waste

Athletes received a tech T-shirt, manufactured by Greenlayer with recycled fabric, rather than a cotton shirt

All communication with athletes was done via email or the website - nothing was mailed to reduce paper communication

Ninety per cent of the signage will be reused at future events to reduce paper or cardboard waste

Instead of offering finisher medals, athletes were offered a usable and relevant product - a USA Triathlon blanket

The moves by USA Triathlon delivered on a commitment to implement programs that preserve natural resources and protect the environment via its GoGreen initiative.

"By taking the Pledge of Sustainability for the Age Group/Sprint/Elite National Championships in Tuscaloosa, USA Triathlon is making a public commitment to produce greener events," said Bruce Rayner, chief green officer of athletes for FitPlanet.

"By verifying the pledge, USA Triathlon is proving it takes sustainability seriously.

"FitPlanet looks forward to working with USA Triathlon in 2011 to green all of its events."

Any event that meets qualifying criteria will be listed in FitPlanet's Green Events Directory, which provides athletes with detailed information about the race, including the specific criteria the event organiser has pledged to implement.

Like USA Triathlon's national events staff, other event directors can follow suit and gain access to the FitPlanet Resource Centre that includes an online how-to manual for greening their event, a green business directory, access to a monthly webcast and other useful resources that enable them to cost-effectively green their events.