Eight Colorado Women Nominated at Outspoken Summit

By Bill Plock and Lisa Ingarfield

Colorado was well represented last week in Tempe, Arizona, at the second annual Outspoken Summit. Co-founded by Dr’s Lisa Ingarfield (of Denver) and Sara Gross, about 160 women from all corners of triathlon gathered for an enriching conference. They heard from industry leaders and developed leadership skills related to their role in triathlon. The summit provided a rich forum to help develop stronger voices to inspire and advocate for changes in the sport.

There were several Colorado women nominated across six categories for the first annual Outspoken: Women in Triathlon Awards. Nominees were chosen by the triathlon community. The Outspoken Summit team had an open call for nominations in September and October for six award categories. 

Outspoken Woman of the Year:

A woman who has advocated and broken down barriers for women in triathlon in 2019. Won by Coloradan, Triny Willerton

Triny Willerton is a wife, a mom of 5, and a cyclist. In May of 2018, she was struck from behind by a driver with a truck while on a bike ride in Boulder. She sustained over 12 fractures and a punctured lung. Now Willerton, and her platform #itcouldbeme, work to change the narrative between cyclists and motorists to promote road safety for everyone. Triny recovered from her injuries and raced in Kona at the IRONMAN World Championship in 2018 and then qualified and raced in the 70.3 IRONMAN World Championships in 2019. In between all of that, she started the #itcouldbeme initiative and captured the attention of the endurance community all over the world. More information can be found here: https://www.itcouldbeme.org/. Also here is a link to an article published on USA Cycling about Triny: https://www.usacycling.org/article/triny-willerton-in-our-own-words

Coach of the Year:

A triathlon coach who is changing lives, changing the game of coaching, contributing in outstanding ways to triathlon coaching, or women’s equity in the sport, or all of the above.

Tristen Rogers, Hat House; Tristen has been an athletic coach for most of her life, previously working with high schoolers and now with weekend warriors to elites through her coaching and altitude training company HAT House. She has an unstoppable positive attitude and will go out of her way to assist her athletes and folks in the tri community. Her coaching is extremely personalized, and she is an amazing cheerleader. Tristen will lift you up while also keeping it real and helping you be your best self and athlete. Hat House info found here: http://hathouseendurance.com

Yoli Casas, Team YTT; Yoli’s passion, education and wealth of experience coaching endurance athletes or over 30 years make her a sought after coach. Yoli’s unwavering commitment to her athletes have helped thousands of people transform their lives and reach their fitness goals. Yoli’s coaching interests focus on helping people through life challenges by incorporating athletics into their lifestyle. She empowers athletes of all levels and ages achieve their goals while cultivating self-confidence and individual’s belief in themselves. Team YTT info found here: https://yolistrainingteam.com

Susan Yasuhara, Karma Multisport; Susan has a passion and talent for supporting beginners, particularly those who have never swam or are scared of the water. She runs a small multisport group for women with a focus on beginners, athenas, and anyone new to the sport in a non-intimidating environment. She is patient, kind, and will go above and beyond for her athletes. Info on Karma Multisport here: http://karmamultisport.com

Siri Lindley, Team Sirius; Siri is a world champion triathlete and accomplished coach. Her mission is to positively influence others, to help empower individuals by connecting them to their greatest strengths. She is the head coach of Team Sirius, a tri club designed to support beginners to seasoned triathletes. Info on Team Sirius: https://www.teamsiriustriclub.com

Rachel Joyce; Rachel took up triathlon in 2005 and what started as a hobby turned into a passion. Since 2008, she’s climbed to the top of her sport. She has captured a world title, six iron distance titles and stood on the podium three times at the Ironman World Championships. Outside of training and racing, Rachel is a passionate advocate for equality and increasing participation in sport by women. She is a founding member of TriEqual and sits on the Women For Tri Committee of Advisors.

Honorable mentions: Yoli Casas and Susan Yasuhara

Bethany Rutledge Memorial Award

Bethany Rutledge was an active member of the Atlanta, GA triathlon community. She spent her life helping others and supporting triathletes to achieve their best selves. She believed helping people in small ways created potential for much bigger change. For this memorial award, please nominate a woman you believe embodies Bethany’s spirit and philosophy, and has affected many people in small, and meaningful ways.

Nominees from Colorado: Tristen Rogers and Yoli Casas

Athlete of the Year

A pro or age group athlete who has used her platform to advocate for, and make positive change in triathlon.

Triny Willerton (see above)

Barbara Perkins; Barbara is a 2 time Kona competitor and member of Team Couer Sports. Barbara goes out of her way to encourage athletes every single day. She is always contributing and doing her best to help answer any question and calm fears for other triathletes. On top of that, she is fast as fast can be. She broke the tape at IM Santa Rosa this year! She is an extraordinary woman and a fierce athlete. 

Angela Naeth; Angela is a multiple 70.3 and Ironman Champion with 3 sub-9 hour Ironman performances. She is now currently ranked among the top triathletes in the world. Angela continues to pursue her career in these distances and build awareness around Lyme, and Women in Sport. Angela created a women’s triathlon/cycling community in 2017.  www.iracelikeagirl.com. Growing in numbers, iracelikeagirl is her ability to support others in the sport of triathlon.

If you don’t see a woman on this list who you think should be there, then don’t forget to nominate in 2020!