(Lausanne, Switzerland) A delegation of ITU officers, including President Les McDonald, Treasurer Bill Walker, Executive Board Member Marisol Casado, Executive Director Loreen Barnett, ITU Technical Director in Europe Michel Gignoux, Swedish Triathlon Federation President Ria Damgren and ITU Technical Committee member Masao Nakayama completed a successful meeting today with IOC Sport Director Gilbert Felli and Assistant Director Kit McConnell at the IOC Headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Prior to the meeting, Les McDonald, Bill Walker and Loreen Barnett met with Didier Lehenaff, President of the European Triathlon Union (ETU). This positive and productive meeting resulted in a collaborative agreement which will ensure a close working relationship between ITU and ETU in the coming months, especially as we prepare for upcoming Olympic qualification events. Didier Lehenaff solidified the agreement reached at this meeting with the following letter:

Dear Mr. President, dear colleagues,
Just a few words to tell you my pleasure after our very constructive talks in the past weeks and days. We are, together, taking the necessary steps to unite our triathlon family again. You can count on my personal dedication, on behalf of ETU, to consolidate this unity and help ITU to further promote triathlon at our regional level.

Most sincerely,
Didier Lehenaff, President
European Triathlon Union (ETU)

The meeting with the IOC Sports Department also included the final details of the 2004 Olympic Qualification Criteria for Triathlon.