The Penn State Triathlon Club was founded in the early 1990s by a small group of dedicated athletes. The members came together on a regular basis to both train and race, emphasizing athleticism and ability. In these initial years, the Club was for elite athletes, and many of the early members went on to have successful careers as professional triathletes. This mentality filtered down to new members, which created a highly competitive atmosphere. Active students during this period included Dave Gower (the first Club president), Mike Dangelo (the first Club treasurer), Neal Henderson, Scott Elder, Ed Roman, Andrew Hawley, Aaron Glancy, Matt Goulden, Bill Magagna, Erik Scott, Paul Fritzsche, Jamie Auciello, Amal Al-Miski, and Shelly Bewick.
Although the competitive atmosphere helped some individuals achieve great success, the recreational athlete was lost in the shuffle. So, in the late 1990s, the Club began to focus on increasing membership by attracting people of all abilities. This inclusive move opened the Club up to a much larger group of students, including those who did not consider themselves to be triathletes.
Since then, we have continued with this approach, attempting to make ourselves available to students with little or no background in swimming, biking, and/or running. With the help of more experienced Club members, everyone is given an opportunity to explore the fun and challenging world of triathlon.
2023 National Championships, Lake Lanier, GA
First row, Left to Right: Sury Yadav, Anthony Cacchione, Jubei Tapia, Zane Fisher, Andrew King. Second Row, Left to Right: Noah Frank, Kade Olsen, Colin Ponticello, Luke Schwab, Heidi Dierig, Marley Turbett, Lina Al-atrash, Tyler Kirn
2022 National Championships, Lake Lanier, GA
Left to Right: Mac Lehman, Marley Turbett, Anthony Cacchione, Sury Yadav, Adam Deemer
2019 National Championships, Tempe, AZ
First Row, Left to Right: Maddie Margevicius, Kate Johansen, Danielle Emhof, Emily Loucks, Mara Tamminga, Leah Narkevic. Second Row, Left to Right: Nick Daffan, Mac Lehman, Trevor Brown, Jeff Aldrich, Matt Guenter, Thomas Conlin, Sasha Yaskolko
2018 National Championships, Tuscaloosa, AL
First Row, Left to Right: Rita Concannon, Lisa Gardner, Claudia Hatch, Kate Johansen, Maddie Margevicius, Emily Loucks. Second Row, Left to Right: Zach Newcome, Thomas Conlin, Drew Mintzer, Matt Guenter, Nick Daffan, Mahesh Pai
2017 National Championships, Tuscaloosa, AL
Left to Right: Matt Guenter, Lisa Gardner, Caleb Martin
Note: If you have a history item related to the Club, submit it to Stuart Selber (selber@psu.edu) so that we can add it to our website.