This Is Just the Beginning: Manu Kapitány on XTERRA’s South American Championship Debut

On May 24, 2025, the small Colombian town of Paipa will make XTERRA history as the host of the first-ever South American Championship—bringing the region’s best off-road triathletes to the high-altitude trails of Boyacá. At 8,284 feet above sea level, it’s XTERRA’s highest race to date. But the elevation is just part of the experience.

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From vibrant community energy to immersive local culture, the XTERRA South American Championship promises to deliver the kind of full-sensory adventure that has become synonymous with XTERRA’s championship events. And for the Kapitány family—who’ve spent the past decade growing endurance sports in the region—this event is more than a milestone. It’s a dream realised.

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Manuela Kapitány, known by most as Manu, is a triathlete, race director, and co-founder of Xportiva, the local team behind the race. Alongside her parents, Janos and Sofi, she’s been instrumental in building a growing endurance scene in Colombia. We caught up with Manu ahead of the Championship to learn more about her story, the magic of Paipa, and why this moment matters so much—for her, for the sport, and for the future of off-road triathlon in South America.

Let’s start with your own journey in sport—how did it begin?

Manu: I have been a swimmer since I was little. My parents always told me the importance of having sport in your life. Both of my parents were swimmers, and then triathletes, so I grew up around sport. It was always in our lives. It was a lifestyle for us.

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I remember going with my parents to their triathlon races, and I would do the kids' events. I stopped doing triathlons through college, but now I’m not studying anymore, and since the pandemic, I’ve started again. I’ve got a coach, started getting help with nutrition, and have been able to do some bigger races.

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This year, though, I’m only doing local races. I’m getting married in August, moving into our own apartment, and with work too, I’m just going to stay local and race.

Why XTERRA? What made you and your parents feel it was the right fit for Colombia—and Paipa specifically?

There was no off-road triathlon in Colombia. We have lots of mountain bike races and trail running events, but nothing that combines them into a triathlon. It was the same when we brought Oceanman to Colombia—open water swimming races didn’t exist here before, but we created a market and it just grew and grew. We thought, ‘Okay, let’s do something different again,’ and XTERRA felt like the perfect fit.

Colombia is full of mountains and nature. The landscapes are amazing, the colours are so vibrant, and everything is very, very green. It’s the perfect environment for off-road sports. Paipa, especially, is a town that lives and breathes sport. When you come here, you’ll see people riding their bikes or out running every day. Since the pandemic, even more people have taken up sport—there are so many triathletes now, and you see people swimming, biking, and running all the time. It’s become a big part of our culture, and we knew XTERRA would fit right in.

What impact do you think the XTERRA South American Championship will have on Paipa and the region?

It’s going to be great for Paipa because it’s going to bring so many people to the region—so many internationals—and they’ll be able to see how beautiful Colombia is.

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It will help get the name of Colombia out to the world, and people everywhere will be able to see how special it is. It’s also going to bring tourism to this small town, because athletes will bring their families and friends with them.

“For many, doing a triathlon is a huge deal—and it’s beautiful to see their families coming together to support them.”

It’s really nice that we can bring that to Paipa, and it’s amazing that we’re hosting the first ever South American Championship here. We are very excited and very proud.

If an athlete and their family were coming from overseas, what would you recommend they do while visiting?

Firstly, I think you should do some kind of gastronomic tour. We have lots of delicious food here that you’re not going to find anywhere else in the world.

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In Bogotá, we have a typical soup that’s really good—it’s called ajiaco. Also, here in Colombia, we have arepas. It’s like toast, but made out of corn, and every region has a different kind. Some are sweet, some have cheese inside. In Paipa, we have Paipa cheese, which is a traditional cheese from this region, and it’s delicious.

There are also amazing hikes and walks around here—with the lake, the mountains, and the views from the top. And there are lots of little towns with colourful houses and different traditions, like crafts made with yarn.

Will athletes get a chance to connect with Colombian culture during the event ?

Of course. We’re going to open the event with a group of dancers from Paipa, and there will be traditional music and dancing from the region. We also have beautiful singers from here who will perform.

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There will be food booths with local dishes, and there will be traditional crafts and products from the region in the race village, along with everything athletes need for the race.

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Last year, we had a traditional Colombian BBQ at the finish line.

What advice would you give to athletes coming to race?

Firstly, Paipa is at altitude, so it’s going to be slightly challenging. But it’s also one of the places where athletes from around the world come to train because the conditions are so good.

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The swim is in Lake Sochagota—it’s beautiful. The temperature is amazing, around 19°C. It looks like a mirror because you can see the reflections of the mountains.

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The bike will go around the mountains surrounding Paipa and has some technical parts. This year we’re adding a lot of singletrack, and you’re really going to be in and around nature the whole time—through all the fauna and flora.

The run starts around the lake, and we’re also going to add more singletrack. There are some steep parts, but it’s very beautiful and magical—and tough.

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It’s going to be an unbelievable experience, so my advice is just to focus on enjoying the entire experience and taking in the beauty of the course along the way.

You’ve helped bring XTERRA to Colombia—where do you see the sport in five years?

Our main goal with our races is to grow locally, and then start bringing more international people to Colombia to see how magical and beautiful it is.

“Colombia is full of mountains and nature. It’s so beautiful with all the fauna and flora—it’s the perfect environment for outdoor sports.”

We want the locals to race, but also people from all over the world. For one of our races, we had people from 25 countries—that’s amazing. That’s what we want to do with XTERRA too.

You’ve been both a race director and an athlete—do you have a preference?

I don’t know! I love being a race director because it’s amazing to see so many people achieve their goals and dreams.

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For many people, doing a triathlon is a huge deal. It’s beautiful to see so many excited people and their families coming together.

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But I also see people racing and I’m like, ‘Ah—I really want to be out there too!’ So I don’t know if I could choose between them. They’re both amazing, and I love both—racing and being a race director.

Do you think being an athlete helps you be a better race director?

Of course—because it’s different when you see a race from the inside. We always tell people we’re not just organisers, we’re triathletes too, and I think that’s what makes us good race directors.

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When we go to other races, we look at everything—what they’re doing well, what we can learn from, and what things we could do differently. It’s a great experience, and it helps us improve what we do.

You work with your parents at Xportiva. How do you manage being part of a family business and training together too?

Nowadays, my parents train with me, but just for fun—they go at their own pace and mostly just run. They don’t really compete anymore. They do running events sometimes because it’s something you can do anywhere, and at the events we can’t always take our bikes. But I’m the only one doing triathlon now.

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They’ve always supported me.

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We do talk about work, but we try to set limits on the time—like, ‘Okay, we’ll talk about work between this time and that time.’

“We saw the opportunity to bring something new—and XTERRA fit perfectly into our growing community.”

But it’s been a beautiful journey to grow as a family and create a business together. It’s challenging, but I wouldn’t change it for anything in my life.

The South American Championship marks a milestone in the XTERRA story and signals a growing movement of athletes across the region hungry for off-road adventure. At the 2024 XTERRA World Championship, 50 athletes from South America took to the start line, representing the colours of their respective countries—just over a third of those from North America. But with a continental championship now in place to elevate competition and visibility, that number is set to grow in the years to come.

Whether you're planning to race or cheer from the sidelines, check the event page to see how you can be part of this landmark moment in the evolution of off-road triathlon.