Some reasons that Black Triathletes are under represented in the world of Triathlon

I have been doing triathlons for over 15 years. I have seen in this span an increase in Blacks and just more people of color participating in the sport, however are numbers are still vastly lower that are white counterparts.

According to the USAT Annual Adult Membership for the period ending December 31, 2015, the number of members stood at 116,110. Out of that number, 1.5% identified as Multi Racial;  1.1% identified as Other; 2.1% identified as Asian; 3.2% identified as Hispanic; 88.2% identified as Caucasian/White; and a staggering .5% identified as African American. *https://www.teamusa.org/usa-triathlon/about/multisport/demographics

I see 3 main reasons for this low number.

1. Financial: Triathlon is not a "cheap" sport. When you have factored in the registration fee, USAT membership, a bike, helmet. wetsuit, running shoes, tri suit, training, travel, and this is just the minimum, you are looking at close to $1,000 vs doing a local marathon which would be considerably less since you do not need the extra gear for the bike or the swim. There are ways around this, but this does deter a lot of people.
2. Skills and Knowledge:  Everyone just about knows how to run or can race walk, but not everyone knows how to swim or actually ride a bike. Even though swimming is a life skill, you would be surprised at how many adults do not know how to swim or ride a bike. Some of it is due to fear-maybe a family member or a friend nearly drowned. Maybe family members had instilled a fear of the water that they never tried to do it. Maybe it is a hair issue. In the case of the bike, maybe the person never had a bike before.
3. Stereotypes:  Triathlon is a "white" sport. No sport is a race or ethnic group. It is all about changing the perception of the sport. It is a swim, a bike and a run. The more of us who are present at races, the more of us who make it a point to bring someone on the journey, the more of us who decide to become coaches, the more we move that number to .5%