While the sport of triathlon may be an individual event - at least at the non-drafting level - there is no doubting that the professional ranks of triathlon are increasingly seeing benefits of a team approach to the sport, and the marketing of athletes and brands in particular.

In recent years we have seen an increase in the number of high profile professional and/or development triathlon teams, as sponsors and athletes recognise that there can be greater brand awareness and exposure by being associated with a group of athletes, rather than individuals alone.

With British athletes proving successful in all disciplines within the sport, it is not surprising that these squads have had, or continue to have, a strong British interest. Several Brits have started 2010 with some very welcome news...

Commerzbank Triathlon Team

2009 ended on a positive note in once sense for former Ironman UK winner Scott Neyedli, as he regained the Scottish Ironman record at Ironman Western Australia, finishing in second place. That performance was however offset by the knowledge that it was Scott's last race in the colours of the Commerzbank Triathlon Team (formerly Kleinwort Triathlon Team), led by twice Ironman World Champion Normann Stadler.

Despite that loss for Scott, there are a number of Brits who have recently announced positive associations with new or existing teams.

Team TBB (www.TeamTBB.com)

One of the pioneers, in recent years at least, is TeamTBB which has gained widespread public awareness in the triathlon world through the Brett Sutton coached squad. Chrissie Wellington turned pro with the team in 2007, and won her first two Ironman World Championships as a TBB athlete. Stephen and Bella Bayliss have been longstanding and successful members of the squad, and last year Brit Abigail Bayley also joined, going on to finish second at Ironman UK, her best result to date.

2010 sees another British athlete, Tamsin Lewis, join the team. In 2009 Tamsin finished third overall, and won gold (30-34) at the World Age Group Triathlon Championships on the Gold Coast, as well as winning the Hyde Park age group race by nine minutes, recording the fastest splits in all disciplines in the process. With a former Tour de France rider as a father, cycling is in the Lewis genes. We interviewed Tamsin last year, where she said "I would love to be given the opportunity to take time out of work and train full-time. At the moment I feel I’m constantly chasing my tail and have very little down-time." It looks as though she has now got that chance.

I spoke to Tamsin about this great opportunity:

"Its been a bit hectic of late as finishing off my last few days at work. Taking time out from Feb 4th to see how I go training full time. Reluctant to say I'm "going Pro" as it sounds a bit trite, but I'm going to see how training and recovering well without work stress allows me to develop as an athlete.

"I was put in contact with Brett Sutton through a mutual friend and we spent quite a bit of time talking about my potential etc and he invited me out to the camp in Thailand in Feb to see how I go.

"I finally got some financial sponsorship together which has allowed me to take some time out of work. I will officially be sponsored by The Priory Group (current employer) and Baxendale Walker LLP financially. Thanks also to Simon Ward, who has kindly given me a Computrainer to see me through the long turbo sessions.

"I'm really excited about training full time as fitting in life as a doctor and a triathlete has been very trying at times!

"I'm lucky to have the support and encouragement of my boyfriend and family to push ahead with my goals. I have no illusions that it'll be hard work... but I welcome the challenge, the opportunity to broaden my horizons, meet new people, and push my perceived limits. Let's see where it takes me!"

I also caught up with Alex Bok, Managing Director of The Bike Boutique (TBB), and asked why they had selected Tamsin for the squad, and also his thoughts on this development of professional triathlon teams generally.

On Tamsin Lewis, and why she was selected for the squad...

"Team TBB has had an excellent strike rate in developing strong age group competitors into international triathlon stars.

"A lot of people look at Chrissie as the age group-to-champion pro story. However Chrissie in many ways was following the path already trodden by Rebecca Preston of Australia, who won the world age group title and then went on to win four ironman races while with us. She indeed followed the same path as some of Brett’s earlier athletes who before meeting him, never thought they could be pro athletes.

"Tamsin Lewis is the latest identified for whom we hope such a meteoric rise. Winning the age group world championship, Brett feels that she has a hidden ability not yet unlocked for the long course races. While she was training for the short course races we feel her strength lies in the longer endurance events. I don't think too many could argue with Brett about spotting the needs of an ironman athlete.

"Like Chrissie, we have offered Tamsin the chance to come to camp train with great people who are fast athletes and will take her along slowly for the first 12months.

"Brett has very guarded but high hopes that she too will hit the ironman podium."

On the development of professional teams in triathlon...

"It would be great to see more teams emerging in the sport for the benefit of the athletes. A team should also be the win-win partnership between athletes and sponsors. The sport of triathlon is rapidly gaining international media attention, but often sponsors and athletes do not know how to find each other. So called athlete managers is still an underdeveloped area in triathlon as the yearly salaries of the athletes are still too small for athletes to be able to afford individual managers.

"Bringing athletes under ‘one roof’ with a manager who can sell the team as a package deal to a sponsor simplifies the work of a sponsor and enables both the established athletes to get bigger deals with less effort and development athletes to get access to sponsors they would otherwise simply not be able to reach.

"However positive these team developments are I know Brett well and he definitely wants and hopes that the races stay individual and not go down the road of what he describes as farcical racing of the short course distance."

Team Abu Dhabi (www.teamabudhabitriathlon.com)

Headed by former Ironman World Champion Faris Al Sultan, Team Abu Dhabi will be entering its second season in 2010. Team Abu Dhabi is backed by the Abu Dhabi Tourist Authority (ADTA), as part of an initiative to promote the Emirate within Europe, and Al Ain in particular as a training destination. When the team was announced, part of that strategy was to "establish a firm foundation for Abu Dhabi to host an international triathlon event in the not too distant future", and as most readers will have seen, the Abu Dhabi International Triathlon set for Saturday 13th March 2010 is one of the most eagerly awaited triathlon debut races ever, with $250,000 in prize money up for grabs plus a course that takes in the Yas Marina Formula 1 circuit.

One British athlete who had a stunning 2009 season - two Ironman podium finishes plus sixth in Kona - is Rachel Joyce, and she has recently been announced as one of three new members of an increased squad. Not surprisingly, Rachel is very happy: "I am so excited and feel really lucky to have landed a spot in the team. It'll be a great experience getting an opportunity to cycle with a über biker like Faris!"

Trek/K•Swiss Triathlon Team

Only announced this week, the new Trek/K•Swiss Triathlon Team may possibly be the strongest 'team' in depth around. Brits Julie Dibens and Fraser Cartmell are members of this newly formed squad, which with the addition of Michael Raelert and Chris Lieto amongst others, means that is has the current male and female Ironman 70.3 World Champion, ladies XTERRA World Champion and Kona silver medal winner. Not surprisingly for a bike company, the many of the athletes are exceptionally strong on the bike - while Andrew Yoder and Heather Jackson may not be that well known (yet) in the UK, watch out for both of them in the years to come, as they have shown glimpses of brilliance.

I caught up with Fraser Cartmell following the announcement, who said "Being named as part of the new Trek/K-Swiss Triathlon Team is, for a self confessed tri-geek like myself, a huge deal! Both companies are industry leaders and are striving to provide the absolute benchmark in terms of equipment and athlete support and have the goal of creating a co-branded world leading triathlon team. This is seriously good news for me and obviously provides a fantastic platform for me to continue down the road towards becoming a world class 70.3 and IM athlete. Furthermore, the calibre of the other athletes on the team are without question second to none, and I look forward to learning as much as possible from them during the coming seasons, as I see this as one of the major benefits of this team structure in our individual sport".

Team Activinstinct (www.teamactivinstinct.co.uk)

UK based pro/development team, Team Activinstinct made quite a mark in its first year during 2009. In Philip Graves, one of the next global superstars of triathlon could well have been born from the team, as Phil won both Ironman UK (the youngest Ironman winner ever), and Ironman 70.3 UK, amongst a host of other wins and top performances in cycle time trialling too. Sister Vicky Graves made a major impact too, with a 'full house' of gold (Euro Duathlon), silver (World Duathlon) and bronze (Euro Triathlon) at junior level, while the team as a whole racked up a highly impressive list of wins and podium finishes.

These results, and others from the likes of Dann Brook and Lois Rosindale, reflect the emphasis of the objectives of this squad - to develop and nurture talent, to bring athletes to 'the next level'. In Philip's case, that has been achieved arguably quicker than anyone expected - perhaps even Phil himself - as his is a name now known on the world stage.

A new team: nuun-blueseventy tri project

Could you be the next emerging British star? How about trying out for the nuun-blueseventy tri project. The elite squad will receive $,4,500 worth of gear including a Kestrel framest, Bont shoes, blueseventy wetsuit, nuun, team kit and much more. Applications are open now...

The year ahead.

So, who will make the biggest impact in 2010? Nobody forecast the Chrissie Wellington express in 2007, while last year, how many people predicted Philip Graves as an Ironman winner at the beginning of the year?

It should be a fun year, and hopefully these associations and teams should provide, as Alex Bok described, a "win-win partnership between athletes and sponsors". I look forward to following the action as the season unfolds.