Eagle County brothers, triathletes eye 2028 Olympics

On a cold December morning, three tall runners strode down the bike path along Highway 6 toward Edwards. Though buffs shielded their faces from the wintery wind, the trio’s identity was unmistakable to your humble correspondent — also trying to squeeze in a morning session — by how effortlessly they made the 12-mile run look.

In the current Middaugh-family standings, Dad maintains the XTERRA national titles lead, the firstborn son owns the highest world ranking and little brother has family 5K bragging rights. More importantly (as evidenced by the aforementioned group run), the first family for EagleVail endurance performance has seemingly cultivated and sustained a genuine love for process as much as product.

“I think it was more fun and play for us growing up,” said Sullivan Middaugh, who wanted his own pair of bib shorts before most, a product of following his dad, Josiah — the 2015 world champion — around to various XTERRA events. “I think as a kid, watching that is pretty inspiring.”

“We were obsessed with the Tour de France,” Porter Middaugh added before describing the brothers’ childhood make-believe stage race around Deer Boulevard. “Finding our own drive and reason to do the sport through high school has allowed us to be more driven now and have a lot of goals we still want to achieve.”

One of those goals is the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.

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The pair is part of USA Triathlon’s ‘Project Podium, an elite development program based at Arizona State University designed to develop promising college-aged triathletes. The stated goal is to “achieve medal performances in the Olympic Games.” While the brothers have a ways to go before that’s a full-fledged reality, both are putting in the work required to climb the ladder. Generally speaking, their 20-25-hour training weeks mean they’re almost always two-hours away from the next workout.

“Either just finished or about to go to one,” Porter Middaugh said with a laugh from his apartment in Tempe last week. Project Podium athletes train all three disciplines five days a week, with a three-hour bike on Saturday and Sunday long run to boot. There’s two or three lifting sessions — plus online classes — squeezed in there somewhere, too.

“The training is way more rigorous than I’ve had before,” said Porter Middaugh, who ran 8:41.06 in the 3200-meters — the second-fastest time ever run by a Colorado prep athlete in history — during his senior year at Battle Mountain last spring. “It’s not too often where you feel good in training and I think even more important, when you do feel good, to not go out and smash it. Because you’re definitely going to feel it the next day.”

Porter has relied on his brother — who entered Project Podium after his graduation in 2022 — for wisdom in navigating the growing pains commensurate with Continental Series and World Triathlon Cup competition. Managing effort, listening to the body and being patient are keys he’s passed along.

“It’s about sticking with it, just trying to get the best out of yourself,” Sullivan said. “I think with time, it gets better. You get better at running when your legs are tired, biking hard when your heart rate is high coming out of the water. It’s a learning curve.”

In addition to his XTERRA exploits — Sullivan Middaugh has captured two XTERRA USA titles, the inaugural North American crown and is the defending short-track world champion — the 22-year-old is gradually climbing the ranks on the roads. He’s accrued six podiums and two wins at the World Triathlon Continental series and made his World Triathlon Cup — the tier right below World Triathlon’s ‘Championship Series’ — debut last fall, placing 23rd in Miyazaki, Japan. He opened the 2025 campaign with a ninth place finish in the World Triathlon Cup Napier on Feb. 23.

“I was really happy with my swim and it was a really good start to the season for me,” he said. “It’s definitely another level that you have to jump up to.”

While Sullivan Middaugh often posts the field’s fastest bike split, he said his swim still needs work.

“In World Cup, everyone is a really strong swimmer,” he explained. “They’re really strong bikers, too, so if you don’t have a good swim, you’re going to be really working on the bike.” 

Porter Middaugh’s rookie campaign was filled with growth opportunities.

“Got to train a bunch, race a little bit. Didn’t find a lot of success in the racing, but every race was definitely an opportunity to learn from something,” he said. “So going into this year, I think my main goal was just to use the training I’ve been putting under my belt to have a little bit more fun in these races, be a little bit more competitive (and) be up there in the standings a little bit more.”

He’s done all three. On Feb. 16, he placed sixth in the La Habana Continental event in Cuba. A month later, he was 10th in La Paz, Mexico. In the latter race, the Middaughs came out of the water together and moved through the field on the bike.

“He kind of dragged me along for awhile, but I definitely finished a lot higher than I would have without him,” Porter Middaugh said.

The 2024 Gatorade Colorado boys cross-country Player of the Year and sixth-place finisher at Nike Cross Nationals last fall, Porter Middaugh said he often finds himself comparing running times to last year.

“I think I can really confidently say I’m a lot better than senior year in high school just with some of the track workouts I’ve had,” he said. Still, triathlon’s final leg hasn’t “totally clicked” yet.

“There’s just so many other elements involved in having a good run,” he continued. “It’s unlike a track or cross-country race for sure. It’s a totally different feeling.”

Porter Middaugh said accumulating points is the main objective this season. Even though his best Olympic shot might be 2032, he’s gunning for this cycle, too.

“I think with the team and the support we have currently, I really do think the skies’ the limit,” he said. “I’m not in too big of a rush. … I think I’m happy with my progress so far.”

The host country’s quota for Los Angeles is dependent upon world ranking. Currently, John Reed and Boulder-based Morgan Pearson are the only Americans in the top-30. Chase McQueen is 44th, Reese Vannerson is 59th and Sullivan Middaugh is the fifth-best U.S. athlete in 90th. The elder Middaugh said this year is about positioning himself for the Olympic qualification period beginning next June.

His other targets are U23 worlds in Australia in October and XTERRA Worlds in Italy in September. Last year, all three Middaughs competed in the XTERRA final. Just like their dad, Sullivan and Porter are both in it for the long haul.

“Seeing how long my dad did it is also another reason I’d love to keep doing it as long as I can,” Sullivan said. “Just trying to get better every single day is really important.”

Maybe one day they’ll work out with their own kids, too. In terms of family fun runs, though, the boys might have to make room for one more member in the near future. Larsen, the youngest of the bunch, contributed to the Battle Mountain girls’ runner-up team finish at state cross-country this fall and also participated in Nordic skiing and track during her freshman year.

“I think we knew there was potential,” Sullivan said of his little sister, who seems to have embraced the family’s passion for pursuing endurance excellence. “It’s been really cool to see her wanting to compete and she’s really doing well. She’s making it her own.”