Competitive Sports Travel Insurance - Am I covered?

Competitive sports and travel insurance can be a bit of a grey area for sport savvy explorers. Most standard activities like cycling, soccer, snorkelling and surfing are automatically covered under most policies (providing this is for recreational purposes only). However, when it comes to participating in competitive events, exclusions can apply.

What's considered competitive?

This varies from insurer to insurer. Most providers are happy to cover a recreational sport, provided:

• there is no sponsorship
• no prize money
• you are not participating competition in a race or tournament.

The different variations of competitive sports are usually defined as:

• Amateur: means any sport or activity engaged as a pastime rather than as a professional; whereby the participant has never accepted money for the time they spend training or competing.
• Competition: means a contest or rivalry between two or more individuals, entities or groups for prestige, recognition or award.
• Professional: means sport or activities in which participants receive payment for their performance.
• Racing: means a competition of speed, usually marked against time. This can be against others to see who is fastest, or against ones own record.

While definitions can vary, it’s always smart to contact your insurer directly to see how they define specific terms, like ‘competitions’ and ‘races’. You don’t want to find yourself mid-race in a peloton pileup, only to find out you’re not covered for overseas medical treatment when racing.

It’s also worth knowing that specialised insurance policies can sometimes come with limits or terms and conditions – for example, their policies may only cover medical benefits ranging from $25,000 to $100,000, whereas most standard travel insurance benefits have no limits.

So, what are your options? Keep reading to see which companies cover for a range of competitive sports.

Sporting competitions and events:

• World Nomads  cover a wide list of activities including parasailing, shark cage diving, rock climbing and many more. They cover you to participate in amateur races or competitions (excluding any motorsports) as long as you're not paid to participate in or train for the race or competition.

• GoSafe designed only for Department of Education employees and students on group tours, GoSafe provides cover for several sporting activities and competitions for amateur participants, both on an individual basis or in team events overseas. You also have the option to apply for cover to compete at a national or state level if declared and approved by the insurer.

• Vinsurance is an insurance broker specialising in the Sports, Leisure and entertainment industries. Vinsurance covers a wide range of sports including netball, cycling, canoeing, diving and more.

Cycling competitions:

From bicycle touring through the lavender fields of Provence to racing in the Tour de France, the sky’s the limit when it comes to travelling with your bicycle! The freedom of travelling on two wheels can be exhilarating, but it only takes one little mishap for your travel plans to go downhill.

Getting travel insurance to cover you your cycling holiday can be tricky, with exclusions for downhill bike riding, off road and cycling competition. And while there aren’t many insurers that will cover you to compete in cycling competitions abroad, the below will provide cover for cycling tours and in some instances, amateur races.

• Sundays Insurance : offers an annual policy that covers your bike in Australia and for international trips no greater than 90 days. While they don’t cover professional or sponsored riders, cyclists would be covered to participate in amateur mass participation events such as races, sportives, charity rides and triathlons. 
• Velosure: while Velosure does not cover competitive cycling, you would be covered for leisure and non-event/competitive rides. it’s important to note that Velosure does not provide cover for your bicycle while cycling overseas, however, it would be covered while in transit. .

Sailing competitions:

Planning on soaking up the rays on the sunny shores of Croatia or sailing the Seven Seas. Standard travel insurance policies usually exclude for sailing when you are more than 10 nautical miles off any land mass. However, the below specialist sailing insurer may provide you with the type of cover you need:

• Topsail: whether you own your own boat, charter, or are taking a trip aboard a Tall Ship, Topsail can provide you with cover when sailing abroad. Their policies include a high level of medical cover, with no restrictions on how far away you sail from shore. You are also covered for races as long as you are not competing professionally or in a ‘round-the-world’ race, such as the Clipper Round The World Race.
• GoInsurance: Go Insurance’s Sailing insurance extension provides cover for your sailing equipment, replacement crew members and more. You can also apply for cover to participate in cover ocean racing and participation in regattas.

Marathon Running:

When running a great distance, all your time and energy needs to be focused on the race, while ensuring you’re covered should anything go wrong. You’ll find that some standard polices do not cover for long distance races, or risky races like Tough Mudder or Triathlons.
Typically, you will only be covered by a standard travel insurance policy if you are;

• Running marathon distance or less (up to 42.2 kilometres or 26.2 miles)
• Participating as an amateur only
• Racing on foot, (not on a bicycle or within a vehicle)
• Not receiving any prize money

It’s unlikely that you’ll find cover from a standard travel insurance policy if you are:

• Racing competitively
• Competing for a reward or prize money
• Competing professionally

The following insurers will cover you for marathons, provided you are participating on an amateur level only.

• World Nomads  will cover you for marathon running (but not Ultra Marathons) provided you participate in an amateur race only or compete without payment.
• Zoom automatically covers includes racing on foot with their policies for distances up to and including full marathon (42.2 kilometres or 26.2 miles).
• FastCover Will cover you to race on foot for distances up to and including full marathon (42.2 kilometres or 26.2 miles).
• InsureandGo will cover you for amateur and occasional marathons only.