Decision · part of 3. Work out where you stand, then pick your format
3(d). Choose your format. This decides the rest
Required Often forgotten
Triathlon, duathlon, aquathlon or aquabike, chosen from your interests, your experience and the discussion with your counselor. Requirements 4, 5 and 7 all follow from this one answer.
Notes and warnings
Warning. This is the decision the badge turns on, and it is cheap to make and expensive to change. It picks which of requirement 4's four options you do, what requirement 5 trains for, and which race you finish in requirement 7. Three of the four formats also put the whole Swimming merit badge in front of requirements 5 through 8. Settle it here, with your counselor, before you train for anything.
Note. Triathlon is swim, bike and run. Duathlon is bike and run. Aquathlon is swim and run. Aquabike is swim and bike. The discipline blocks are identical wherever they appear, so the choice is about which race you finish and whether Swimming is on the way there, not about which skills you learn.
Where this step comes from
- Multisport Merit Badge Requirements (Merit Badge Hub, last modified 2026-01-26), Requirement 3(d) · States the four formats and that the choice governs the remaining requirements, which is what the format question resolves.