Mersey Tri was formed in 1985 by a group of enthusiastic swimmers, cyclists and runners who had heard about the new sport of triathlon and wanted to try it for themselves.  Minutes of the Inaugural Meeting, held in June 1985, report that "...in excess of forty athletes had been contacted in the Merseyside area, of whom many responded with completed application forms."  The club colours were "...navy, wine and gold." and the cost of a club trisuit was “£17.40” Club Hon. Secretary was Tom Walker.

At the Inaugural General Meeting held on 7th December 1985 it was agreed that Mersey Tri become affiliated to the British Triathlon Association for the 1986 season, an affiliation that has continued ever since.  Subscriptions were set at £5.00 for full members and £2.50 for full time students and unemployed people.  The meeting was attended by sixteen members with apologies from two more.  The minutes were written using a typewriter, a piece of office equipment that has disappeared from 21st century life and vocabulary!

Around 1990, the club colours were changed to Royal Blue and Fluorescent Yellow, the sort of colours that many other clubs and individuals were adopting, to reflect the bright and forward thinking attitude of the new breed of endurance athletes.  Everyone involved in the sport was an active participant with not a blazer to be seen anywhere.

Today, the club and the sport generally, has moved with the times to cater for the rapidly increasing interest in triathlon and the associated multi sports of aquathlon and duathlon.  There is now a strong children’s group of members as well as a steadily increasing senior membership of men and women of all ages and abilities.  Unlike the early days, when there was no formal coach education structure, the club now has an increasing number of members achieving the modern standards of coach qualification. 

To maintain its position as a quality club, Mersey Tri has achieved the required quality standards of Club Management, Coaching and Competition, Sports Equity and Ethics and Health and Safety to be awarded Sport England's 'Club Mark' for junior clubs and British Triathlon's 'Star Club' for senior clubs.  These accreditations indicate to new members and parents in particular, that the club is safe and effective at what it does.  The club will also be recognised as an organisation of good repute by Local Authorities, Sports Councils, Regional Sports Boards and County Sports Partnerships