IronMan 70.3 to invade Colombo next Sunday
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The official launch of IronMan 70.3 Colombo was held at Shangri La with the participation of distinguished guests
An army of 739 athletes from 58 countries will swim, cycle and run, covering a distance of 113 kilometres or 70.3 miles next Sunday in the heart of Colombo, as Sri Lanka hosts the ‘So Sri Lanka’ IronMan 70.3 Colombo event for the second time.
The main organisers of this global event, ProAm Serendib, boasted that it had accomplished the primary task of putting Sri Lanka on the world map with the demand for the second edition of the event, which escalated after the success of the inaugural event last year.
“Our goals in bringing the IronMan franchise to Sri Lanka last year were to establish the country as a viable destination for sports tourism and outdoor recreation, while encouraging Sri Lankans to get more involved in physical challenging activities. We are delighted with how the event unfolded last year, and with the response we received from locals as well as the foreign participants, most of whom were travelling to our sunny shores for the first time. This gave us the motivation and determination to continue with the second edition of the event this year, the team is working tirelessly to make sure that all participants have a great triathlon, while enjoying the country’s true hospitality,” Yasas Hewage, the Director of ProAm Serendib, stated.
The top five participating nations for the ‘So Sri Lanka’ IronMan 70.3 Colombo is led by India, who will have 94 athletes in participation. Great Britain comes in at second with 55 followed by Australia with 40, France with 34 and Japan with 24. Among other leading nations that athletes will represent are the USA, Germany, Russia, Malaysia, Singapore, Maldives and hosts Sri Lanka.
“The average age of this year’s athletes is 38, with the oldest participant being 76 years while the youngest is an 18-year-old. A majority of the participants are male while women will constitute 24 percent of the total number of athletes. This year the IronMan 70.3 Colombo is encouraging women to take part in this event as we intend to promote more female athletes for the World Championship to be held in Nice, France,” Rajan Thananayagam, the Event Director stated.
The ‘So Sri Lanka’ IronMan 70.3 Colombo will help a total of 65 athletes qualify for the 2019 IronMan 70.3 World Championship to be held in France in September. Among the total 40 are slots that will be open for men while the Colombo event organisers have successfully managed to gain 25 slots exclusively for women for the World Championship.
“It’s a great achievement for us, and it shows that the world is ready to treat us with great respect. In addition to this we are organising an ‘In Conversation’ with IronMan great Julie Moss in Colombo next Thursday, with the intention of inspiring and encouraging more women to get involved in endurance sports,” former national swimmer Julian Bolling, a Director of ProAm Serendib, stated.
The race next Sunday will begin with a single-loop, 1.9kilometre swim starting at the beach adjoining Galle Face Green, followed by a flat and speedy 90kilometre bike course and a 21.1kilometre run. The triathlon will offer scenic views before coming to an end in front of Galle Face Green. The bike course will run through Janadhipathi Mawatha, Sir Baron Jayathilaka Mawatha, York Street and BOC Mawatha while the run course will be extended up to Kollupitiya, providing the athletes more interaction with the spectators.
The ‘So Sri Lanka’ IronMan 70.3 Colombo Expo will begin on Thursday and will continue until Sunday in Colombo. Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau will be the title sponsor of the ‘So Sri Lanka’ IronMan 70.3 Colombo. Partner organisations include Shangri-La Colombo, MAS, SriLankan Airlines, Ceylinco, MTV/MBC Group, Hayleys Tours, Advantis, Asiri, Adidas, Wijeya Group, SIS, Kantra LMRB, Emerging Media, Rotaract, Gravity, Bernard’s, Rainbow, Spinners and 230i.
The first edition held in Colombo last year attracted over 850 athletes from over 60 countries.
The world renowned triathlon franchise is one of the most recognised brands in the world, attracting discerning affluent travellers from across the globe. The profile of the average participant is that 90% of them are professionals in numerous fields such as legal, retail, education, marketing, technology, medical, and financial. Last year, over 70% of the foreign athletes who participated in the event were first time visitors to the country and 40% extended their visit and explored Sri Lanka as tourists.