Tag: Ironman

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Ironman re-opens entries to 11 popular European events by increasing registration numbers – Triathlon Magazine Canada

Ironman re-opens entries to 11 popular European events by increasing registration numbers - Triathlon Magazine Canada

While many observers feel that there are already more than enough participants on most Ironman courses, the company says it has come up with ways to optimize and expand event space safely so that it can open up more spots for athletes to sign up for races that are already full.

Related: Over 4,000 athletes on a two-loop course with a short swim … how good is your pack riding?

After two years of race cancellations and deferments, entering many of the most popular Ironman events has been near impossible in 2022. Athletes who have been frustrated that they haven’t been able to sign up for some of the most popular events will have another chance, now, though as Ironman has opened up registration to 11 Ironman and 70.3 races, including the two Ironman European Championship events in Germany (Hamburg and Frankfurt) and UK.

“Due to the huge interest we received for these races originally, and taking into account a disappointing couple of years of race cancellations, we really wanted to find a way of giving athletes the race and experience they were dreaming of this year,” said Declan Byrne, Vice President of Operations in Europe, Middle East and Africa for The Ironman Group. “So, we have been working closely with the operations teams in each event country to make this happen while continuing to ensure a smooth and safe event experience. We are excited to be re-opening these races to the public and look forward to welcoming athletes from all over the world to some of our most sought-after European races.”

Below you’ll find the full list of races:

Date  Distance Race
22-May

 

 IRONMAN 70.3

 

 IRONMAN 70.3 Pays d’Aix-en-Provence

 
29-May

 

 IRONMAN 70.3

 

 IRONMAN 70.3 Kraichgau powered by KraichgauEnergie

 
05-June IRONMAN IRONMAN European Championship Hamburg
26-June IRONMAN Mainova IRONMAN European Championship Frankfurt
03-Jul IRONMAN IRONMAN UK
07-Aug

 

 IRONMAN 70.3

 

 IRONMAN 70.3 Swansea

 
13-Aug

 

 IRONMAN 70.3

 

 IRONMAN 70.3 Cork

 
14-Aug IRONMAN IRONAMAN Ireland
20-Aug IRONMAN IRONMAN Kalmar
21-Aug IRONMAN IRONMAN Copenhagen
11-Sep IRONMAN IRONMAN Wales

For those who can afford it, Ironman is also pushing it’s “additional range of services” so athletes can “customize” their race experience. Services include VIP parking, VIP Athlete Concierge support, hospitality for athletes and supporters, along with personal medal engraving.

You can find out more about the new registration options here.

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IOC urges sports federations to cancel events in Russia and Belarus – will Ironman and Challenge do that? – Triathlon Magazine Canada

IOC urges sports federations to cancel events in Russia and Belarus - will Ironman and Challenge do that? - Triathlon Magazine Canada

Ironman and Challenge Family both have events slated to take place in Russia this summer – Ironman 70.3 St. Petersburg was announced in Dec., 2019, but the race hasn’t yet taken place due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is slated for July 17 this year. Challenge Family announced Challenge Moscow last March, but that race also didn’t take place last year. It’s scheduled for June 26, 2022.

We reached out to both Ironman and Challenge Family today to find out what might be happening to the events in Russia based on that country’s invasion of Ukraine over the last two days. We are waiting for a statement from Ironman and will update this story once it is available. A Challenge Family source said that they were monitoring the events in Russia and Ukraine closely, but wouldn’t be making an official statement before the weekend.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has strongly condemned “the breach of the Olympic Truce by the Russian government and the government of Belarus through its support in this.” The Olympic Truce, which was supported by consensus of all 193 UN Member States, was to begin seven days before the start of the Olympic Games and end seven days after the closing of the Paralympic Games. The IOC is now urging all International Sports Federations “to relocate or cancel their sports events currently planned in Russia or Belarus. In addition, the IOC EB (executive board) urges that no Russian or Belarussian national flag be displayed and no Russian or Belarussian anthem be played in international sports events which are not already part of the respective World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) sanctions for Russia.”

World Triathlon has already sanctioned Russia because of the doping issues that have plagued the country’s sport system for years. Part of that sanction means the Russian Triathlon Federation can’t host any World Triathlon events, but presumably that didn’t preclude organizations like Ironman and Challenge from putting events on in the country. The IOC doesn’t have any events planned in either country, either.

With the many western nations working together on economic sanctions against Russia for the invasion of Ukraine, one would imagine there will be some pressure on both Ironman and Challenge Family to cancel its events in Russia yet again.