MORE than a hundred berths in three Ironman World Championships will be up for grabs when the Century Tuna full Ironman and the Subic Ironman 70.3 races are held on June 11 at the country’s premier triathlon hub in Subic Bay.
The organizing The Ironman Group/Sunrise Events Inc. said 50 slots will be disputed for the world meet in Nice, France, and another 25 seats will be staked in the Kona, Hawaii, championship for the top finishers in the grueling 3.8-km swim, 180-km bike and 42-km run race.
Thirty spots for the World Championships in Lahti, Finland, on the other hand, will be there for the taking in the equally challenging 1.9-km swim, 90-km bike and 21-km run (Ironman 70.3) battle, paving the way for the most number of world tilt slots ever offered in local Ironman races.
“This only guarantees a spirited, furious duel in various age group categories for slots in these World Championships, the ultimate goal of each endurance racer,” said The IRONMAN Group/SEI general manager Princess Galura.
The Nice tilt will be staged on September 10 while the Kona, Hawaii event is set on October 14. The 70.3 championship in Finland will be held on August 26 and 27 under the Nordic midnight sun.
Meanwhile, registration is ongoing via www.ironman.com/ironmanphilippines or www.ironman.com/im703-subicbay.
Two weeks into the blue-ribbon race—backed by are title partner Century Tuna, global premier partners Vinfast, Active, Gatorade, Hoka, Roka, Breitling Co., Fulgaz, Hyperice, Qatar Airways, Red Bull, Santini and Wahoo—the full Ironman PHL has drawn over 500 bets, including 89 in the 45-49 age group division.
Other age categories (male and female) are 18-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39, 40-44, 50-54, 55-59, 60-64, 65-69, 70-74 and 75-and-above.
A banner field is also expected int the Subic Ironman 70.3 race with the premier 40-44 age bracket luring over a hundred bets.
Other age category titles to be disputed in both the male and female divisions are 18-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39, 50-54, 55-59, 60-64, 65-69, 70-74 and 75-and-above.
Spicing up the event is the IM 70.3 relay race, which has so far attracted over 50 teams.
While Czech Petr Lukosz, who topped the full Ironman PHL last year, remains out of the early roster of entries, Filipina champion Ines Santiago is back, keen on her retaining the crown she claimed in wire-to-wire fashion.
Backing the events are Asia supplier partners Always Advancing, Ekoi and Nirvana; media partners Outside and Sportgraf.com; venue host Subic Bay, and Lightwater, NLEX/SCTEX, 2Go and Prudential Guarantee.
