New IRONMAN Event Announced for Waco, Texas | Sports Destination Management

New IRONMAN Event Announced for Waco, Texas

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Dec 06, 2017

IRONMAN, a Wanda Sports Holdings company, announced today the addition of a new event in Texas, the IRONMAN® 70.3® Waco triathlon. The event is set to take place on Sunday, October 28 with general registration opening December 5, 2017. This new event will take the place of IRONMAN 70.3 Austin on the 2018 calendar.
 
“We are excited to add Waco to our IRONMAN 70.3 race series and look forward to growing the event in this beautiful and historic Texas community,” said Scott Langen, IRONMAN Regional Director – Gulf Coast. “We are proud to offer this event in such a unique destination that is sure to provide athletes and their supporters a spectacular race experience.”
 
The IRONMAN 70.3 Waco triathlon will begin with a 1.2-mile swim through the Brazos River. The 56-mile single-loop bike course route will then take athletes through beautiful Central Texas rural roads, past the Waco Lake and through the Waco wetlands. The first 20 miles includes a gentle, gradual climb with a steady, fast descent returning to downtown Waco, making for a speedy and flat finish into the second transition. The 13.1-mile double-loop run course crosses over the Brazos River and the city’s beautiful and historic bridges a total of five times. Athletes will make their way through the “Gem of Waco,” Cameron Park, encountering a short climb before heading back to the river walk and crossing the Washington Street Bridge where they will begin their second loop. After a final run over the bridge, athletes will then travel along the river trail to a finish line like none other on the oldest suspension bridge in the Southwest.
 
"We have a beautiful river, excellent roads, and one of the largest and best city parks in the nation,” said Kyle Deaver, Mayor of Waco. “Our charming city has a sincerely warm and welcoming personality that the IRONMAN athletes across the country will fall in love with.”
 
"An IRONMAN 70.3 triathlon is exactly the kind of event we want in Waco,” said Dillon Meek, City Councilman. “Will Phipps and The Sports Commission's strategic approach to recruiting this world class event to Waco will result in our city being showcased to thousands of competitors and their families.”
 
“We are thankful to be partnering with a world class organization like IRONMAN and this race is a perfect fit for the natural venue that we have to offer in the Brazos River,” said Will Phipps, Exec Director of the Greater Waco Sports Commission. “This will be one of Waco’s premier annual events”
 
The inaugural IRONMAN 70.3 Waco event will offer 30 slots to the 2019 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship taking place on September 8 and 9 in Nice, France as well as a professional prize purse of USD $25,000.
 
General registration for IRONMAN 70.3 Waco will open on December 5, 2017 at www.ironman.com/waco70.3. Athlete inquiries may be directed to waco70.3@ironman.com. For more information on the IRONMAN brand and global event series, visit www.ironman.com. Media may contact press@ironman.com.

About IRONMAN: A Wanda Sports Holdings company, IRONMAN operates a global portfolio of events that includes the IRONMAN® Triathlon Series, the IRONMAN® 70.3® Triathlon Series, 5150™ Triathlon Series, the Rock n’ Roll Marathon Series®, Iron Girl®, IRONKIDS®, International Triathlon Union World Triathlon Series races, road cycling events including the UCI Velothon® Series, mountain bike races including the Absa Cape Epic®, premier marathons including the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon, and other multisport races. IRONMAN’s events, together with all other Wanda Sports Holdings events, provide more than a million participants annually the benefits of endurance sports through the company’s vast offerings. The iconic IRONMAN® Series of events is the largest participation sports platform in the world. Since the inception of the IRONMAN® brand in 1978, athletes have proven that ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE® by crossing finish lines at the world’s most challenging endurance races. Beginning as a single race, IRONMAN has grown to become a global sensation with more than 200 events across 50 countries. For more information, visit www.ironman.com.
 
About Wanda Sports Holdings: Wanda Sports Holdings is the world’s leading sports business entity, founded to capture the opportunities in the global sports industry and to contribute to the prosperous international sports landscape – in three key areas: 1) Spectator Sports (media and marketing business), 2) Participation Sports (active lifestyle business), 3) Services (digital, production and service business). Wanda Sports Holding incorporates the international sports marketing company Infront Sports & Media, the iconic endurance brand IRONMAN, and Wanda Sports China. The headquarters are in Guangzhou, China.

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