As triathletes around the world await the opportunity to compete, The IRONMAN Group took another successful step in its Safe Return to Racing initiative, with events officially taking place once again in Latin America and North America.
On September 27, IRONMAN 70.3 Cozumel saw athletes take to the coastal waters off the Yucatan Peninsula marking the first IRONMAN event to take place in Mexico in 2020. Three weeks later the US had an opportunity, as athletes entered the swim start in Tempe Town Lake on October 18 to kick off the SelectBlinds IRONMAN 70.3 Arizona triathlon.
Both races followed The IRONMAN Group’s Safe Return to Racing protocol. This is a set of guidelines prepared in accordance with standards for open air endurance events from the World Health Organization (WHO) and guidance from the IRONMAN Global Medical Advisory Board that builds on the pillars of enhanced hygiene, screening and education, density reduction, touchpoint minimization and athlete self-reliance.
IRONMAN racing in North America continued last weekend – with Visit Panama City Beach IRONMAN 70.3 Gulf Coast and Visit Panama City Beach IRONMAN Florida both taking place in Florida’s panhandle on Saturday, November 7.
“We were absolutely thrilled to see our athletes out on course and racing in our first North America triathlon of the year,” said Elizabeth O’Brien, Managing Director of North America for The IRONMAN Group.
“The team has been hard at work all year to get us to this point; and while events may look and feel a bit different, our Safe Return to Racing guidelines have provided the path for us to work with our host cities on racing plans that provide a safe and positive race experience in a manner consistent with local community objectives.
“Seeing hundreds of athletes doing what they love is incredibly meaningful and we will continue to work hard and fine tune as events take place globally to appropriately bring racing back to other parts of North America.”
IRONMAN 70.3 Cozumel
Joanna Jordan, Managing Director, Latin America for The IRONMAN Group, said “Cozumel played an incredibly welcoming host for our athletes in our first event back since the pandemic started.
“While ’the island of triathlon’ is the first event for the region, the teams in Latin America are energized and continually working hard to bring IRONMAN back to many more communities safely and successfully.”
IRONMAN 70.3 Cozumel also saw the return of professional IRONMAN racing in the Americas with Sam Long of the United States taking the overall victory with a total time of 3:42:44. Holly Lawrence of Great Britain took a dominating win in the women’s race with a time of 4:07:17.
“Athletes have overcome so much in 2020,” said Mauricio Zavala Alonso, Race Director Asdeporte/IRONMAN 70.3 Cozumel. “The moment of crossing the finish line at this year’s event was incredible.
“The island of Cozumel was poised to provide an amazing and safe race experience following Safe Return to Racing guidelines. We accomplished it just recently at IRONMAN 70.3 Cozumel and look forward to doing it again in a few weeks at IRONMAN Cozumel.”
IRONMAN 70.3 Arizona
The SelectBlinds IRONMAN 70.3 Arizona saw a field of age group athletes toe the line with Jan Stepinski of Palo Alto, California, topping the overall race with a time of 4:01:03 while Brianna Troska of Veradale, Washington, won the women’s race in a time of 4:34:23, her first IRONMAN 70.3 race ever.
“It’s been about working with our local communities and I want to give a big thanks to the city of Tempe for working with us to be able to host this race,” said Keats McGonigal, Head of Operations, North America for The IRONMAN Group.
“They have been with us throughout this the entire journey. This is our first event back since December in Arizona and we can’t express just how thrilled we are to be back racing.”
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