For the third year, management consulting firm Accenture returns as title sponsor of the IRONMAN 70.3 California triathlon on Saturday 28 March. The race, which will host nearly 3,000 athletes from around the world in Oceanside, California, has raised more than US$200,000 for injured service members, veterans and first responders, through the Challenged Athletes Foundation’s (CAF) Operation Rebound program.
Operation Rebound, the official charity of the event, will coordinate 16 permanently injured veterans and first responders to compete as part of Team Operation Rebound. Operation Rebound aims to strengthen the mental and physical well-being of veterans and first responders with permanent physical injuries by providing them opportunities to use sports and fitness to re-integrate into communities and by empowering them through sports with the skills to succeed in life.
“As a company that thrives on innovation, we’re proud to sponsor the Accenture IRONMAN 70.3 California triathlon, a competition that offers endurance athletes a chance to race in the region that first created the triathlon,” said Gino DiGregorio, a Southern California Managing Director for Accenture.
“This race is also a unique opportunity to support servicemen and women as it underscores our longstanding support of the military community.”
One of more than 80 events in the global IRONMAN 70.3 series, the Accenture IRONMAN 70.3 California triathlon leads athletes along a 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike ride and a 13.1-mile run on a course that weaves through many of Oceanside’s most scenic areas.
The swim takes place in Oceanside Harbor and the one-loop bike course features breathtaking views as athletes ride through San Clemente State Park before dipping into the Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton. The run course takes athletes on a winding journey along the fishing pier, one of the longest in California, and then out to Oceanside’s flat beachfront path.
The event offers a total prize purse of US$60,000 and 30 coveted slots to the 2015 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship, taking place in Zell am See-Kaprun, SalzburgerLand, Austria, on 30 August 2015.
“It’s not all just beautiful vistas and gorgeous coastline,” said Gina Thomas, Race Director for the Accenture IRONMAN 70.3 California triathlon. “One particular hill during the bike segment has a 12 percent grade, which follows rolling hills before and two smaller hills afterward – it’s a real test of athletic endurance.”
www.ironmancalifornia.com
www.accenture.com
www.challengedathletes.org
