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| Triathletes start a 1.9km swimming event at the VNG Ironman 70.3 Việt Nam in Đà Nẵng City last year. The race has drawn over 1,100 athletes from 59 countries over the world this year. -- VNS Photo Công Thành |
Viet Nam News
ĐÀ NẴNG — Việt Nam will send 172 triathletes, the largest team, to race in the VNG Ironman 70.3 Việt Nam in the central city on May 8.
The race’s organiser, Sunrise Events Việt Nam, said at a press conference yesterday that the triathlon this year will debut with a race for children in the age groups of 6 to 10 and 11 to 14, with 1.5km and 2km runs, respectively.
The Iron Kid race will take place on May 7.
Trịnh Bằng, managing director of Sunrise Events Việt Nam, said that this year the race had drawn the participation of 1,132 athletes representing 59 countries, including more than 25 professional
triathletes and 50 relay teams.
He said the top men’s and women’s Vietnamese finishers will qualify for the Ironman 70.3 World Championship at Mooloolaba, in Queensland, Australia, along with 46 age-group qualifying slots,
and 44 slots for the Ironman 70.3 Asia Pacific Championship in Cebu, the Philippines.
As scheduled, athletes will start swimming in a 1.9km ocean swim in front of the Hyatt Regency Đà Nẵng Resort & Spa, a two-loop 90km bike race along Trường Sa-Hoàng Sa-Võ Nguyên Giáp-Nguyễn Tất Thành streets, and a 21km run along the coastline of Đà Nẵng.
The athletes will take at least eight hours to finish the muscle sport race in the city’s hot tropical weather.
The race will raise money for Newborns Việt Nam to reduce deaths of new born babies in Việt Nam and the central region. Last year, the race raised US$45,000 to help Newborns Việt Nam purchase the first two incubators in Đà Nẵng’s Pediatrics and Obstetrics Hospital.
Three athletes from Đà Nẵng will also debut in the race with the relay event because the city has yet to recruit a powerful triathlete completing three events.
Last year, the race drew over 1,000 athletes from 54 countries and territories. James Cunnama from South Africa and Caroline Steffen from Switzerland won the men’s and
women’s titles.
Việt Nam is the 30th country in the world and the eighth Asia-Pacific country to host an Ironman triathlon. — VNS
