Ironman 70.3 and Langkawi Ironman attract 2,500 participants
LANGKAWI: More than 2,500 athletes from 70 countries will battle it out at the 16th edition of Ironman 70.3 and Langkawi Ironman 2019 here on Saturday.
This is better than last year’s championships which attracted 2,400 athletes from 73 countries.
This year, host Malaysia is fielding the biggest group of participants at 910, followed by Japan (281), Singapore (193), Indonesia (129), Australia (114) and the Philippines (95).
Ironman Asia Pacific chief executive officer Geoff Meyer said the championships had attracted a record number of entries, with almost 900 participants in both categories making their debut here.
“The number has been increasing every year. The competition will be stiffer this time because of many entries in the men’s category of Langkawi Ironman, including International Triathlon Union (ITU) Long Distance World Championship 2019 gold medallist Javier Gomez,” he said.
For Christine Loh, 52, her participation in the Ironman 70.3 event this year is very meaningful as it is a family affair which also involves her husband Alfred Cheong, 55, and their children Joanne Cheong, 27, and Samuel Cheong, 24.
“I used to accompany my husband to competitions but this time I decided to join him in the race because I am confident of doing it.
“If my husband and I are healthy the children will be happy, and so we decided to ask them to join too,” she said.
The Ironman 70.3 involves three disciplines — 1.9km swim, 90km cycling and 21.1km run — while the Langkawi Ironman participants have to swim 3.8km, cycle 180km and run 42.2km.
— BERNAMA
