70.3 Ironman Sunshine Coast – An Ode to 2016

Once again, the masochists are assembling for the annual return of the Ironman 70.3 Sunshine Coast event. Having hosted the world championship on the Sunshine Coast in 2016, the competition is sure to reach new incredible heights after such exposure on the world stage.

This September 8th through 10th  a variety of incredible athletes will have the opportunity to duke it out and to test their metal against each other over a 1.9km swim, followed by 90km on the bike, before the final 21.2km “leg” of the race on foot. It truly will be an incredible test of these athletes, but of course, there are races for the less obsessed and thoroughly trained – from kids to adults who have something to prove.

All races will take place on variants of the originally designed Ironman course. To begin athletes will hit the beach for the Mooloolaba beach Swimming event – this ocean swim will consist of a one lap course that follows an anticlockwise direction, and starts and finishes at the “Loo With A View” lookout. “The fortunate ones will ride a nice wave directly into transition on Beach Terrace, a similar layout to World Championship” with a cut off time of 1 hour to complete this section of the course. New to the event this year, the bike riding section has been inspired as well by last year’s Ironman Championship course.

Competitors will begin on the Beach Terrace in Mooloolaba and head out onto the Sunshine Motorway via the Esplanade and Buderim Avenue. This sprint section will be followed by the Hinterland loop where athletes must complete two laps of various Hill sections; minus the torturous 16% incline climb of Upper Rosemount Road last years Championship included. This section has a 4 and a half hour cut off time. To finish things off – in case they weren’t already exhausted enough. The riders will now return for a final run along the iconic and beautiful Mooloolaba Esplanade. After conquering the Alexandra headland hill, they will continue to Cotton Tree before completing a second lap of this stunningly scenic route, finishing the event in the heart of Mooloolaba. The foot race has a 7 and a half hour cut off time for competitors who made it this far.

The event will feature the traditional Boardies Beach Fun run, as well as merchandising and an expo for the 70.3 Ironman events in and around the check ins, and transition tours on Friday the 8th  and Saturday the 9th . The main event itself will take place on Sunday the 10th of September at 5:55AM, with the fastest competitors expected to be crossing the finish line by 9:30am – the Presentation and Roll Down Ceremony is scheduled for 2pm followed by the 3pm After Party hosted by the Mooloolaba Surf Club.

For more information on the event and all it has to offer, visit the event’s website.

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