IRONMAN 70.3 Davao stakes world tourney slots

A ONE-OF-A-KIND racing experience awaits the more than a thousand participants in the Alveo IRONMAN 70.3 Davao with berths to this year’s World Championship up for grabs in the premier endurance race firing off Sunday at Azuela Cove.

On top of the 30 slots offered in various age-group categories, the blueribbon event is also staking 25 extra spots for women to the 2023 VinFast IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship on Aug. 26-27 in Lahti, Finland.

That makes this weekend’s 1.9 km swim, 90km bike and 21k run event powered by Petron doubly exciting with the qualifiers gaining the rare chance to race under the Nordic midnight sun in Lahti, the gateway to the Finnish Lake District, less than an hour from the capital city of Helsinki.

The event, organized by The IRONMAN Group/Sunrise Events, Inc., has already generated so much interest, this marking the return of the pros in local triathlon in general, and in Davao in particular, after it hosted the IM 70.3 in 2018 and 2019 which Mexico’s Mauricio Mendez and Germany’s Markus Rolli, topped, respectively,

A handful of Filipino triathletes have competed in past World Championships but with 55 slots now being offered, expect a spirited chase for top honors in the event backed by event partners Alveo, Petron, Lungsod ng Dabaw, Azuela Cove, Davao Light, Lightwater, Prudential Guarantee, One Sport and Cignal.

Eighteen pros and a slew of agegroup aces from 46 countries of varying styles and forms are all geared up for what looms to be a furious battle of speed, power and stamina over a challenging swim, a single loop fast flat bike and a hot, grueling run course.