SUBIC— After 10 long years of anticipation the most eagerly awaited race in the country finally unfolds today when Sunrise Events holds the first full IRONMAN in the Philippines with the 2018 Century Tuna IRONMAN Philippines at the Subic Bay Freeport Zone.
Sunrise Events founder Wilfred Uytengsu said the sport of triathlon has grown exponentially over the years and the triathlon community in the country is now finally ready for the full IRONMAN experience.
“The clamor from our triathletes has been immense and we are now finally answering that with this race. We wanted to honor the sport. We wanted to honor the distance. We wanted to honor IRONMAN. We believe with the course we have laid out here in Subic will do justice to that,” said Uytengsu.
Some of the best triathletes in the world including 12-time IRONMAN New Zealand champion Cameron Brown and four-time IRONMAN champion Liz Blatchford will lead close to 1,300 local and international triathletes who will take part in the IRONMAN Philippines journey.
“Everybody’s got that mixed feelings heading to the event – thrilled yet wary. But it will certainly be a unique feeling for every full IRONMAN finisher, a combination of relief, fatigue, joy, this being the first full IRONMAN to be staged here,” said Sunrise Events general manager Princess Galura.
Sunrise Events partnered with Century Tuna which has successfully held three 5150 and 70.3 races before.
“Century Tuna has the same values about health and wellness. Why are you eating tuna? Because you don’t just want to work out your body, you also want to fuel it properly. And you have all this science and data about tuna and wellness. They have the right product and are great partners to be holding the first full IRONMAN,” said Uytengsu.
Up for grabs is the $25,000 prize purse and 30 age group qualifying slots for the 2018 IRONMAN World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.
There will also be Swim Bonus, Bike Bonus, Run Bonus, Fastest Swim/Bike/Run for Age Groupers; Sunrise Award: Over-all Top AG Filipino Male and Female ($500 each); and Century Tuna IRONMAN Team Award.
The shorter distance IRONMAN 70.3, to be held in conjunction with the full distance race, will not give away prize money but will offer 25 slots to the 2018 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Nelson Mandela Bay, South Africa.
IRONMAN is the ultimate test in endurance racing and the race will also showcase the Filipino triathletes’ passion in the sport before the world through the finisher’s medals.
Sculptor Daniel de la Cruz designed the “Alab ng Puso” medal which embodies the passion and love for the sport of triathletes who participate in the grueling sport. The lace that holds the medal itself was created by the dream weavers from Marawi City.
The 2018 Century Tuna IRONMAN Philippines is presented by Alaska, the Department of Tourism and the Tourism Promotions Board. Venue hosts are the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority and ACEA Subic Bay. Racing partners are NLEX and SCTEX.
For more details about the 2018 Century Tuna IRONMAN Philippines please visit sunriseevents.com.ph.
