After the cancellation suffered in 2020 due to the pandemic, Ironman Lanzarote will be held again this Saturday, July 3 with the participation of around 1,000 triathletes from more than 50 countries on five continents, as announced this Wednesday during the presentation of the event, which will celebrate its XXIX edition this year.
"While Ironman Lanzarote has always enjoyed enormous prestige internationally, its celebration this year will have a special impact, as it will show the world that our island offers the maximum health guarantees that allow it to be shown as a safe destination against Covid-19 for those who visit us,” highlighted the president of the Cabildo of Lanzarote, María Dolores Corujo.
Corujo pointed out that “Ironman Lanzarote, one of the most spectacular and toughest in the world, also has a very important incentive, that of running throughout an island that values nature, something that all travelers who are sensitive and respectful of the environment appreciate, such as sports lovers." "I am sure that this new edition will confirm the commitment of the island of Lanzarote to become a connected, intelligent, sustainable and safe tourist destination”, added the president of the CAbildo.
"After a very complicated year and a half for the world of sports, today we are in luck because we are resuming an emblematic event not only for Lanzarote but for all of the Canary Islands,” said Manuel López, general director of Sports of the Government of the Canary Islands.
In this sense, the Minister of Tourism Promotion, Ángel Vázquez, stressed “that this edition of Ironman, the star event with the greatest international projection for the island, will also be the first major event to be held post-pandemic, which will project Lanzarote once again as a leading destination in the world for sports linked to tourism, and even more so in a context like the current one in which the health and safety guarantees offered by the island are of utmost importance.”
During his speech, the Minister of Sports, Francisco Javier Aparicio, also had words of thanks to “all the people who have been involved in the organization of this queen event of world sport, to the more than 350 people who will ensure the safety of the event and, of course, to the triathletes, who have once again placed their trust in Lanzarote, for their dedication and love of sport.”
Main news
The director of the sports event and Head of Sports at Club La Santa, Fabio Eligio Cabrera, was in charge of explaining the main novelties of this sporting event. Thus, together with the modification of the month of celebration, which has traditionally been May, “Ironman Lanzarote 2021 will have as its main novelty the location of the finish line for the first time in its history in the Plaza de las Naciones on Avenida de Los Pocillos in Puerto del Carmen, a measure adopted in order to facilitate compliance with the restrictions imposed due to Covid-19,” Cabrera pointed out.
With this same purpose, the Cabildo of Lanzarote and Club La Santa, as organizers of the event, have designed a "strict" security device that allows the event to be developed with all health guarantees, with access to the departure areas - which will be given at 7:00 a.m. on Playa Grande in Puerto del Carmen - and the finish line exclusively reserved for members of the organization, security personnel and accredited press.
Also as a novelty, this edition will be valid for the Military Long Distance World Championship, for which it is expected to have about 40 military participants from 15 countries, convened by the International Military Sports Committee belonging to the Ministry of Defense through the different International Committees.
In addition, a new edition of Ironkids will also be held, although with restricted participation, dedicated to minors, which will take place tomorrow, Thursday, July 1 at Club La Santa.
As usual, the XXIX Ironman Lanzarote - the first Ironman to be held this year in Europe - will be valid for the Hawaii World Championship, awarding 40 qualifying places in the different age groups. Among the triathletes already registered, among whom there are more than 300 national participants, the names of Iván Raña, Patrick Nilson, Andi Boecherer, Alessandro Degasperi, Romain Guillaume, Laura Siddal or Michele Vesterby stand out.
It should be remembered that the celebration of the XXIX Ironman Lanzarote is sponsored by Turismo Lanzarote, through the 'European Sports Destination' brand; of the Government of the Canary Islands through Promotur; Tías City Council and other private entities.