Lanzarote will once again bring together triathletes from all parts of the planet this Saturday. The Club La Santa IRONMAN 70.3 Lanzarote will celebrate its eleventh anniversary with a record number of 1,200 entries, the highest since this race has been held.
The event had a presentation ceremony at the Rubicón shopping center, which was attended by institutional representatives of the organizers and collaborators of the race. Fabio Cabrera, Race Director and Head of Sports at Club La Santa; Manuel López, General Director of Sports of the Government of the Canary Islands; Alfredo Mendoza, Minister of Sports of the Cabildo of Lanzarote; Óscar Noda, Mayor of Yaiza; and Ángel Lago, Councilor for Sports of Yaiza were present at the event.
Fabio Cabrera opened the presentation by thanking all those present. In addition, Cabrera took the opportunity to enumerate and remember the milestones and novelties of this edition of the IRONMAN 70.3 Lanzarote, having changed "all the routes, in the swimming we are going to have a more linear route".
The political authorities commented that, in addition to the IRONMAN 70.3 Lanzarote, Playa Blanca will also be the celebration point of the Carnival on the same Saturday of the race. This point of union between culture and sport will increase the enjoyment of the triathletes and the families who come as spectators.
The Government of the Canary Islands was represented by Manuel López, its General Director of Sports, who focused on "the importance of this type of event". International events of the stature of the IRONMAN 70.3 Lanzarote constitute a great media platform, since "they show our excellence as an island", López stressed.
In that same line, Óscar Noda, mayor of Yaiza, highlighted "the close collaboration" of the councilors and public administrations. It is not the first time that Yaiza has hosted a sporting event of this caliber, demonstrating that the IRONMAN 70.3 Lanzarote "will always have the doors open" of Yaiza.
From the Cabildo of Lanzarote, the Minister of Sports Alfredo Mendoza highlighted the importance of the island hosting world-class events. "A medium distance event is becoming more striking compared to the IRONMAN, which is the queen event", acknowledged Mendoza, who also wanted to emphasize that "the IRONMAN 70.3 Lanzarote is called to be one of the great events that take place on the island at a sporting level".
Finally, Ángel Lago from his position as Councilor for Sports of Yaiza also celebrated that Club La Santa organizes the race in his town. "We are very proud to be able to enjoy the coast of Playa Blanca," Lago applauded.
After the presence of the authorities, Anne Haug, Emma Pallant and Daniel Bækkegård explained how they feel before Saturday's race.
Anne Haug, second classified in the IRONMAN 70.3 Lanzarote last year, revealed that "I love this island, it's no secret, I spend half the year at Club La Santa" and expressed her confidence in "getting back on my way and being better than last year".
Daniel Bækkegård also has great memories in Lanzarote, since he won the IRONMAN 70.3 in 2021. "The training has been great, I have great hopes of being ready on Saturday," said the Dane.
The winner of the IRONMAN 70.3 Lanzarote of 2019, Emma Pallant, will be one of Haug's great rivals in the fight for victory. "It's the first race of the season, so it's very important for me, (...) it's a race in which to discover where you are and what you have to work on," Pallant acknowledged.