Eleven months ago, after months of planning and negotiating, The Woodlands Township voted on an agreement with the World Triathlon Corporation to bring and host a premier international triathlon event in the community in 2011. The culmination since that decisive vote all comes to life this weekend in Texas with the inaugural running of the Ironman Texas triathlon event.
The Woodlands, a master-planned community located 30 miles north of Downtown Houston is the host city for the grand event which expects to see more than 2,500 athletes competing this Saturday, May 21, 2011 in the states first iron distance triathlon. Athletes from 48 states and 33 countries SOLD OUT the race and will participate in this weekend's race along with several top professional contenders who will be vying for a piece of the $100,000 prize purse and value KPR points to qualify for the 2011 Ironman World Championship race in Hawaii.
Everyday amateur triathletes will be racing for the 75 age group qualifying slots for the 2011 Ironman World Championship in Kailua-Kona in October.
The 2011 Memorial Hermann Ironman Texas will feature a swim in Lake Woodlands, bike course through the scenic, rolling farmland of east Texas and a run entirely within The Woodlands community.
Ironman Texas is one 11 Ironman races to take place in North America and is part of the global Ironman series with had 26 races around the world. The status of this race, one of the two offering 4000 Ironman Kona Qualifying and the well above average prize purse has attracted nearly 60 professional triathletes from around the world including American Chris Lieto, Belgium's Rutger Beke and Spain's Eneko Llanos for the men's field and American Lindsey Corbin, Australia's Jo Lawn and Great Britain's Catriona Morrison for the women's field. Here is a brief listing of some of the professionals we should see racing on Saturday:
| Men's Pro Field | Women's Pro Field |
|---|---|
| Chris Lieto | Catriona Morrison |
| Rutger Beke | Linsey Corbin |
| Eneko Llanos | Joanna Lawn |
| Timothy O'Donnell | Tine Deckers |
| Luke Mckenzie | Jessica Jacobs |
| Jozsef Major | Sofie Goos |
| Jason Shortis | Kim Loeffler |
| Jan Raphael | Tyler Stewart |
| Luke Bell | Kelly Williamson |
| Michael Lovato | Dede Griesbauer |
| Sergio Marques | Eva Dollinger |
| Torsten Abel | Desiree Ficker |
The Ironman Texas race takes place Saturday, May 21st at 7:00 AM. IronmanLIVE will begin its online coverage at 6 AM CST, and offer full day race coverage of the triathlon. The live webcast can be seen by going to www.ironmanlive.com. TRIJUICE will bring you post race coverage after the race.
Related Posts:
• Ironman Texas Becomes a Reality on May 21, 2011
• Ironman Texas One Vote Away From Reality
