Ironman 70.3 a great success

There were near-perfect conditions for 1100 athletes at the weekend when the 20th year of the Ironman 70.3 went full speed ahead during the Sunsmart Busselton Festival of Triathlon. A 1.9km swim, 90.1km cycle, and a 21.1km run on the famously flat foreshore and Ludlow Forest course challenged the 900 individual and 130 team competitors. In conjunction with the event was the Triathlon WA State Long Course Open Championships, with professional triathlete and winner of last year’s event Matt Burton flying across the finish line in a time of 2hr.49min. Nick Thompson and Jonney Sammut came in close behind to secure second and third places respectively with their first ever podium finishes. In the women’s division, Felicity Sheedy-Ryan won another State Long Course Championship in 4:39. And for the second year in a row, Rockingham-based Brett Johnson recorded the fastest time in the Age Group event in a time of 4hr. The event was a qualification event for the Utah Ironman 70.3 World Championships, which are scheduled to take place in September. A tricky few days in the lead-up to the race due to a COVID-19 induced snap lockdown saw more than 300 volunteers push through to ensure the event’s success.