IRONMAN Announces TAUPÕ, New Zealand as host of the 2020 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship

TAMPA, Fla. / TAUPÕ, New Zealand / Kailua-Kona, Hawai`i (Oct. 11, 2018) – IRONMAN, a Wanda Sports Holdings company, announced today that the right to host the 2020 IRONMAN® 70.3® World Championship triathlon has been awarded to Taupõ, New Zealand. This will be the first time IRONMAN® holds a world championship event in New Zealand and the second time this world-class event has been hosted in the Oceania region. The event will also move from its traditional late August-early September race date and will now take place on November 28-29, 2020 with the women racing on Saturday and the men racing on Sunday. This shift will take advantage of New Zealand’s peak time of year with mild temperatures in their late spring early summer months.
“We are pleased to bring the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship back to the Oceania region,” said Andrew Messick, CEO and President of IRONMAN. “Taupõ is unique and beautiful destination with a local community that has embraced IRONMAN events and the thousands of athletes for 20 years now. We are excited to welcome some of the world’s most elite triathletes to what will no doubt be a fantastic world championship event.”
Athletes will have the chance to qualify for the 2020 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship triathlon at over 110 global qualifying events in locations such as Austria, China, Germany, Spain, South Africa, Sweden and the Americas.
“The two-day event attracts around 5,000 competitors, 13,500 supporters and media from all four corners of the globe,” said Taupō District Mayor David Trewavas. “This is as big as it is ever going to get. We are talking the best of the best. Winning the hosting rights for this event not only re-emphasises that our district is the Events Capital, but it also further cements Taupō as being the home of all things IRONMAN in New Zealand.”

The swim portion will take place in the beautiful waters of Lake Taupõ, followed by a single-loop bike course, and a run course that will entail two loops on Lake Terrace and the Lions Walk adjacent to Lake Taupõ. Athletes will finish on Lake Terrace next to Colonel Roberts Reserve. The IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship is part of a week-long festival that will include a range of lifestyle events for the community and visitors to enjoy.
Prior to the 2020 edition taking place in Taupõ, the 2019 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship is taking place on September 7 and 8, 2019 in Nice, France; it will be the first time IRONMAN holds a world championship event in France.
Complete Press Release here