EVENT – MARBELLA – The Ironman® 70.3® Marbella 2022 once again excites triathlon lovers
The Ironman® 70.3® Marbella 2022 once again excites triathlon lovers
Marbella and IRONMAN® 70.3
The Belgian Christophe De Keyser and the Scottish Nikki Bartlett win the IV edition in an excellent setting
The city of Marbella, a sports benchmark for triathletes
The tourist capital of the Costa del Sol has once again been the majestic setting for the fourth edition of IRONMAN Marbella 70.3. The triathletes have enjoyed this test, organized by The IRONMAN Group, which never leaves anyone indifferent due to its spectacular route with the Mediterranean Sea in the background, the beautiful inland towns of the province of Malaga and with Puerto Banús in Marbella as the epicenter of this great day of triathlon. All the participants have encountered a sunny day and an average water temperature of 19 degrees.
Along with the hundreds of popular triathletes who did not want to miss this new edition of IRONMAN 70.3 Marbella, there were also pro athletes who started the swimming test twenty minutes before eight in the morning. Among them was the considered great favorite, the American Chris Leiferman, as well as high-level triathletes such as the South African Bradley Weiss, the Chilean Martín Ulloa and the Belgian Christophe De Keyser, among others. In the women’s category, the British Nikki Bartlett (13th in the last IRONMAN World Championship in Saint George) and her compatriot Tara Grosvenor along with the German Svenja Thoes have been some of the prominent names at the start.
The IRONMAN® 70.3® Marbella 2022 reflects the rise of female participation in triathlon events
The IRONMAN Group has as one of its pillars, to spread the values of triathlon among women, that’s why in 2015 they created “Women For Tri®”, a program that works to increase female participation at all levels of triathlon.
In this sense, at the IRONMAN 70.3 Marbella that took place on May 22, there were more than 200 female triathletes, a figure that reflects that women have also returned to sport after the pandemic.
Nikki Bartlett meets the forecasts and Bartlett has been the fastest to complete the 1,900 meters swimming, 90 kilometers by bike and 21 kilometers on foot with a final time of 4 hours and 32 minutes. In this way, the Scottish triathlete has met expectations and has won the final victory in her first participation in the IRONMAN 70.3 Marbella. A triumph that has been a great injection of energy for her, after her last victory in 2019 and after participating in it just two weeks ago at the IRONMAN World Championship in Utah where she did not feel quite well. Svenja Thoes has won the silver medal crossing the finish line just over four minutes from the winner, while the Italian athlete Federica De Nicola has been the third classified.
The first part of the test, in the swimming segment, was led by the German Katharina Krüger who was the first to come out of the water, followed by the Danish Line Thams less than a minute later. Bartlett completed this segment in eighth position with a compact group of triathletes, including De Nicola, Debbie Greig and Tara Grosvenor. The final winner has been recovering positions and at km 72 of the bike she was already leading the test. A position that she has maintained until the final finish in Puerto Banús.
The Belgian triathlete Christophe De Keyser has won the final victory with a time under four hours (03:58:57). Thirty seconds later, Chris Leiferman arrived, setting the fastest time in the final half marathon, but it was not enough for him to overtake De Keyser. The third drawer of the podium has been for Bradley Weiss. The top 5 of the men’s classification was completed by Martin Ulloa and Domenico Passuello.
The winner of this new edition of the IRONMAN 70.3 Marbella has been at the head of the race from the beginning, placing second in swimming just one second behind the Swedish Alexander Berggren who was the first to step on the sand of the beach when leaving the sea. De Keyser has maintained the lead until the end, keeping a pulse with the favorite Leiferman who has been climbing positions and at km 35 of the bike he has placed second, with the South African Weiss a short distance away. In the end, everyone has fought a beautiful sports battle that has made triathlon lovers enjoy.
Marbella, a sports benchmark for triathletes
Once again it has been proven how the city of Marbella is a sports benchmark with major events such as the IRONMAN 70.3 that are an attractive attraction for international triathletes. 31% of the participants in this edition have been nationals, while the majority are triathletes who have come from abroad, especially from the United Kingdom, to enjoy the sport and the tourist offer of the Costa del Sol.
The main factors that explain this good response are the fact that it is the event that opens the season on the peninsula and that it is the only one that takes place in the south of Spain. To this we must add the route, without forgetting the unmistakable character of the south, with its culture and gastronomic offer. All this generates a high interest in this event, in which there are many who have not wanted to fail and have once again enjoyed Marbella practicing their favorite sport, the triathlon.
We are knowledgeable experts in all aspects of the real estate sector
30 years of real estate experience in the Marbella market
Contact us