Local bets gear up for Asian Elite showdown

MANILA, Philippines — SEA Games gold medalist Claire Adorna banners a compact cast of triathletes all set for a fierce battle in the Asian Elite to be held side by side with the centerpiece pro division in the Century Tuna IRONMAN 70.3 Subic Bay presented by Big Boss Cement Sunday.

Joining Adorna in the hunt for top honors and the P50,000 prize in the endurance race is Alexandra Ganzon while veteran campaigner August Benedicto banners the men’s roster including Mark Anthony Hosana, Banjo Norte, Benjamin Raña, Leonard Rondina and Jorry Ycong.

Keen competition is also seen in other age-group divisions with 142 vying for top honors in the 40-44 bracket and 125 and 112 disputing the titles in the 35-39 and 45-49 categories, respectively, of the event organized and conducted by Sunrise Events, Inc.

Also on tap are the relay events featuring the male, female and mixed categories with a total of 76 teams chasing the crowns.

For details, visit www.ironman703subicbay.com or the Facebook page Century Tuna IRONMAN 70.3 Subic Bay and @im703subicbay on Instagram and Twitter. Official event hashtags are #CenturyTunaIM703 #im703subicbay.

Close to a thousand triathletes from 41 countries are all set for what promises to be another challenging race on a practically new course for the 1.9km swim-90km bike-21km run event with the race central now at Subic Bay Boardwalk.

But focus will surely be on the pro side with Nick Baldwin of Seychelles gunning for another victory at what has become the home of Phl triathlon after ruling the first-ever full IRONMAN Philippines last year.

But he will be up against a crack list of rivals, headed by former three-time world champion Tim Reed and fellow Australians Sam Betten, Tim Van Berkel and Conor McKay with Colombia’s Rodrigo Acevedo and Oli Stenning of Great Britain boosting the cast.

Clashing in the women’s pro section are Swiss Caroline Steffen, Aussie Dimity Lee Duke, New Zealand’s Laura Wood, Manami Iijima of Guam and Lisa Tyack, another star from Down Under.

Meanwhile, the Alaska Fortified IronKids will usher in the IRONMAN 70.3 tomorrow with over 300 junior athletes clashing in the swim-run event.

The gun start for the male pros and male Asian Elite will be at 6:20 a.m. with the female pros and those in the Asian Elite kicking off their respective bids two minutes later. The rolling gun start for the age groupers and relay participants will be held 30 minutes later. The swim cut is 70 minutes to finish the 1.9km based on the rolling start, while the bike and run cut offs are five hours and 30 minutes and eight hours and 30 minutes, respectively.