Challenge Fuerteventura brings together world, European and Olympic medalists this weekend

Frederick Van Lierde, Andi Böcherer, Jonathan Ciavattella, Timo Bracht, Will Clarke, Marcus Fachbach, Enma Pooley Anja Beranek meet this Saturday at Playitas

El Challenge Fuerteventura will feature the Ironman world champion, Frederik Van Lierde. The presence of the winner two years ago of the most prestigious test of this sport means a new triathlon success based on Playitas, which already has a list of outstanding professionals for this edition.

 Van Lierde will face other figures in Fuerteventura such as Andi Böcherer, Timo Bracht, Will Clarke, Markus Fachbach or Jonathan Ciavattella, winner of the last edition. The Italian triathlete will be on April 23 at the start of the test with the aim of achieving the double and reaching former European champion Rasmus Henning, winner of this Challenge in 2011 and 2012.

Ciavattella will not have it easy at all in the presence of the Belgian runner who won the Ironman 2013 and the squad of 'top' rivals that are registering in the race, which also include young figures such as Brennan Towshend, Patrik Nilsson and Albert Brown. In the previous appointment, the Italian won only 18 seconds ahead, with a time of 04:02:52.

The event will also feature the presence of Emma Pooley. World champion of cycling against the clock, world champion of duathlon and silver medalist in the Beijing Olympics, who has been training since the end of the year for the Olympic event in Rio de Janeiro. The British star has chosen the Playitas-based test to acclimatize to the Brazilian destination. Her main opponent is the best German long-distance triathlete Anja Beranek.

The director of the Challenge Fuerteventura, Jordi González, highlighted that “the test is consolidated as one of the European triathlons with the highest quality of professionals, by including among its participants Olympic champions and winners of Ironman tests and the Hawaiian world championship as is Frederik Van Lierde ”.

The sixth edition will repeat the successful passage of the runners through the urban center of Gran Tarajal in the face of the large influx of public that registered last year as well as the tough cycling route in El Cardón. The winner Ciavattella himself highlighted the difficulty in this long climb, although the absence of wind alleviated the effort caused by its slopes.

The Fuerteventura Challenge is increasingly being reinforced as one of the triathlons with the best European medium and long distance specialists. The event has managed to position itself on the European circuit with the presence of triathletes from 22 countries, attracting celebrities who are fond of this sport such as Jenson Button, professional Formula 1 driver, in the 2014 edition.

With a route of 1,9 km. swimming, 90 km. of bicycle and 20 km. race on foot, takes place in the natural and unique environment of the South of Fuerteventura. The base of this competition is located in the modern Playitas Sports Resort triathlon training center, which facilitates the celebration of the event and the preparation of athletes. This complex has just been named the best hotel in Europe for triathlon for the second consecutive year.

The test is in its sixth edition with the renewal of the sponsorship of PlayitasResort. This new agreement reinforces the confidence of Challenge Family in this race. The presence of the best European triathletes, with a majority of British, Germans and Swedes, has achieved a spectacular increase of Spanish participants, especially Canaries, whose number is increasingly closer to the rest of the European continent.

The Challenge Family is the fastest growing brand in medium and long distance triathlon with 47 competitions, including Fuerteventura, in more than 20 countries. With spectacular races at iconic destinations, they focus on organizing unforgettable races for athletes of all ages and creating a memorable spectator experience that captures the excitement of this inspiring sport.

Last September the opening of registrations for this 2016 call was launched, through the official page www.challengefuerteventura.com. The registration phase will close one week before the celebration of the sports event in April.