The Ironman Lanzarote will have 1.800 athletes

El Ironman from Lanzarote, considered by experts as the hardest in the world, will arrive this Saturday to its twenty-second edition beating the record of participation with 1.800 triathletes of 45 nationalities on the starting line, located on the beach of Puerto del Carmen.

This test of maximum hardness, in which participants must perform 3,8 kilometers of swimming, 180 by bike and 42,2 by foot, maintains the same itinerary as the previous edition, including the promenade of Playa Honda (San Bartolomé) in the first round of the marathon.

Of the 1.800 participants, 36 are professionals, including nine Spanish athletes, eight men (Alejandro Santamaria, Álvaro Velázquez, David Rodriguez, David Vázquez, Fernando Cuenllas, Iván Tejero, Miquel Blanchart y Peru Alfaro) and a woman (Saleta Castro).

Among the favorites to win the victory are the British Stephen Bayliss, winner in 2008 and 2009, the Belgian Bert Jammaer, fourth in 2012, and German Faris Al-Sultan, Ironman world champion in 2005.

Among women, the favorites are the British Bella Bayliss, winner in 2009 and second in 2012, the Dutch Heleen Bij de Vaatem, second in 2008 and third in 2012, the German Kristin Möller and the Canadian Tara Norton.
 

These athletes, in addition to seeking victory, will try to improve the record of the race, which up to now they have the German Timo Bracht, who made 8h30: 34 in 2008, and the triathlete of Zimbabwe Paula Newby-Frazer, who completed it in 1995 in 9h24: 39.
 

The Spaniard Víctor del Corral and the Danish Michelle Vesterby, absolute winners in 2012, will not revalidate the title this year because they are not among the participants.

This year's edition of the Lanzarote Ironman will feature the special participation of the American Gordon Haller, winner of the first Ironman in history, which was held in Hawaii at 1978.
 

The first six finalists, both male and female, will receive a cash prize, with 5.000 dollars for the first of each professional category.

The countries that contribute the most athletes to the test are Spain, with 644; followed by the United Kingdom, with 408; Germany, with 207; France, with 147, and Ireland, with 83. The representation of the United States, the country that organizes the Ironman of Hawaii, the oldest in the world, amounts to 31.
 

The Club La Santa, organizer of the Ironman, estimates that the test will bring to the island during these days around 6.000 people between participants, relatives of competitors and tourists.

You can follow the test live in this link:

http://www.ironman.com/coverage/athlete-tracker.aspx?race=lanzarote&y=2013

Official Website: http://es.ironmanlanzarote.com/

Source: rtvc.es