Ironman China and 70.3 China Cancelled

It has been an interesting week for WTC. First we had the mad, somewhat undignified scramble for places at Ironman Australia, which succeeded in selling the event out, but left many feeling frustrated and disappointed (particularly if they worked in roles that did not allow them to spend an hour sitting at a pc hitting the refresh button), now comes word that Ironman China and the 70.3 set to take place on May 29 in Jixian, Tianjin has been cancelled.

Earlier in the week they announced the cancellation of the swim portion of the race, with the race being movede to a bike-run format, with athletes being offered the concelation of an additional 50 Kona slots. However now it appears that the required sanctions from the China Triathlon Sports Association (CTSA) to conduct the event were not obtained.

“Events in China require an appropriate sports body to act as the co-organizer,” said Murphy Reinschreiber, managing director of the Asia Pacific region for WTC. “While we have had nothing but positive experiences in working with China’s sports authorities in the past, TSB simply failed to provide all of the documentation necessary for CTSA to process the sanction.”

WTC is offering a full refund of entry fees to all athletes who were scheduled to compete at Ironman China and Ironman 70.3 China. Additionally, all athletes will be offered a complimentary race entry into any of the 2011 Ironman and Ironman 70.3 races listed below.

• PowerBar Ironman 70.3 Switzerland
• Ironman 70.3 Boise
• Ironman 70.3 Italy
• K-Swiss Ironman 70.3 Kansas
• Ironman France
• Ironman 70.3 Korea Jeju
• Ironman Korea Jeju
• Ironman 70.3 Muncie
• Ironman Switzerland
• Amica Ironman 70.3 Rhode Island
• Ironman 70.3 Racine
• Ironman Regensburg
• Finanzgruppe/Naspa Ironman 70.3 Wiesbaden European Championship
• Whirlpool Ironman 70.3 Steelhead
• Ford Ironman Louisville

“We were shocked by the news today that Ironman China and Ironman 70.3 China would need to be cancelled, especially since we were unaware that this might be the result when we decided to cancel the swim earlier this week,” said Steve Meckfessel, chief operations officer for WTC. “We want all athletes who committed the time and training to participate in these events to still get their chance to compete later this season.”

To ensure that Asia-Pacific athletes are represented at the 2011 World Championship events, WTC is allocating the age group qualifying slots from Ironman China and Ironman 70.3 China to other races in the region. Ironman Korea Jeju, scheduled for July 3, 2011, is receiving 25 Ford Ironman World Championship slots, giving it a total of 75, and Ironman 70.3 Korea Jeju is receiving 10 slots for the Ironman World Championship 70.3. Additionally, the 2011 Cobra Energy Drink Ironman 70.3 Philippines, set to take place on August 14 in Camarines Sur, Philippines, will receive 30 slots for the Ford Ironman World Championship.

Athletes will receive their entry fee refund within three to four weeks and an e-mail on May 16, 2011 with information regarding race registration for one of the complimentary events. In the coming days, athletes will also receive information on cancelled hotel and travel arrangements. In the meantime, all questions may be directed to china@ironman.com.