The first day of competition kicked off with the professional and age-group women taking centre stage at the 2018 Ironman 70.3 World Championship. Defending champion Daniela Ryf passed Lucy Charles on the bike portion of the triathlon to claim her fourth Ironman 70.3 World Champion. Nearly 1,600 female athletes were registered to take to the course in Nelson Mandela Bay as the Ironman 70.3 World Championship came to the African continent first time. The professional and age-group men will take to the course today.

MORNING GLORY: A female athlete enters the Indian Ocean in advance of Saturday’s 2018 Isuzu IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship. In total, nearly 4,500 athletes are registered to partake in the first IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship to hit the African continent; the largest field to date (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images for IRONMAN)
DIVING RIGHT IN: The 2018 Isuzu IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship started with a 1.2-mile swim from King’s Beach in Nelson Mandela Bay, South Africa (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images for IRONMAN)
(L-R) Women’s Professional Podium 2nd Place Lucy Charles of Great Britain, 1st Place Daniela Ryf of Switzerland, and Anne Haug of Germany celebrate with champagne. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images for IRONMAN).
SIGHT FOR SORE THIGHS: Athletes tackle a scenic bike course at the Isuzu IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship, following a grueling 1.2-mile swim in Nelson Mandela Bay and ahead of the 13.1-mile run on Marine Drive (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images for IRONMAN)
HOMETOWN GIRL: South African Jeanni Seymour capped off a stellar day at the 2018 Isuzu IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship with a seventh place finish, making her home country proud (Photo by Craig Muller/IRONMAN)
FUN IN THE SUN: Two athletes get ready to take to the Indian Ocean waters of Nelson Mandela Bay for the swim leg of the ISUZU IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images for IRONMAN)
HIP HIP HOORAY: Daniela Ryf of Switzerland comes down the finishing chute of the 2018 Isuzu IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship to the rise of the crowd. Ryf has won four of the last five IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship events (Photo by Craig Muller/IRONMAN)
A MANTRA TO LIVE BY: An age-group athlete showcases a steady stride and a positive attitude on the 13.1-mile run during Saturday’s 2018 Isuzu IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship (Photo by Craig Muller/IRONMAN)
MOOO-VING: Jenny Fletcher out on the stunning bike course (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images for IRONMAN).
WHALE OF A TIME: Lucy Charles runs past a local Nelson Mandela Bay mural of a Whale located near the oceanarium during the Isuzu IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images for IRONMAN)
Two age-group athletes climb the Nelson Mandela Bay, South Africa terrain during the bike
ROCKY ROAD: A quintet of athletes jockey for position during the 56-mile bike course at the Isuzu IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship. As the race progressed, the age-group athletes were forced to tackle an ever-stiffening breeze (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images for IRONMAN)
THE CHASE IS ON: Swiss superstar Daniela Ryf dug deep to overtake Great Britain’s Lucy Charles twice on the bike course at the ISUZU IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship, before going on to secure a fourth record breaking victory in this race (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images for IRONMAN)
COASTING ON THE COAST: The Isuzu IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship hit the African continent for the first time and triathletes were treated to spectacular views of the eastern cape coast of South Africa (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images for IRONMAN)
Lucy Charles of Great Britain prepares in the transition area before the start during the Isuzu IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images for IRONMAN).
DRUMBEAT OF AFRICA: The 2018 Isuzu IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship was kicked off with a African cultural dance preformed by African dancers (Photo by Craig Muller/IRONMAN)

Share this post

Written by

Shawn Smith
Shawn Smith
Trizone wordsmith & tech whisperer. I mesh tech with business, thrive on plant-based debates, cycling and savour coffee.

Comments