FREDRIK CRONEBORG AND DIANA RIESLER RETURN TO IRONMAN MALAYSIA TO
DEFEND THEIR TITLES
Over 1,800 athletes expected in Langkawi for IRONMAN® Malaysia and IRONMAN® 70.3® Langkawi on November 11, 2017
TAMPA,
Fla./KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia: (November 6, 2017) – Some
of the world’s best triathletes will convene in Langkawi, Malaysia on 11
November 2017 to race at the 5th edition of IRONMAN®
Malaysia, as announced today by IRONMAN, a Wanda Sports Holding company.
Fredrik
Croneborg – who won his first IRONMAN race in Malaysia last year with a time of
8h39min12sec – is back to Langkawi in 2017 hoping to take the trophy home
again. The 36 year-old Swedish triathlete shared his excitement to be back to Langkawi
this year “IRONMAN Malaysia is my favorite race. I’ve raced all around the
world but Malaysia is where I perform at my best and if feels special because I
got my first IRONMAN win here. Langkawi is also one of the nicest destination
for holidays and I will keep coming back, even after my racing career. Starting
as a defending champion, it's impossible to improve my ranking, but I feel
better prepared this year. I hope I can improve my timing from last year and
hopefully retain my title.”
In
the professional female category, Diana Riesler from Germany will be the most
expected contender for the win on Meritus Pelangi Beach Resort & Spa finish
line after winning the three previous editions of IRONMAN Malaysia in 2014,
2015 and 2016. “IRONMAN Langkawi was my first ever IRONMAN race in 2008 as an amateur
and I promised myself to come back to race again here as a professional. I
returned in 2014 as a professional athlete and bagged my first IRONMAN win. The
tropical climate and the hospitality of local supporters make it really
special. I’m excited to race in Langkawi again and fight for another win on
November 11.”
“We
are delighted to have our two defending champions Fredrik Croneborg and Diana
Riesler back to Langkawi this year. They are both exceptional triathletes and
an inspiration for all the age-group athletes who will be racing here on 11
November.” said Geoff Meyer, Asia Managing Director for IRONMAN. “The amazing response
from the IRONMAN community shows that Langkawi is one of the preferred
locations to race and we are looking forward to another great race this year.”
This
year’s event in Langkawi will host over 1,800 athletes shared between IRONMAN
Malaysia and IRONMAN®
70.3® Langkawi. More than
70% of registered athletes are coming from over 50 different countries. The Top
4 countries are Japan, Singapore, Australia and Philippines.
2017 IRONMAN 70.3 Langkawi will be an age group race only offering 30
qualifying slots for the 2018 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Nelson Mandela
Bay, South Africa.
2017
IRONMAN Malaysia will offer a $25,000 USD professional prize purse and 50
age-group qualifying slots for the 2018 IRONMAN®
World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, United States of America.
2017
IRONMAN Malaysia and 2017 IRONMAN 70.3 Langkawi
races are part of the 2018 Asia TriClub Qualifier Series.
IRONKIDS race will be held on November 10, for kids
aged between 4 and 17, taking part in 3 distances; 500m, 1km and 1.5km dash
along Cenang Beach, sharing the IRONMAN finisher’s arch with kids able to
experience the same finish line as their heroes at the Meritus Pelangi Beach
Resort & Spa.
The IRONMAN Sports and Lifestyle Expo will take place
from November 8-12 at Mahsuri International Exhibition Centre (MIEC), featuring
booths by sports and lifestyle exhibitors as well as the IRONMAN official merchandise.
The 2017 IRONMAN Malaysia Langkawi is supported by
Malaysia Major Events (MME), a division of Malaysia Convention & Exhibition
Bureau (MyCEB), an agency under the Ministry of Tourism and Culture Malaysia;
Kedah State, Langkawi Development Authority (LADA), and Naturally Langkawi.
For
more information on the IRONMAN brand and global event series, visit www.ironman.com.
Media may contact Aw
Li-Ann at li-ann@ink.net.my.
###
About
Malaysia Major Events
Malaysia Major Events (MME) is a division of
Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB), an agency under the
Ministry of Tourism and Culture, Malaysia (MoTAC). MME was established under
the Government’s Economic Transformation Programme (ETP) to identify, promote,
facilitate as well as support viable international events to be staged in
Malaysia. With its main objective to enhance Malaysia’s economic growth and
profile, MME is also tasked to identify and support major event bids for
sports, arts, lifestyles and entertainment events and provide assistance to
home-grown and home-hosted events in order to further strengthen Malaysia’s
global appeal as the venue of choice for major events in the region. MME also
acts as a conduit between the public and private sectors in ensuring seamless
processes are achieved through synergistic relationships with diverse event
stakeholders in staging successful events in Malaysia.
For more information, please visit www.mymajorevents.com.my and follow
MME on Facebook.com/MalaysiaMajorEvents, twitter @MyMajorEvents and Instagram
@mymajorevents.
About
IRONMAN
A
Wanda Sports Holdings company, IRONMAN operates a global portfolio of events
that includes the IRONMAN® Triathlon Series, the IRONMAN®
70.3® Triathlon Series, 5150™ Triathlon Series, the Rock ‘n’ Roll
Marathon Series®, Iron Girl®, IRONKIDS®,
International Triathlon Union World Triathlon Series races, road cycling events
including the UCI Velothon® Series, mountain bike races including
the Absa Cape Epic®, premier marathons including the Standard
Chartered Singapore Marathon, and other multisport races. IRONMAN’s events,
together with all other Wanda Sports Holdings events, provide more than a
million participants annually the benefits of endurance sports through the
company’s vast offerings. The iconic IRONMAN® Series of events is the
largest participation sports platform in the world. Since the inception of the
IRONMAN® brand in 1978, athletes have proven that ANYTHING IS
POSSIBLE® by crossing finish lines at the world’s most challenging
endurance races. Beginning as a single race, IRONMAN has grown to become a
global sensation with more than 200 events across 50 countries. For more
information, visit www.ironman.com.
About
Wanda Sports Holdings
Wanda
Sports Holdings is the world’s leading sports business entity, founded to
capture the opportunities in the global sports industry and to contribute to
the prosperous international sports landscape – in three key areas: 1)
Spectator Sports (media and marketing business), 2) Participation Sports (active
lifestyle business), 3) Services (digital, production and service business).
Wanda Sports Holding incorporates the international sports marketing company
Infront Sports & Media, the iconic endurance brand IRONMAN, and Wanda
Sports China. The headquarters are in Guangzhou, China.
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