01/13/2021
I just attended an update from Andrew Messick, Ironman CEO, on plans for 2021 races. As I'm sure many of you are aware, all North American Ironman races sold out in 2021, and the 70.3s are filling up quickly. Messick said they are monitoring 3 key areas to determine if races will happen: (1) local COVID rates, (2) COVID rates in the areas where athletes are coming from, and (3) the ability for people registered for races to travel to those races. An example he gave was around races in Mallororca, Spain. The majority of the athletes in that race are not from Spain, but from elsewhere in Europe, so the decision around whether or not to host the race is not simply a local decision.
All that being said, and thinking more locally, Messick did say that Ironman has asked all race directors through 2Q2021 to have backup plans to host their races in the second half of 2021. They do anticipate that races in the second half of 2021 will be able to happen. They also said that they are confident in their ability to manage transmission at/during races, however some communities are more or less willing to invite Ironman events to be hosted in their areas. He also mentioned that the biggest wild card for COVID transmission is in para-race activities - travel, hotel, and dining/partying ahead and after races. Therefore, the more conservative communities might still be unwilling to host big Ironman events, even while the event itself might be safe to occur.
With the past year of race cancellations and the anticipation of racing in 2021, now is the time to start your training, especially if you have taken some well justified time off!! Ironman is optimistic they will race and that will hopefully encourage other smaller local races to happen as well!!
Best of luck to everyone this year! If there's anything I can do to help you on your journey, please don't hesitate to ask.
Coach Andy - Triathlon Coach
