Ironman 70.3 Texas Preview
This Sunday will see one of the most hotly contested Ironman brand long course races of the year so far, as several top pro men and women chase prize money and qualification to the 2021 Ironman 70.3 World Championships in St George, Utah in September.
The course in Galveston, an island city on the Gulf Coast of Texas is a fast one, with the athletes starting with a 1900m point to point swim in water temperatures that are currently topping 20 degrees Celsius, meaning that according to USAT regulations, wetsuits are optional. After transitioning in T1, the bike course is an out and back ride along the Texas coastline – whilst flat the course is susceptible to wind meaning the athletes will have to ensure their aero positions are dialed in. Finally, the half marathon is three laps of a windy course that includes dead turns and plenty of corners before finishing near the discovery pyramid, with one of the only straights in the run course leading into the finish chute.
Men’s Race
The men’s race is one of the toughest and most competitive long course fields since Challenge Daytona, and a lot of online sparring between Joe Skipper, Sam Long and Lionel Sanders have only succeeded in turning up the heat before race day. The race was last held in 2019 due to the Covid-19 pandemic canceling the race in 2020, and the top returner is Challenge Daytona’s podium place finisher Matt Hanson, who was second behind Andy Starykowicz in 3:47 at the last edition of the race. The bike leg is shaping up to be extremely tasty, with Challenge Daytona and Challenge Miami’s fastest bike split coming courtesy of the Dane Magnus Ditlev, who will be hoping to open a gap on the rest of the field on this fast bike course. He will be hard pressed however by Lionel Sanders, Sam Long and Joe Skipper, with the Brit especially wanting to put to bed the stick he’s been receiving on YouTube from Sam Long. Hopefully he will be in a good position to race well in the conditions, with air temperatures in the mid to high twenties, after a winter camp in Dubai. Ben Kanute, the Olympian and Challenge Miami 3rd place finisher will be an all-rounder who will always threaten, as will Sam Appleton and Andreas Dreitz. If I was a betting man, I would be putting my money on Lionel Sanders to come through for the win, with Skipper and Hanson rounding off the podium, but I’d love to see Sam Long back up his Challenge Daytona result with a big race here.
Women’s Race
Jeanni Metzler is one of the favorites for the women’s pro race as the best returner, after winning the 2019 edition in 4:01. She has shown good form since then too after winning two of the PTO’s sponsored events in 2020, the Great Floridian triathlon and the Huntington Triathlon in California. In 2019 she won by 3 minutes from Lesley Smith of the USA but may be pressed harder in 2021 to be the first to the tape with a strong contingent of women lining up behind her on Sunday. Skye Moench and Heather Jackson are two other Americans who will be pushing hard at the front on Sunday, with the experienced Jackson chasing redemption for a poor showing at Challenge Miami whilst Moench will be focused on riding the wave of momentum after her back-to-back Top 6 finishes at Challenge Daytona and Miami. The Brits to look out for at Galveston are Kimberley Morris and Ironman Wales champion Simone Mitchell who will be looking to make a breakthrough in a high caliber field outside of the UK.
The men’s race starts at 6.45am CST (GMT-5) whilst the women’s race begins five minutes later at 6.50am. The race can be followed on the official Ironman Tracker app or on the Ironman stream.
