IRONMAN 70.3 European Championship Elsinore

Credit : Getty Images for IRONMAN - Denmark kicked off Europe’s first 2021 IRONMAN 70.3 event under Safe Return to Racing protocols. - Along with a strong PRO field, 1500 athletes attended the 2021 IRONMAN 70.3 European Championship Elsinore. Cloudy race conditions made the 2021 IRONMAN 70.3 European Championship Elsinore a special one for Lucy Charles-Barclay (United Kingdom) and George Goodwin (United Kingdom), crossing the finish line in the fastest time in the men’s and women’s races respectively. Athletes started off the swim in calm conditions with the water temperature reaching 18.6 degrees Celsius, and the air temperature at 17.8 degrees Celsius at the start of the race and rising to 21 degrees Celsius midday in Elsinore, Denmark. Lucy Charles-Barclay won the Women’s PRO category in style, setting a new course record with a time of 03:59:57. With the race defending champion, Holly Lawrence (United Kingdom), crossing the finish line in second, and Camilla Pedersen (Denmark) rounding off the podium in third place. Lucy Charles-Barclay shares her thoughts on the race, “It feels nice to win something and not be second. I just went hard from the start. Obviously, the swim is my strength, so I knew I had to get as much of a gap there as possible. On the bike I was just riding hard and just trying to push hard the whole way and chase the men in front of me, and bike as if there was not even a run going to happen. On the run I was trying to build up each lap and I was feeling pretty strong in the end.” George Goodwin too produced a great performance winning the Men’s PRO category in 03:38:58. On the podium with George Goodwin, the defending European Champion from 2018 and 2019 Rodolphe von Berg (United States) came in second and Jan Stratmann (Germany) rounding off the podium in third. Credit : Getty Images for IRONMAN George Goodwin’s expressed his excitement of being an IRONMAN 70.3 European Championship winner, “It sounds good! [being called a champion] My swim was slow, the bike and run were definitely better. My goals was to pick everyone up on the run. I didn’t know if I was going to run that fast but I knew if I ran as well as I could I would move up.” The top three MPRO and WPRO have qualified for 2021 IRONMAN World Championship, St. George Utah in September. And alongside the strong professional field, nearly to 1500 age-group athletes raced through the city of Elsinore with the immense support from the local community cheering them on.

Credit : Getty Images for IRONMAN Denmark set to kick off the 2021 IRONMAN 70.3 European Championship Elsinore with its Return To Racing protocols. Holly Lawrence and Rodolphe Von Berg, will be making a return to defend their titles against a powerful 2021 start list, which includes Lucy Charles-Barclay and Andreas Dreitz. The stage is set for IRONMAN 70.3 Elsinore to showcase some of Europe’s top professional triathletes as they battle it out to be crowned as the Champion on Sunday, June 27 in Elsinore, Denmark. This will be the official 2021 IRONMAN 70.3 European Championship event. Staged near the legendary 15th century Kronborg Castle, the IRONMAN 70.3 European Championship Elsinore is a fusion of Danish culture and nature. The course takes advantage of the woodlands and green landscapes of Denmark as well as the stunning architecture in the city. Located a short drive from Copenhagen, Elsinore will delight athletes with an extraordinary experience. The fast flat course will see the Holly Lawrence (GBR) return to defend her title, while Rodolphe Von Berg (USA) aims to accomplish the same feat in the men’s category. A strong PRO line up is expected, with Carolin Lehreider (DEU), Camilla Pedersen (DNK), Maja Stage-Nielsen (DNK) and 2018, 2019 IRONMAN World Championship runner-up and fan favourite, Lucy Charles-Barclay (GBR) set to take part. The men’s line up is just as exciting with Florian Angert (DEU), Max Neumann (AUS), George Goodwin (GBR), Magnus Ditlev (DEU) and Andreas Dreitz (DEU) looking for podium finishes. Along with many more standout names, the women’s and men’s professional fields for this weekend in Denmark, will be one not to miss. Only three months after giving birth, Camilla Pederson (DNK) could not say no to this opportunity to return to racing, “I am not in the best shape of my life, so why do I want to race on Sunday? Because I love to race, I love my sport, I love everything about it, the atmosphere, and the immense support from the people. That is what motivates me, and I cannot wait to be back! It is all about having fun because anything is possible.” Florian Angert (DEU) shares in the excitement, “I will be racing the IRONMAN 70.3 European Championship in Elsinore on Sunday. I am looking forward to this race again after I last raced in 2019. I am looking forward to seeing everyone back at the start line and back to racing.” Alongside the strong professional field, close to 2000 age-group athletes are expected to race under IRONMAN Safe Return to Racing protocols. Athletes will take on a one-loop 1.9 km swim course which starts at Elsinore Harbour in front of the historic Kronborg Castle (home to Shakespeare’s Hamlet). Athletes then transition onto the bike for a one-loop 90 km bike course that first leads along the stunning coastline before taking athletes through the countryside. Finally, athletes enjoy a 3,5-loop 21.1 km run course that circles the historic Kronborg castle before heading for the old town part of Elsinore. IRONMAN Denmark Race Director, Jacob Nørgaard, confirms that all is on track for Sunday’s event, “We have worked tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure that athletes have an incredible race experience under our Safe Return to Racing Guidelines. After two years, it is amazing to finally be in the process of building the event in the most spectacular venue in Elsinore. In front of the old culture yard and with Kronborg Castle in the background. Everything is going according to plan, and day by day more pieces are coming together. It will all be ready on Sunday for Europe’s first IRONMAN 70.3 event this year.”