Hefei IRONMAN Triathlon 30-day countdown news conference convened
15.09.2016
The Hefei government and Wanda Sports jointly held a news conference for the 30-day countdown to the 2016 Hefei Wanda City IRONMAN70.3 Hefei at the Hefei Government Conference Center on September 14.
An announcement was made for the first time on the progress of preparing for the race in Hefei, the first city to host the IRONMAN triathlon since it made its debut in China, in terms of security, environmental management, market development, external communication, publicity and development as well as many other areas.
Gao Xiaoguang, Director of the IRONMAN70.3 Hefei triathlon race committee, Jian Qing, Hefei Sports Bureau Chief, Stefan Petschnig, managing director of Wanda Sports IRONMAN China projects, and Zhang Dongnian, general manager of Hefei Wanda City Management Company attended the conference.
IRONMAN Pro Ambassador for China, Craig Alexander, a three-time IRONMAN World Champion who also set a world record of 8:03:56, made a special appearance by way of video and said that he looked forward to the upcoming Hefei race.
The 2016 Hefei Wanda City IRONMAN70.3 Hefei leg of the race is hosted by the Hefei Government and Beijing Wanda Cultural Industry Group, and undertaken by the Hefei Sports Bureau and Wanda Sports Holdings Company with Hefei Wanda City, the title sponsor. As of September 8, more than 1,500 people have registered for the 2016 Hefei Wanda City IRONMAN70.3 Hefei, of which foreign contestants account for more than one-third. The Hefei leg will provide 50 direct qualifying positions for the 2017 IRONMAN World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.
To ensure that the participation experience of athletes attains the standard of an IRONMAN race, the Hefei government has carried out a water quality reconstruction project for Swan Lake, the venue for the swimming stage of the race. Sampling and testing will continue to be carried out until the race begins.
The 2016 Hefei Wanda City IRONMAN70.3 Hefei will be officially held on October 16, and live telecast on the day of the race will be carried out. The live telecast platforms will include China Central Television (CCTV), local satellite television and the local television station, among others. The direct transmission platforms of mainstream networks such as Sohu, Tencent, Netease, PPTV, iQiyi, LeTV and Panda TV will also broadcast the race live on the internet.