The Cairns Ironman held in the heart of Tropical North Queensland is a ripper!
It is set amongst the Great Barrier Reef and Daintree Rainforest, the only place in the World where two World heritage areas meet.
The Event was held on 15th June. On the day there were two events, a challenging FULL Ironman consisting of a 3.8km ocean swim, 180km cycle with a 42.2km marathon run to finish. The other event is still a tough one, a half Ironman and half the above distances which is a race rather than survival.
Over 2500 competitors tackled the scenic course around Cairns. The course is built for the ultimate racing experience. The swim took place at Palm Cove in reasonable conditions following the “washing machine” conditions a day earlier. The hilly bike course took athletes up towards Port Douglas. Road Closures made for a stunning course along the Tropical Queensland coastline on a closed coastal highway, although the gusting winds caused a bit of havoc with some cyclists. Back in Cairns, the run took athletes along the picturesque Esplanade on a flat course with amazing crowd support and an abundance of enthusiastic volunteers keeping everyone in the loop!
Four of our Whitsunday locals entered the weekend races. There were two girls in the FULL Ironman while the two boys opted for the Half Ironman.
Both Kristy Gardel and Jessie Gerard entered the Full Ironman for the first time. The volume of training prior to the event is massive and happens over a three month build period. They are both local champion triathletes and conquered the behemoth FULL Ironman distance with aplomb! The girls had a great race and achieved their goal, congratulations!
Jake Yorke and Michael Kimpton completed the Half Ironman Event in fine time, all smiles crossing that Finish Line. It was Jake’s first Half Ironman event as he is pretty new to triathlon and is now looking forward to further challenges.
Contributed with thanks to Val Kimpton
Michael Kimpton finishing his run in the Cairns Iron Man
Kristy Gardel & Jessie Gerrard after their Iron Man
Jake Yorke celebrating his first Half Iron Man
Photos supplied
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