Following the success of the 2014 Challenge Weymouth, this scenic triathlon will take place for the second time on 13th September 2015 hosting the ETU European Long Distance Championships.
The race starts with a 2 lap 3.8km open water sea swim in the clear blue waters of Weymouth Bay. Then athletes will head out on a rolling 180km bike course weaving through stunning local Dorset countryside offering competitors a fast and smooth cycling event, taking in the beautiful surrounding terrain with views of the famous Jurassic Coastline. To finish athletes will take on a 4 lapped 42.2km run along the Esplanade and through the historic town which will be bustling with support from family, friends and loved ones, making for a very spectator-friendly end to a picturesque iron distance triathlon at the Weymouth Pavilion.
The Weymouth BID and Weymouth & Portland Borough Council have joined forces with British Triathlon Federation and Just Racing to finance the production of a TV programme which will be televised on Channel 4, Sky Sports and Euro sports in a one hour TV programme which will be televised around the world to around 1 billion viewers. The film will be presented by TV presenter Rob Walker who is a renowned Triathlon sports commentator. This film footage will then be used by local business organisations and local authority to promote the borough and local area to visitors from around the world.
This year will be even bigger than the 2014 event as 2015 will host the ETU European Long Distance Championships; the race is expecting a fantastic field of over 1500 European athletes. Stephen Bayliss is returning to race at Challenge Weymouth. Stephen will have raced at all 5 Challenge UK races coming 3rd in 2014 and will be looking to return to the top of the podium this year.
Stephen said “I am really looking forward to racing Challenge Weymouth this year, having competed in all the Challenge UK events so far, I don’t want to miss it. Also I have had a difficult year race wise, I was feeling good in January and February but then caught pneumonia in March which took a long time to recover from then I hurt my knee and then a throat infection just kept putting my start to racing back. But I am starting to feel good and plan to be in great shape for Challenge Weymouth, I look forward to seeing many familiar faces”
Weymouth has historic connections with health and well-being, on his doctor’s advice, King George III came to Weymouth on many occasions to ‘take the waters’, which involved going out into the shallow Weymouth bay in his bathing machine. Since then, Weymouth has been seen as a healthy place to relax, swim, enjoy the sunshine, breathe in the sea air, and generally recharge your batteries.
Alan Rose, of Just Racing (UK), said “At Just Racing we are very excited to host the 2nd Challenge Weymouth event. We now have a very strong platform on which to build new multi-sport events in the future with new projects in place for 2016. Weymouth really is a great place for mass participation events such as the Triathlon the facilities are good and the athletes like to race here. In 2014 Challenge Weymouth was the largest mass participation event and the Half Marathon in March 2015 was the 2nd largest event in the area, both of which inspire people of all ages and abilities to take part.”
Cllr Jason Osbourne, Weymouth & Portland Borough Council’s Briefholder for Tourism and Culture and Harbour, said: “We are delighted to have this marvellous opportunity to host the Weymouth Challenge Triathlon for a 2nd year, Weymouth is the perfect venue to host this high profile multi-sport event, providing a great opportunity to showcase a number of local iconic locations at stages during the swim, cycling and running routes.”
“We look forward to hosting a fabulous sporting weekend experience and give a warm Weymouth welcome to the hundreds of athletes from Britain and Europe with their families and supporters.”
Nigel Reed, Manager of the Weymouth BID said “ This opportunity to televise the Challenge Weymouth event was too good to miss, the film will not only be seen by over 1 billion people worldwide but we can also use the footage after the event to promote Weymouth and Portland as a key destination for visitor from all over the world. The film will be available to local businesses that can utilise the film to benefit their business from hosting this prestigious European event”.
The Challenge Weymouth event athletes, families and supporters will occupy over 5000 bed night spaces in September and many athletes spend time before the race checking out the route and practicing in the local area, this makes Challenge Weymouth a significant business opportunity for local businesses. The Challenge Weymouth Expo will be located at the Weymouth Pavilion between 11thand 13thSeptember which provides visitors and athletes with value information and
products which are available to them. Weymouth is fast becoming a world class destination for many sports including sailing, windsurfing and triathlons.
Visit weareweymouth.co.uk to download the programme and to find more details about the event or Challenge Weymouth at www.challengeweymouth.com.
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