Ironman series coming to Coolum

Competitors line up at this week’s Nutri Grain Series launch in Noosa.

Geoff Potternh

THE Nutri-Grain Ironman series is coming back to Coolum.

Round three of the revamped $300,000 event will be held on Coolum Beach on Sunday, December 19.

The event is sure to be a huge fillip for local businesses – on the day and longer term – with a live broadcast on Network Ten showing Coolum in all its glory.

The new five-round competition is a partnership between Surf Life Saving Australia, Sports Entertainment Limited and former champion ironman Guy Leech.

The series will be supported by more than 40 hours of television, including live Sunday afternoon broadcasts on Network Ten, from Currumbin on November 21, Bondi (December 3), Coolum, Portsea (January 2) and the final round from Noosa on January 2.

Sports Entertainment Limited director Basil Scaffidi said Coolum was chosen because it offered some of the best surf conditions for the series

“We are excited about racing at Coolum,” he said.

“Not only is it a stunning natural amphitheatre, but the Coolum surf club is one of Australia’s premier surf clubs.

The series will feature the best 20 ironmen and 20 ironwomen in the nation, including superstars Shannon Eckstein, Zane Holmes, Ky Hurst and Alicia Marriott.

They will be racing for more than $300,000 in prize money over traditionally popular formats that will test endurance, power, skill and speed.

Adding to the action will be a Legends series that will rewind the clock to the halcyon days of the sport and bring former heroes like Leech, Trevor Hendy, Grant Kenny, Darren Mercer, Guy Andrews and Clint Robinson back to competition in a relay format.

Holmes, one of the most prolific ironmen in history, with victories in the Nutri-Grain series and Coolangatta Gold, as well as Australian and world championships, said he was excited to take on the challenge that included two-hour races, the triple sprint format and the cut-throat eliminator race.

“The formats will ensure that the best all-round ironman and ironwoman wins the series because it will take endurance, skill and sprint speed. I can’t wait,” he said.