Rainy weather seen for Ironman races

CEBU may experience moderate to heavy rainfall today until tomorrow when the Cobra Energy Drink Ironman Triathlon 70.3 kicks off in four Metro Cebu cities.

A low pressure area was spotted 1,340 km east of southern Mindanao adding strength to an inter-tropical convergence zone hovering over Cebu and other parts of the Visayas, according to Pag-asa.

According to accuweather.com, Cebu will have cloudy weather with thunderstorms.

It forecast six hours of rain in the day and more than five hours of rain at night.

Senior Supt. Rey Lyndon Lawas, Lapu-Lapu City police chief, said his men are ready to secure the event which has some 2,000 athletes joining from 35 countries around the world.

Fifty policemen will be fielded to secure the Ironkids event today.

Tomorrow, 300 policemen will be fielded along race routes in the city for the Ironman 70.3 while 568 ROTC cadets will serve as marshals along the bike course.

The Department of Tourism in Central Visayas asked the public to help ensure the success of the big event.

Regional Tourism Director Rowena Montecillo said the Ironman event is a good opportunity to showcase Cebu as tourist destination.

She said they expect their office to exceed their target this year for this event alone. Central Visayas targets three million international and domestic tourists this year.

Last year, the region’s tourist arrivals was 2.9 million, slightly higher than the 2.7 million target. Correspondents Christine Emily L. Pantaleon and Jhunnex Napallacan