Another successful staging of IronMan

Participants of the 2013 Cobra Energy Drink IronMan 70.3 Philippines said this year’s staging of the annual international triathlon event was another hit.

Most of them continued to rave about the race course, especially in the swim segment, the cheerers and the crowd that lined the streets to encourage them to go on. Most of all, the racers praised the hospitality showed to them by the Cebuanos.

They said these are the things that set Cebu apart from other IronMan 70.3 races held around the world.

In fact, participants have started making this event their favorite.

“This is a hot course. It’s an amazing place to race in,” said this year’s pro elite champion Courtney Atkinson of Australia, who competed here for the first time. “The crowd is really behind you. I really had a good race,” added Atkinson, who said he is looking forward to coming back next year.

Despite the gloomy weather, participants, especially those coming from abroad, still gushed about the swim event with third placer David Dellow, also an Australian, saying he had lost time in his swim because he got distracted with the variety of  fish abounding in Hilutungan Channel.

Sunrise Events Inc. (SEI) president Wilfred Steven Uytengsu during the awarding yesterday hinted at a bigger and more exciting edition of the competition next year. He also encouraged those who are interested to register early.

He recalled that when the registration for this event was opened last December, the slots got sold out in four days with the waitlist numbering to about 700.

Meanwhile, participants also expressed their appreciation for the thousands of children who lined the streets egging the racers on.

This was also noted by international celebrity Allan “Apl.de.Ap” Pineda, the Filipino-American member of the Grammy Award-winning Black Eyed Peas.

He said that the crowd was so loud that it prompted him to keep smiling despite his fatigue.

Other participants agreed that the cheerers and crowd boosted their spirits and kept them going on to the finish line.

One such racer who never fails to acknowledge them is Switzerland’s Caroline Steffen and Australia’s Belinda Granger.

“Basically we have raised the bar for this year despite having to work with a new local government administration and despite the weather,” said SEI project director Princess Galura.

MEDICAL SIDE

The cool weather actually helped keep the race safer, according to medical director Dr. Peter Mancao.

He said they saw a decrease in the  number of injuries and medically related problems. He credited the cool weather yesterday, which made it easier for participants to complete the grueling race.

Dr. Mancao said that the quick response of the medical team and the cooperation of the participants was also a key to their resounding success.

“The organizers were very happy with us,” said Mancao. “We were very focused on the participants’ safety. Our quick response team also prevented bigger problems from happening.”

The Emergency Response Unit Foundation (ERUF), Philippine National Red Cross (PRC), All-Terrain Medical Relief Operations (AMRO), Chong-Hua Hospital, ACERT of Mandaue City and TREAT of Talisay City were on full alert since last Friday.

Mancao said majority of the cases encountered yesterday were dehydration, muscle cramps and abrasions from bikers who fell due to the slippery road.

He said last year,  a lot of participants suffered from heat stroke and severe dehydration. But the cool weather helped prevent that from happening again.