Oman Air is celebrating the success of Ironman 70.3 Muscat, supported by both the airline and Oman’s Ministry of Tourism (MoT). The event, which took place on March 1, attracted more than 1,000 entrants from 54 countries and thousands of spectators.
The winner was Antoine Mechin from France who completed the gruelling challenge in 3 hours 56 minutes and 55 seconds. Russian Paver Gorik claimed the second position with a timing of 4:14:59, while Swiss athlete Rafael Wyss was third-best finisher with a timing of 4:16:52.
In women’s category, Michela Santini from Italy clinched the top honours by finishing in 4 hours, 28 minutes and 33 seconds. Six-time Ironman world champion Natascha Badmann of Switzerland came second with a timing of 4:39:24. Ginlia Bedorin of Italy finished third. The overall winners and the age-group top finishers have now automatically qualified for the International Ironman Championship to be held in Nice, France later this year.
Those who successfully completed this year’s Muscat event faced a 1.9km (1.2-mile) swim, 90.1km (56-mile) bike ride, and 21.1km (13.1-mile) run. Muscat offered a stunning backdrop for the event; the calm Arabian seas allowed competitors to have a non-wetsuit swim and the cycling route took place across the beach area and bikers took a route through all of Muscat’s main attractions including the Royal Opera House, the Muscat Gate, Al Bustan Palace and Al Wadi Al Kabir Road.
The Ironman 70.3 Muscat aims at raising awareness of the Triathlon Sport across Oman and serves the vision of adding Oman on the global map as an international sporting events destination.
Abdulaziz Al Raisi, CEO of Oman Air, said: “Oman Air was delighted to be involved in this event which was a great success. I would like to offer my personal congratulations to all those who took part in this tough challenge. Oman is playing host to an increasing number of major events from corporate gatherings to those on the international sporting stage and as the national carrier we are keen to offer our support and encourage visitors to our beautiful country.”
Oman Air offered free bike carriage to Ironman competitors and the spectators and competitors alike were impressed with Oman Air’s unique hospitality which gave a great introduction to the sultanate’s warm welcome on arrival. The Ironman 70.3 race is organised by the Ironman Foundation in collaboration with Wanda Sports and Triathlon Middle East. - TradeArabia News Service
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