Posted: January 16, 2004

Triathlon: Round Nine - Road to Ironman Australia Qualifying Series - Tasmanian Half Ironman

Tasmanian Half Ironman - Ulverstone, Tasmania (Sunday January 18, 2004)

With just 2 days to go until the finale of the 10-race national Road to Ironman Australia Qualifying Series, the excitement is at full throttle. Over 150 athletes will invade the beautiful seaside township of Ulverstone, Tasmania to participate in the Tasmanian Half Ironman on Sunday, January 18 beginning at 7:00am. The Half Ironman triathlon covers the distance of 1.9km swim, 90km cycle and 21.1km run

Since May last year the nine rounds of qualifying races have seen over 5000 athletes attempt to qualify for a chance to compete in Australia's biggest triathlon event on April 4, 2004, the Snap Ironman Australia triathlon. This weekend, the Tasmanian Half Ironman will have 25 spots on offer for those athletes trying to grasp one of the few remaining places of the 1500 field expected in Forster.

Gold Coast Ironman athlete Jason Shortis goes into Sunday's race as favorite, but he will meet some strong competition from Victorians Paul Patrick, Sean Foster, Darren Franken, Kane Malherbe and local star Joe Gambles. Late entrant, Brent Sheldrake from New Zealand, a swim specialist who last year led the swim at Ironman NZ is sure to set a cranking pace out of the water. Shortis will rely on the high volume altitude training he has done recently at Jindabyne, NSW to place him in a winning position. Focusing on the Snap Ironman Australia triathlon, Shortis will be testing his fitness at this weekend's event.

Race results and story will be available on Sunday after the event and published on www.ironmanoz.com .

Elite Men's Field:
Sean Foster
Darren Franken
Brent Sheldrake
Jason Shortis
Kane Malherbe
Niall McDonagh
Tully Lyster
Paul Patrick
Joe Gambles

Elite Women's Field:
Edith Kosztovits
Jodie Barker

Ironman Australian Triathlon - April 4, 2004

Ironman WA Triathlon - November 28, 2004