Posted: October 17, 2005

Triathlon: Defending champion Legh to compete at the 2005 Soma Triathlon

TEMPE, Ariz.-Defending champion Chris Legh (Australia) will compete in the third annual Soma Triathlon set to take place on Sunday, October 30 in Tempe.

The Soma Triathlon is expected to feature more than 1,350 athletes from around the world at two different distances. Last year’s event saw multiple-time Ironman winners Heather Fuhr (Canada) and Legh claim the women’s and men’s titles respectively.

The event will feature a half-Ironman distance (1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike and a 13.1-mile run) and a ¼ Ironman distance event (1000-meter swim, 28-mile bike and a 6.5-mile run).

Legh is among the Australian elite in the sport of triathlon.

Besides claiming the Soma title one year ago, Legh has won a pair of Ironman titles in his career, including the 2004 Ironman USA Coeur d’Alene title. Legh has also registered a pair of top-ten finishes at the Ironman World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.

The 32-year-old has also been prominently featured in a nationally-television ad campaign for Gatorade.

Legh joins 2003 Ironman USA Coeur d’Alene champion Michael Lovato (Boulder, Colo.) as early favorites to take the men’s title at the Soma event.

“Having Chris join the field to defend his title really helps to strengthen our men’s field at Soma,” said Soma Triathlon Race Director Jeff Suffolk. “It should be a great battle for the men’s title this year.”

The Soma triathlon is the premier Half-Ironman distance triathlon in Arizona and will take place on much of the course to be featured at the Ironman Arizona triathlon set to take place in Tempe on Sunday, April 9, 2006. At stake for age-group athletes will be 25 qualifying spots for the 2006 Ford Ironman Arizona Triathlon, as well as great prizes for age-group winners.

The event will also feature a race expo at Tempe Town Lake on Saturday, October 29 from 2 p.m. – 8 p.m. The transition zone, finish line and race expo will all take place at Tempe Town Lake, a short walk from downtown Tempe.

Great prizes and awards as well as a raffle will be held at the post-race awards party, set to take place at 3 p.m. on Sunday, October 30 at Tempe Town Lake. More than $10,000 worth of gifts and prizes will be given away. There will be free food and drink as well as great entertainment at the post-race awards party.

Limited entry is still available for the Soma Triathlon, but is expected to close shortly. Athletes who are interested can enter by logging onto www.redrockco.com.

For more information on the Soma Triathlon, log onto www.redrockco.com.