Posted: March 8, 2006

Triathlon: Challenge Roth goes worldwide with debut of CHALLENGEQueenstown in 2007

ROTH/QUEENSTOWN—On January 27, 2007, a new long-course race will arrive in Queenstown, New Zealand bearing the name CHALLENGEQueenstown. For the first time, athletes will now have the opportunity to race over the 2.4-mile swim/112-mile bike/26.2-mile iron-distance in a race bearing the Challenge label outside of Roth, Germany, home to the Quelle Challenge Roth, the world’s largest long-course triathlon.

The gorgeous city of Queenstown, surrounded by the spectacular scenery of New Zealand’s lush South Island, is no stranger to triathlon, playing host to the International Triathlon Union world championships in 2003.

CHALLENGEQueenstown will extend the Challenge label—developed in the last five years since the Quelle Challenge Roth became an independent race—to the South Pacific. Organized by New Zealand race director Matt Tuck, CHALLENGEQueenstown will also stand for the same qualities found in its German partner: a race that provides excellent value for the price of entry, that extends a warm welcome to athletes and their families and that promotes sport tourism.

Herbert Walchshöfer, director of TEAMChallenge GmbH in Roth, said he’s certain that he’s found the right partners for expansion of the Challenge label in New Zealand.

“We believe in providing value and quality at our event,” said Walchshöfer. “Matt Tuck got to know Roth as a participant, we’ve gotten to know his work on visits to New Zealand, and we’re convinced that he has the same qualities of hospitality, sincerity and professionalism that we value so highly in Roth. It was only logical that we work with Matt to extend our label to this most beautiful corner of the world.”

The race will not offer qualifying places to the sold-out Quelle Challenge Roth but will instead provide athletes with another opportunity to enjoy a race under the Challenge label. “We have worked for five years in Roth to build a brand that stands for quality, continuity, good value and a warm welcome—and now the race can simply not take any more entrants,” said Walchshöfer. “This is also the reason that in the not-too-distant future we will be in talks with other contacts about other licensing opportunities.”

Entry fees will be $NZ450, or about the same cost as the entry, in Euro, of the Quelle Challenge Roth (240 Euro). The amenities offered to athletes will be the same as those provided in Roth, including a pre-race pasta party, finish party and awards ceremony. For elites, a prize purse of $NZ90,000 will be on offer.

The race will start with a swim in Lake Wakatipu with views of the snow-capped mountains, with a two-loop bike course that runs from Glenorchy and back. It’s a ride that promises to have enough of a challenge to be selective but also incredibly scenic. The run course takes athletes on fairly flat journey along the lake.

“We are really excited about the prospects of an event like this in Queenstown,” Tuck said. “The South Island has the Coast to Coast but will benefit greatly from an iconic triathlon event like this—Queenstown is beautiful in January—and local organizations like Destination Queenstown are working alongside our team at Media Unlimited to make it happen.”

David Kennedy, CEO of Destination Queenstown, said he’s certain Queenstown will prove an inspirational home for the event: “We can offer everything from five-star hotels to bed-and-breakfast inns—whatever the heart desires,” he said. “And the opportunities for sporting adventures are unlike anywhere else in the world.”

Bungee-jumping, river rafting, hiking and of course visits to many of the locations used in the award-winning movie trilogy “Lord of the Rings” are just some of the possibilities available to Queenstown visitors. Travelers can reach Queenstown via its airport just 10k from downtown, with direct connections possible from Star Alliance and ONE World airlines.

There’s more information here: www.challenge-queenstown.com, with updates about the details of the course to come in April. To learn more, contact Matt Tuck at info@challenge-queenstown.com.

Quelle Challenge Roth’s sponsors include: Quelle AG, Deutsche Post AG, N-ERGIE, PRO4, Newline, Nürnberger Nachrichten (Nürnberg Newspapers), Bayrische Versicherungskammer, Erdinger Alkoholfrei, Sparkasse Mittelfranken-Süd, Arndt, Mavic, County of Roth, City of Roth, City of Hilpoltstein, Coca-Cola, Frankenbrunnen, Zeus Copy, Paladin, Hofmann, Jura Kaelte, Flor & Sohn and Spedition Heinloth.

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