IRONMAN Announces the Use of GPS Tracking for Its Athletes and Race
26 Mar 2015The Ironman Triathlon is a physical event that involves swimming, running, and bicycle riding. It is a long-distance race that is provided by the World Triathlon Corporation (WTC) every year.
During the race, each contestant will swim for 2.4 miles, ride a bicycle for 112 miles, and run a full marathon for 26.2 miles. The race goes in that order and the contestants do not take a break. Naturally, it is known as one of the most difficult sporting events in the world, taking place over a single day.
For the race, there are time limits. In general, the contestants have about 17 hours to complete each section of the Ironman Triathlon. It usually starts early in the morning, and has a cut-off around midnight.
The original Ironman is similar to the Ironman Triathlon, and is held every year in Hawaii, where it has been held since 1978. There are now five brands of Ironman races, including the Iron Girl, Iron Kids, Ironman, Ironman 70.3, and 5150 Triathlon Series.
There are 190 events held each year worldwide. It is a highly challenging and rewarding event for these professional athletes.
For nearly 40 years, men and women have been racing and completing the Ironman challenge. It is has now gone digital with GPS tracking of the athletes during the championships. Ironman is allowing racers to use GPS trackers, which allow their fans, friends and loved ones to track their location and view it all online. All different Ironman races are being tracked, including the regional Ironman championships, the Ironman World Championship, and the Ironman 70.3 World Championship.
There will be a live online show that is available for any user to view over the web. It will include coverage never before seen by onlookers. Ironman Live is also going to include GPS tracking in real-time for the professional athletes. The athletes are also given the option of choosing to use biometric and power data for the live production, so fans can see their activity, location, and how well they are doing.
According to the “We believe this initiative will draw more attention to and improve engagement with our sport. We are taking a major step forward by leveraging technology to create a more colourful and comprehensive experience for fans and the media. Our hope is that we will be able to expand this innovation to all races and to age-group athletes in the future,” said CEO of Ironman, Andrew Messick,
A pilot of the tracking project in 2014 was completed during the Ironman World Championship, and will start live coverage of the events beginning with the March 2014 Ironman Asia-Pacific Championship that takes place in Melbourne.
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