The Woodlands, Texas; Joins Ironman in Kicking Off 2019 IRONMAN 70.3 and Ironman Race Season In United States

Tampa FL— Four-time IRONMAN^® World Champion, Daniela Ryf announced today additional races to her 2019 IRONMAN schedule, including stops in North America to start the year. Ryf will make her way to the United States to train and then compete at the 2019 IRONMAN^® 70.3^® Oceanside triathlon on Saturday, April 6 as well at the 2019 Memorial Hermann IRONMAN^® North American Championship Texas on Saturday, April 27. This will mark the first time the Swiss athlete has competed in IRONMAN events on U.S. soil outside of the IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship events.
“I’ve always wanted to take part in these two races,” said Daniela Ryf, four-time IRONMAN World Champion. “In addition to a good first form test, it’s a good time to compete in front of my fans in the USA.”
The 31-year-old Switzerland native got her start in triathlon in 1998 and turned professional in 2007. In her relatively short career, Ryf has racked up an impressive resume by winning the last four IRONMAN World Championship triathlons (2015-2018) while also setting course bests in the events 40-year history. Last year, Ryf added to her tally by capturing her fourth IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship (2014, 2015, 2017, 2018) and currently stands as the only professional triathlete in history to win four IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 World Championships. Additionally, Ryf represented her home country of Switzerland in the 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics.
Recognizing her racing prowess, Ryf was recently a finalist for the prestigious Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year award for her outstanding achievements in 2018. The award’s nominees included some world-class athletes such as Angelique Kerber, Ester Ledecká, Simona Halep and eventual winner Simone Biles. Ryf did, however, achieve a number of firsts with the nomination, becoming the first female triathlete and first Swiss woman finalist for a Laureus World Sports Award. She was also recently recognized as Swiss Personality of the Year for the second time as well as being featured in Sports Illustrated’s Fittest 50, coming in at Number 8 among all female athletes. Ryf joined the likes of Simone Bile, Serena Williams, , and Lindsey Vonn, among others, on this list.
As the North America race season kicks off at IRONMAN 70.3 Oceanside on Saturday, April 6, Ryf is expected to be joined by an impressive field of professionals and age-group athletes. IRONMAN 70.3 Oceanside leads athletes along a 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike and 13.1-mile run on a course that utilizes the beautiful city of Oceanside. Athletes begin their day with a single-loop swim with a beach start and swimming into the Oceanside Harbor.
Once out of the water, participants will embark upon a single-loop bike course which begins at the Oceanside Harbor and ventures through Camp Pendleton and San Onofre Bluffs State Park. Athletes will experience rolling hills prior to San Mateo hill, followed by two more hills and then a flat but very windy road on the way back to the Oceanside Harbor. The double-loop run course winds traverses between the upper level of Oceanside’s Pacific Street and the lower level of The Strand, Oceanside’s flat beachfront road, utilizing the ramps on Oceanside Pier and then out onto the southern portion where the architecture is something out of a fairy tale mixed in with beach cottages. The 2019 IRONMAN 70.3 Oceanside triathlon offers 40 age-group qualifying slots to the 2019 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Nice, France.
A few weeks later, Ryf will line up at the 2019 Memorial Hermann IRONMAN North American Championship Texas in The Woodlands, Texas.
The Woodlands is the perfect venue to host the Memorial Hermann IRONMAN North American Championship Texas. Athletes will take on a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike and 26.2-mile run. The race begins with a rolling start, point-to-point swim at North Shore Park and ends in the canal at Town Green Park. Once out of the water, athletes will start their 112-mile bike by navigating part of The Woodlands before entering Northern Harris County. Once in Harris County, athletes will navigate a new two-loop course on the Hardy Toll Road. Finally, athletes will begin their 26.2-mile run entirely through the Woodlands before concluding with a spectacular finish on Waterway Avenue. The 2019 Memorial Hermann IRONMAN North American Championship Texas offers 80 age-group qualifying slots to the 2019 IRONMAN World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawai`i.
For more information on IRONMAN and the series of events and to register for open events, visit www.ironman.com.