IRONMAN Virtual Club Launches as Global Go-To-Hub for Athletes

April 1, 2020

The IRONMAN Virtual Club web-based platform becomes new destination for IRONMAN athletes to train, compete, earn, and connect; In celebration of platform launch, IRONMAN VR1 is open to the global community of athletes for free

TAMPA, Fla (April 1, 2020) – The IRONMAN Group has officially launched the IRONMAN^® Virtual Club™ (VC™) web-based platform today for athletes around the world. As the go-to destination for everything IRONMAN, IRONMAN VC provides athletes with a connected experience to train, compete, earn and celebrate their achievements with a global community of fellow athletes from anywhere in the world.

IRONMAN Virtual Club

• Athlete Dashboard – The athlete’s home base within the IRONMAN Virtual Club. Athletes can log their training, see their upcoming IRONMAN^® Virtual Racing Series™ (VR™) events and challenges, and view achievement badges that have been already earned. Athletes will see their point and credit counts rise the more they train and compete within the platform.
• Events – Consisting of the newly announced IRONMAN Virtual Racing Series events and IRONMAN VC challenges, athletes will be able to view the IRONMAN VR event listing and formats, as well as an overview of IRONMAN U Master Coach Challenges and IRONMAN Global Partner Challenges.
  • IRONMAN VR1 – In celebration of the IRONMAN Virtual Club launch, the inaugural IRONMAN Virtual Race, IRONMAN VR1, will be open to the entire community of athletes for free. IRONMAN VR1 will consist of a 5 km run, 90 km bike and 21 km run. The segments can be completed in any order, but each segment must be completed in its entirety during one session. Athletes can register for IRONMAN VR1 once they sign into their existing IRONMAN account or create a new account in the IRONMAN Virtual Club for free.
  • IRONMAN VR Pro Challenge – Professional athletes will also compete in IRONMAN VR Series races through the IRONMAN VR Pro Challenge, a head-to-head Pro competition. For the IRONMAN VR1 matchup, four Pro Women will race on Saturday and four Pro Men will race Sunday. All athletes will be required to complete the same prescribed race segments as the age-group competition, with the bike portion broadcast live through the IRONMAN Now page on Facebook Watch. Professional athletes will utilize Rouvy to race head-to-head on the virtual IRONMAN^®3^® Boulder bike course.
  • Challenges – Athletes can compete while also learning from some of the best on how to push their minds and bodies with purpose. With challenges set by IRONMAN U Master Coaches Mark Allen, Matt Dixon, Lance Watson, and Dave Scott, athletes are provided with training tips and overall great workouts that will help them train smart for their next race. Partner challenges from ROKA, HOKA ONE ONE, Ventum, Santini, and Compressport also provide a fun way for athletes to train, compete, earn, and connect with the opportunity to win prizes.
• IRONMAN+ – The central educational destination for everything athletes need throughout their journey. Including featured video and articles on fitness, nutrition, competition, swim, bike and run, athletes can load their training toolbox with everything they need to get inspired and reach their goals.
• Coaching – The Coaching section provides content centered around two customized digital product applications developed to provide athletes with the resources they need to be successful along their journey.
  • IRONMAN Coaching by Final Surge brings together the collective expertise of our global community of Certified IRONMAN U Coaches to share their hand-created training plans that will help prepare athletes for a phenomenal race day.
  • The IRONMAN Training Companion Powered by PKRS.AI gives athlete’s access to further expertise in training, nutrition and strength; all with the guidance of an online concierge. This experience brings the training expertise of IRONMAN World Champions Leanda Cave and Jan Frodeno to the palm of your hand.
• Rewards – The more athletes race and train, the more Points they gain. Points are earned by distance traveled (not time) and accumulate throughout the year and showcase how athletes stack up against each other. Points also convert into Credits, which can be redeemed for rewards that are showcased in this section of the platform.
• Watch – Features the IRONMAN VR on the IRONMAN Now channel on Facebook Watch including schedule, race recaps, and highlights. Each race weekend will broadcast a preview show on Friday followed by Professional and Age-Group live look-in coverage on Saturday and Sunday.

Full details and specifics regarding the IRONMAN Virtual Club are available on www.ironmanvirtualclub.com. For questions about the IRONMAN Virtual Racing Series, athletes can email ironmanvr@ironman.com. For more information on the IRONMAN brand and global event series, visit www.ironman.com. Media related inquiries may be directed to press@ironman.com.

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About The IRONMAN Group

The IRONMAN Group operates a global portfolio of events that includes the IRONMAN^® Triathlon Series, the IRONMAN^® 70.3^® Triathlon Series, the IRONMAN^® Virtual Racing™ (VR™) Series, 5150™ Triathlon Series, the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series^®, IRONKIDS^®, ITU World Triathlon Series, premier running events including the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon™ and The Sun-Herald City2Surf^® presented by Westpac, Ultra-Trail^® World Tour events including Tarawera Ultra and Ultra-Trail Australia™, mountain bike races including the Absa Cape Epic^®, road cycling events, and other multisport races. The IRONMAN Group is the largest operator of mass participation sports in the world and provides more than a million participants annually the benefits of endurance sports through the company’s vast offerings. Since the inception of the iconic IRONMAN^® brand and its first event in 1978, athletes have proven that ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE^® by crossing finish lines around the world. Beginning as a single race, The IRONMAN Group has grown to become a global sensation with more than 235 events across 50+ countries. On March 26, 2020, Wanda Sports Group (Nasdaq: WSG) entered into an agreement to sell The IRONMAN Group to Advance; closing is anticipated in mid-2020. For more information, visit www.ironman.com.

Appendix A:

Media FAQ – For Background

IRONMAN Virtual Racing Series

How will athletes access virtual races?

IRONMAN VR races must be accessed through the IRONMAN Virtual Club, which is a web-based app platform. Once athletes log-in or create an account within the IRONMAN Virtual Club, they will be able to sign up for IRONMAN VR races within the platform, which is accessible via all web browsers.

When will IRONMAN VR races be open for registration?

The IRONMAN VIRTUAL CLUB is now available. The first IRONMAN Virtual Racing event will be IRONMAN VR1, which will span from April 3-April 5, and is now open for registration to the entire athlete community.

How do athletes register?

1. Click the green REGISTER button on the race page and you will be directed to Active.com.
2. After registering you will receive an email with a bib code and a link back to the race page.
3. Click the link and upon arrival to the page, click REGISTER.
4. A pop-up will appear. Enter your bib code into the field and click VALIDATE.

What distances will be available?

The sports and distances will vary by race so that we can accommodate for the current fluidity of access to public athletic facilities. IRONMAN VR1, for example, will be a Run-Bike-Run.

When do athletes have to complete my IRONMAN VR race?

Once registered, IRONMAN VR1 will begin at 6 pm GMT on Friday, April 3. Only race activities done after the start will apply towards an athletes final result. Specified race activities must be completed and synced with athletes IRONMAN Virtual Club dashboard by the close of the race at 11:59 pm GMT Sunday, April 5 to record an official finish of IRONMAN VR1.

What wearable devices will work with this?

The IRONMAN VR platform will be compatible with most activity tracker apps like Suunto, Strava, Garmin, and Polar, as well as others. If you don’t see yours on the initial list, go to your Profile and select My applications for additional options.

What will I receive for completing a virtual race?

Finishers of IRONMAN VR1 will receive a digital badge. Beginning with IRONMAN VR3, athletes will receive a commemorative race bib with those who complete the race receiving a finisher tee, medal and digital badge. Those who do not finish the race will receive a trucker hat for their participation.

Challenges

How long do I have to complete my Challenge?

Challenges are open during the weekdays, from Monday 12 am GMT until 6 pm GMT on Fridays.

How many times can I complete a Challenge?

Athletes can sign up and complete a Challenge as many times as they wish during the set Challenge period of Monday 12 am GMT until Friday 6 pm GMT.

How do Challenge prizes work?

When athletes complete a Challenge and sync it to their Dashboard, they will see a prompt to find out if they are an instant winner. Three finishers each week will win prizes. Winners will be contacted via email to get the prize to the winners.