Nebraska Welcomes its First IRONMAN Branded Event: IRONMAN 70.3 Omaha Triathlon to Debut in 2026

July 30, 2025

– Inaugural IRONMAN 70.3 Omaha triathlon is scheduled to take place on June 7, 2026

– General registration to open on August 6 2025, at www.ironman.com/races/im703-omaha

OMAHA, Neb. / TAMPA, Fla. (July 30, 2025) /ENDURANCE SPORTSWIRE/ – IRONMAN, the global leader in long-distance triathlon, announced today that it will host its first event in Nebraska with the addition of the IRONMAN^® 70.3^® Omaha triathlon. The inaugural edition of the new event is scheduled to take place on Sunday, June 7, 2026, with a swim, bike, and run course that will take athletes through Omaha and the Midlands Region of Nebraska.

Located in eastern Nebraska, Omaha offers a unique blend of outdoor recreation, culture and history that makes it the perfect venue for a new midwestern IRONMAN 70.3 event. General registration opens on Aug 6, 2025, at www.ironman.com/races/im703-omaha.

“We’re thrilled to introduce the IRONMAN 70.3 Omaha triathlon to the race calendar in 2026,” said Ryan Richards, Midwest Regional Director for IRONMAN. “Omaha offers a dynamic mix of Midwest charm, a rich tradition in hosting world-class sporting events, and a vibrant local culture that makes it a standout destination for athletes and their supporters. We’re proud to partner with the city to bring this new race experience to life and look forward to welcoming athletes to discover everything that makes Omaha a memorable place to race and visit.”

“Omaha will lay out the welcome mat to IRONMAN 70.3 participants, who represent resilience, strength, and drive,” said Omaha Mayor John Ewing, Jr.  “We are so happy to host this terrific event and will offer contestants the spirit of this also resilient, strong, and driven city. I think visitors will find the city to be a wonderful home for this exciting contest!”

“We are incredibly excited to partner with and welcome an IRONMAN 70.3 race to Omaha for 2026 through 2028,” said Lindsay Toussant Brown, Omaha Sports Commission Executive Director. “Hosting this world-class event showcases our city’s vibrant sports scene and incredible spaces – our downtown, lakes, and trail systems. This event extends our commitment to supporting athletes at the highest level. We can’t wait to introduce the IRONMAN^® community to an unforgettable experience while in Omaha and the state of Nebraska for the first time.”

“Securing an IRONMAN 70.3-brand race each year for the next three years highlights Omaha’s strength in attracting and sustaining world-class events,” says Deborah Ward, Executive Director of Visit Omaha. “We expect 2,500 to 3,000 athletes and their families to visit Omaha each year of the competition, generating an estimated $4 million in economic impact for our community annually.”

Omaha is a dynamic Midwest city located along the Missouri River, straddling the Nebraska-Iowa border. Known for its deep sports roots, from the College World Series to Olympic swim trials, Omaha also offers an expansive outdoor culture, with more than 250 miles of interconnected trails, expansive riverfront parks, and revitalized green spaces. Its vibrant downtown blends history with innovation, featuring a thriving arts scene, culinary hotspots, and the newly reimagined RiverFront park system. Centrally located within driving distance of major Midwest hubs like Kansas City, Des Moines, and Minneapolis, Omaha makes its debut on the IRONMAN calendar, inviting athletes to experience its unique mix of outdoor beauty, city buzz, and welcoming spirit.

About the Course: The IRONMAN 70.3 Omaha triathlon will kick off with a fast 1.2-mile swim in Lake Cunningham, a 390-acre reservoir. Spectators can spot their athlete by the surrounding trail as athletes undertake the single loop swim, entering and exiting near the boat ramp. Once out of the water, athletes will transition to the 56-mile bike course that takes athletes throughout Douglas County and the City of Omaha. The course climbs through rolling hills and scenic farmlands throughout Douglas County, offering challenging climbs, peaceful and fast descents, and wide-open rural sights and sounds, finishing near the Missouri River in downtown Omaha. The 13.1-mile two-loop run course will take athletes on paved trails along the Missouri River, followed by the famed Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge into Council Bluffs. Running past Tom Hanafan River’s Edge Park, athletes will run on the bridge back to Omaha before finishing near downtown.

The 2026 IRONMAN 70.3 Omaha triathlon will offer qualifying slots to the 2026 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship race in Nice, France.

For more information on the 2026 IRONMAN 70.3 Omaha triathlon, please visit www.ironman.com/races/im703-omaha. Athlete inquiries may be directed to omaha70.3@ironman.com.  

To learn more about the IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 brands and series of events, please visit www.ironman.com. Media inquiries may be directed to press@ironman.com.

###

About Omaha Sports Commission

The Omaha Sports Commission is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to making the Omaha metropolitan area one of the premier sports communities in the United States. The commission works locally to recruit, attract and host sports events with local area businesses and community leaders, enhancing sport tourism and economic development.

About Visit Omaha

Visit Omaha is the official tourism authority for the City of Omaha and Douglas County. Visit Omaha’s mission is to stimulate economic growth and job creation by increasing visitation. This visitor demand is created through: meeting, event, sport and leisure marketing; collaborative relationships; broad industry experience; and unprecedented product knowledge.

About The IRONMAN Group

The IRONMAN Group is the world’s largest operator of participation sports with a portfolio of brands, events, media, partners, merchandise, and digital platforms operating in over 50 countries worldwide. A global portfolio consisting of hundreds of events includes the IRONMAN^® Triathlon Series, the IRONMAN^® 70.3^® Triathlon Series, 5150^® Triathlon Series, IRONKIDS^®, premier running events including the Rock ‘n’ Roll^® Running Series, the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon™ and City2Surf^®, the UTMB^® World Series of trail running, the Epic Series™ of mountain biking including the Absa Cape Epic^®, and a collection of road cycling and other multisport races. Since the inception of the iconic IRONMAN^® brand and its first event in 1978, millions of athletes have proven that ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE^® by crossing finish lines around the world. From its beginnings as a single race among friends in Hawai’i, The IRONMAN Group has become a global sensation and collection of high-growth lifestyle brands that inspire people to unlock their potential in life. For more information, visit www.ironman.com/about-ironman-group.