Saturday’s Ironman 70.3 Lanzarote attracts a large field of over 80 pros, among them some big names, both short-distance and long-distance talents. Britain’s Olympic gold medalist Jessica Learmonth will race her first Ironman 70.3 this weekend, while France’s Leo Bergère and Pierre Le Corre – both strong names on the short distance – also decided that they feel like going all out on a 70.3. Meanwhile, Ironman World Champion Anne Haug belongs to the established long-course athletes and is considered one of the race favorites. In the men’s race, on the other hand, it’s hard to appoint one favorite for the win.
Women’s race
While Haug and Learmonth, both strong runners, will give each other a hard time on the half-marathon, there are some other great athletes in the mix for the podium too. Both the Dutch Els Visser and the Dutch Diede Diederiks have a fair chance of earning a podium spot this upcoming Saturday. While Visser finished second (Challenge Salou) and third (Challenge Budva) on a Middle Distance last year, Diederiks claimed the win of Ironman 70.3 Warsaw in 2021. It’s definitely not only these two Dutchies that will give it their all to get in between Haug, Learmonth and the win, other race favorites are: Britain’s Lucy Buckingham (formerly Hall) – winner of three Middle Distances in 2021 – and Belgium’s Alexandra Tondeur.
Men’s race
While there’s a few outspoken favorites for the win or a podium spot in the women’s race, there is no clear and absolute favorite for the win in the men’s race. However, the competition is strong, as the field is big. Some strong names on the start list include: David McNamee (GBR), Florian Angert (GER), Bart Aertnouts (BEL), Leon Chevalier (FRA), Kyle Smith (NZL), Thor Bendix Mandsen (DEN), Boris Stein (GER), James Teagle (GRB) and Michael Weiss (AUS).
