After five editions of the European Championship Ironman 70.3 in Denmark’s Elsinore, the European Championships will head to Talinn, Estonia, in 2023 and 2024. Next year’s race will take place on Aug. 6. One day before – on Aug. 5 – the Long Distance, Ironman Talinn, will be held.
“We are so excited to be named as the host city for the Ironman 70.3 European Championship in 2023 and 2024”, the Ironman 70.3 Talinn Race Director, Ain-Alar Juhanson, said. “Our race has grown in popularity amongst a local and international audience, with this year over 60 percent of athletes travelling from further afield to race in Estonia. We’ve also been pleased to welcome some of Europe’s top pros over the years – from Sebastian Kienle, Daniel Baekkegard, and Kat Matthews, helping to put Tallinn on the map as an international destination for Ironman racing.”
Estonia organizes the Ironman 70.3 event since 2016, with the first edition taking place in Otepää, south Estonia. In 2018 the Long Distance was added to the calendar and in 2022 both events moved to the capital city Talinn.
The course is flat and fast, with athletes swimming 1900 meters in one lap in Lake Harku, after which they bike through Talinn, towards the southern villages and back to Talinn to reach T2, situated in Seaplane Harbour. The half-marathon takes place in the old city center of Talinn, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
