Last month, global race organizer Ironman returned to action with international events in Estonia, France and Poland, among others. Andrew Messick, CEO of Ironman, which earlier this year was acquired by SBJ parent company Advance, said that the global race organizer’s return to action has broadly been a success. “We’ve worked very effectively with the local health and safety authorities in all the places we’ve operated events,” said Messick. “Our athletes feel safe, our staff feels safe, our volunteers feel safe. We’ve had no reported outbreaks.” Messick adds that Ironman has thus far been able to turn a profit on its return to racing, though limited participation has shrunk the company’s margin. “By and large, we’ve been able to produce the events we’ve had with positive contribution,” said Messick. “If races are operating at break-even or better, that’s enough for us. … Because, ultimately, we need to be able to continue to convince everyone that our industry, with the right precautions, can operate safe events. If the price we pay is diminished economics in 2020, for us that’s a totally acceptable price to pay.”
TALKING TECH: Ironman also recently rolled out a new virtual racing platform, which Messick said has hosted more than 120,000 competitors across its first 25 races. Pro virtual races have also generated nearly 14 million unique views from broadcasts on Facebook. According to Messick, sponsor support for virtual offerings has been strong, allowing the company to provide the digital race platform to users free of charge.
BACK AT IT: The organization’s first live race in the United States since its mid-March shut down is expected to be the Ironman 70.3 Arizona, taking place this weekend in Tempe. Messick said they expect to have around 1,000 competitors. Looking ahead, Messick said the ‘21 race registrations have shown unprecedented demand, and host cities and sponsors are both champing at the bit. “The main three pillars of a successful business are as healthy as they’ve been in a long, long time,” said Messick. “We’re just in a position where, because of the virus, the actual operation of races is really challenging right now. But we’re hopeful that we’ll be able to continue the momentum that we’ve had towards getting ourselves restarted.”
