2016 IM Melbourne is cancelled
Rumors were plentiful, but now it is official: the 2016 IRONMAN Melbourne is cancelled and that means the hunt is on for a new IRONMAN Asia-Pacific Championship location.
We previously reported on the trouble surrounding this event as a Formula 1 race moved their time slot a few weeks back resulting in a direct conflict with the IRONMAN Melbourne race. IRONMAN officials have worked feverishly with local government folks, but it was pretty clear from the start which one of the two events would come out as the winner.
“Holding both events on the same day was explored; however, the impact on the city, surrounding communities, roads and emergency services was not manageable for an event to be delivered in Melbourne to the level required for our athletes’ safety and satisfaction,” said Geoff Meyer, CEO for IRONMAN Asia-Pacific. “Furthermore, IRONMAN athletes would be affected by increased travel expenses over these high demand dates in Melbourne.”
According to a press release all athletes registered for the 2016 IRONMAN Asia-Pacific iChampionship Melbourne will be contacted with race transfer and race refund options. Of the 75 slots available from this race for the 2016 IRONMAN World Championship, 65 will be distributed across Cairns Airport IRONMAN Cairns, Kellogg’s Nutri-Grain IRONMAN New Zealand, and IRONMAN Australia Port Macquarie. The remaining 10 slots will be allocated among athletes who transfer into another race.
“For the past four years we have delivered a truly outstanding and world-class event that has brought close to 10,000 athletes from across the globe to the city of Melbourne. We sincerely thank the Victorian Government and all of our event partners for their involvement during this period,” Meyer added. “This was not an easy decision as the event has become a much loved one by athletes and the IRONMAN community all over the world.”
