On December 13-15 at the iconic Daytona International Speedway, Challenge Daytona presents its Challenge Daytona Festival. Defending professional champions, Sarah Haskins (USA), Alicia Kaye (USA) and Meredith Kessler (USA) have all announced their return in what is anticipated to be a tight battle to the first-place podium finish.
The event organizing team note that the men’s pro field is sure to produce dramatic finishes. The men’s pro field includes, Andrew Starykowicz (USA) who finished in second place in the inaugural Challenge Daytona 2018 event, along with two-time Olympian Tyler Butterfield (BER) and Olympian Andy Potts (USA).
“Challenge Daytona is thrilled to have all of the top women champions returning to the professional field and an exciting men’s field to lead athletes in competition around the iconic Daytona International Speedway,” said Challenge Family CEO, Zibi Szlufcik.
“Not only are these women and men phenomenal athletes, they are inspiring the next generation of athletes in triathlon. We are so proud to have such a competitive field at Challenge Daytona. We encourage everyone to join us in cheering on both pro and amateur athletes alike during the Challenge Daytona Festival weekend.”
The defending champions will race in the ‘Daytona Distance Under the Lights’ format, which will include a two-lap, 1-mile swim; a 15-lap, 37.5-mile bike; and an 8.2-mile run – all within the Daytona International Speedway property.
The course is optimized for viewing, with opportunities for spectators to get up close and cheer for their favorite pros midway through the swim, all along the bike and run legs, and at each transition juncture.
The unique Daytona Distance Under the Lights race, exclusive to the professional field, will begin at 16:30 ET on Saturday, December 14th. The start time provides prime viewing for age group athletes competing in either Saturday’s Sprint Distance events or Sunday’s Middle Distance events. The late start is also designed to create an ‘unprecedented sensory experience’, as the lights at Daytona International Speedway – normally reserved solely for NASCAR racing, sports cars and Supercross – will illuminate the track at 17:30, just as the Florida sun sets and the pros speed around the track.
Bill Christy, CEO at Cognitive Kinetics and Executive Producer of Challenge Daytona, was instrumental in securing the opportunity to race under the lights at the track. He said, “This will be an electric experience for these athletes and inspiring thousands of spectators in the speedway.”
There are no comments
Please login to post comments