Sam Long (USA) Crowned Champion At 2023 Visit Panama City Beach IRONMAN 70.3 Gulf Coast Triathlon

May 15, 2023

Nearly 1,400 athletes converged in Florida’s panhandle to compete at Visit Panama City Beach IRONMAN 70.3 Gulf Coast triathlon

PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla. /ENDURANCE SPORTSWIRE/ – Panama City Beach and Florida’s Panhandle welcomed nearly 1,400 athletes to the region to take on the 2023 Visit Panama City Beach IRONMAN^® 70.3^® Gulf Coast triathlon on Saturday, May 13. The event also featured a male’s professional race that saw Sam Long (USA) crowned champion with an overall time of 3:36:00. Today’s victory by Sam Long marked his second victory in just one weeks’ time having also won the Intermountain Health IRONMAN 70.3 North American Championship St. George triathlon on May 6. In-depth race coverage of the Visit Panama City Beach IRONMAN 70.3 Gulf Coast triathlon was shown live on Outside TV, and was the third in a series of 12 IRONMAN 70.3 triathlon events from across globe to be broadcast exclusively on the platform. To watch a replay of the race, visit watch.outsideonline.com/live-events/ironman-70-3.

Long exited the swim in 12^th place, 3:41 back from the leader. Long used a powerful bike split to climb up the leaderboard and enter the second transition area in first place. Lionel Sanders (CAN) who found himself in a similar situation as Long, exited the water in 13^th but he too clawed his way back for a strong second-place finish in the men’s race with a finishing time of 3:39:56. Rounding out the podium with his second third-place finish in a week was Jackson Laundry (CAN) with a finishing time of 3:42:24.

Top five professional men’s results:

The 2023 Visit Panama City Beach IRONMAN 70.3 Gulf Coast triathlon saw nearly 1,400 athletes start the race. The race consisted of a 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike, and 13.1-mile run through Panama City Beach and the surrounding areas. The swim took place in the open waters of the Gulf of Mexico. Once out of the water, athletes transitioned to the bike for a single-loop, flat and fast ride. Closing out their 70.3-mile journey, the three-loop run course is also flat and fast and athletes were able to run along the shoreline before finishing to an energetic finish line at Edgewater Beach & Golf Resort. The 2023 Visit Panama City Beach IRONMAN 70.3 Gulf Coast offered 30 coveted age-group qualifying slots for the 2023 VinFast IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship on August 26-27 in Lahti, Finland.

Official results can be found at www.ironman.com/im703-gulf-coast-results.

Next IRONMAN Events Coming Up

There is a full schedule of IRONMAN-branded events on tap in North America next weekend, Saturday, May 20 & Sunday, May 21. On Saturday, the inaugural IRONMAN 70.3 Morro Bay in Morro Bay, California is also home to one of the most iconic landmarks along the Pacific Coast, the Morro Rock. This event is also one of the newest IRONMAN 70.3 events in the IRONMAN portfolio.

On Sunday, the action continues in two separate locations. Tulsa, Oklahoma will play host to Certified Piedmontese IRONMAN Tulsa as well as IRONMAN 70.3 Tulsa both taking place on the same day. Additionally, IRONMAN 70.3 Chattanooga will host a women’s professional race. IRONMAN 70.3 Chattanooga will be shown live on Outside TV the fourth of 12 broadcast events.

Looking ahead to 2024

The Visit Panama City Beach IRONMAN 70.3 Gulf Coast triathlon will return to Florida’s Panhandle on May 11, 2024. General registration for the 2024 Visit Panama City Beach IRONMAN 70.3 Gulf Coast triathlon will open during the summer months. Athletes are encouraged to visit the event website for more information at, www.ironman.com/im703-gulf-coast-register.

For more information on the 2023 Visit Panama City Beach IRONMAN 70.3 Gulf Coast triathlon visit www.ironman.com/im703-gulf-coast. For more information on the IRONMAN brand and global event series, visit www.ironman.com. Media inquiries may be directed to press@ironman.com.

** Terms and Conditions: Footage and photography is provided courtesy of IRONMAN for news and editorial coverage within 48 hours of the event and is not to be archived. Media may use up to a total of two minutes of video. The B-Roll packages are not provided for the intent of posting the footage in its entirety. Any commercial use or other use of the footage and or photos is strictly prohibited unless a separate written license is obtained from and signed by an authorized representative of IRONMAN. Additional terms and conditions can be found here. Usage of materials constitutes acceptance of terms. **

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About The IRONMAN Group

The IRONMAN Group operates a global portfolio of events that includes the IRONMAN^® Triathlon Series, the IRONMAN^® 70.3^® Triathlon Series, 5150™ Triathlon Series, the Rock ‘n’ Roll^® Running Series, IRONKIDS^® Series, World Triathlon Championship Series, premier running events including the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon™ and City2Surf^®, UTMB^® World Series events including the Canyons Endurance Runs™ by UTMB^®, Tarawera Ultra by UTMB^® and Ultra-Trail Australia™ by UTMB^®, Epic Series™ mountain bike races including the Absa Cape Epic^®, road cycling events including Haute Route^®, and other multisport races. The IRONMAN Group is the largest operator of mass participation sports in the world and provides more than a million participants annually the benefits of endurance sports through the company’s vast offerings. Catering to the full athlete experience, the company portfolio also includes FulGaz^® virtual cycling, the most realistic indoor riding experience connected fitness application aimed at preparing athletes for real-world events. Since the inception of the iconic IRONMAN^® brand and its first event in 1978, athletes have proven that ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE^® by crossing finish lines around the world. Beginning as a single race, The IRONMAN Group has grown to become a global sensation with hundreds of events across 55+ countries. The IRONMAN Group is owned by Advance, a private, family-owned business. For more information, visit www.ironman.com/about-ironman-group.

About Advance 

Advance is a private, family-held business that owns and invests in companies across media, entertainment, technology, communications, education and other promising growth sectors. Our mission is to build the value of our companies over the long-term by fostering growth and innovation. Advance’s portfolio includes Condé Nast, Advance Local, Stage Entertainment, The IRONMAN Group, American City Business Journals, Leaders Group, Turnitin, 1010data and Pop. Together these operating companies employ more than 17,000 people in 29 countries. Advance is also among the largest shareholders in Charter Communications, Warner Bros. Discovery and Reddit. For more information visit www.advance.com.