Chennai to host India’s first-ever Olympic-distance triathlon under IRONMAN banner
Chennai to host India’s first-ever Olympic-distance triathlon under IRONMAN banner
India is set to host its first-ever Olympic-distance triathlon under the IRONMAN banner as the city of Chennai gears up for the prestigious 5150 endurance race on January 11, 2026. The event will be flagged off from the MGM Beach Resort on East Coast Road (ECR).
The said event will feature a 1.5 km swim, 40 km bike ride, and a 10 km run. Introduced globally in 2011, the 5150 gets its name from the sum total of these distances.
The event also saw an MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) exchange between Deepak Raj, country head of IRONMAN India, and J. Meghanatha Reddy, IAS, CEO and member secretary of the Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu, to mark the introduction of the duathlon series, another globally recognised racing programme that includes multiple formats like the sprint duathlon (5 km run, 20 km cycle, and 2.5 km run), Olympic duathlon (10 km run, 40 km cycle, and 5 km run), and the IRONKIDS for children aged 6–16 (1 km, 2 km, and 3 km runs).
Udhayanidhi Stalin, Deputy Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, said the State government has pledged full support to the event while addressing the gathering at a city hotel.
He said, “Our Hon’ble Chief Minister has sanctioned an amount of INR 3 crore to successfully conduct this event. With this, India becomes only the third country in Asia and sixth in the world to conduct this prestigious format of the IRONMAN. The swimming event is scheduled to be certified, cycling will take place on the ECR towards Mahabalipuram, and the running event will be on the sea-facing road along ECR. Around 300 triathletes, 200 duathletes, and a large number of IRONKIDS are expected to participate in this event.”
The launch of a Chennai chapter marks a historic milestone in Indian endurance sports, one that hopes to build on the expanding footprint of IRONMAN in the country. The banner had debuted with a 70.3 in Goa in 2019, and has since drawn over 1,200 athletes from 50 nations across four editions.
Published on Sep 05, 2025
