All systems go for Rainbow Beach Triathlon despite date change

Organisers say the popularity of the Triathlon surged last year when it became one of the first events of its kind to go ahead despite the lingering COVID-19 pandemic.

Competetors sprint off the line and dive into the Rainbow beach Triathlon.

The date may have been changed only this week, but expressions of interest are still pouring in for the ever-popular Rainbow Beach Triathlon.

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Originally scheduled to go ahead across August 7 and 8, Triathlon organisers this week made the decision to bring the event forward by one week to avoid a clash with the Rainbow Beach Trail Festival.

Day two of a past Rainbow Beach triathlon at Rainbow Beach. Photo Craig Warhurst/The Gympie Times.

Triathlon organiser Phil Hungerford said while the date change had caused headaches for a small number of potential participants, the new dates were still generating plenty of buzz.

“You throw your hand up with dates at the moment because of COVID and everybody’s moving around, the trail run uses the beach and we thought it would be better to move to accommodate them,” Mr Hungerford said.

“We don’t want to upset the locals or the running of Rainbow Beach because it’s such a great place.

“Our social media has been smashed in the last week, ever since we announced we were coming back.

“Most people are happy with the date change, we’re very happy with the way things are going in that area.”

Mr Hungerford said the popularity of the Triathlon surged last year when it became one of the first events of its kind to go ahead despite the lingering COVID-19 pandemic.

“We were one of the first triathlons back last year and we had our best field ever, we had 200+ or something enter for it,” he said.

“We had a lot of work to do in getting our plan right, we had great co-operation with police and everyone in the area who help out to make sure we had a good weekend.”

Mr Hungerford said registrations for the event were expected to open some time this week.

Head to www.rainbowbeachtriathlon.com.au to stay tuned on registrations.