Good for China. I hope it takes off!

Cool. Always wanted to see China :)

and everyone is expecting a full IM in Dalian city, where Wanda's headquarter is located.

Do you know if these are 2016 or 2017 plans?

Great country. You will really enjoy, at least I do as soon as I get over the big brother overlooking what i am doing part of things! I've been there 15x or so via work, but not had the opportunity to really see what I want to see. It is also a massive place and like the US going from North to South is remarkably different (diff between Harbin and Hangzhou may as well be Maine to Miami). Lots of variety across the land.

No full IM China in 2016. Not sure about this 70.3 Hefei. Will update if I hear more news.

I came from China 15 years ago. Only been back there once (in 2013), so maybe you've seen more of the newer China than me. ;-)

That would be amazing - definitely take one of the charcoal pollution masks though. Used to live in China (several locations) and was more often than not sick with "bronchitis" / pneumonia" / call the wracking cough whatever you like, and it all turned out to be from the particulates since even "good" days are not clean.That said, I absolutely loved my overall experience so if races show up in China, I'll be there!

So far, WTC has visited six Chinese cities as possible 2016 venues: Dalian, Hefei, Wuhan, Chengdu, Xiamen & Guangzhou.

How come no full in 2016?
Cheers
R

That's just the last rumour I heard.

So this is for real now. And again, 50 slots to 70.3 worlds 2017 in Chattanooga and 15 slots to KONA 2017.

Hefei to host IRONMAN 70.3 triathlon in 2016

2016-01-07 15:27:45

HEFEI, Jan. 7 (Xinhua) -- An IRONMAN 70.3 triathlon will be held this year in Hefei, east China's Anhui Province, announced Hefei Municipal Government and Wanda Group, the owner of World Triathlon Corporation (WTC) in a press conference here on Thursday.

An Ironman 70.3, also known as a Half Ironman, is one of a series of long distance triathlon races organized by the WTC. The "70.3" refers to the total distance in miles (113.0 km) covered in the race, consisting of a 1.2-mile (1.9 km) swim, a 56-mile (90 km) bike ride, and a 13.1-mile (21.1 km) run.

Florida-based WTC, organizer of the Ironman triathlon series, has a 91-percent share of the long-distance triathlon market.

To attract more athletes to participate in the event, the Hefei triathlon will offer 50 qualifying slots for the 2017 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA, and 15 qualifying slots for the 2017 IRONMAN World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.

The competition is estimated to be held in October, and more information will be released soon, according to Gao Xiaoguang, a spokesman of Hefei municipal government.

A map showing where the city of Hefei is inside China, just a bit west of Shanghai.

Hopefully they have a good turnout and do it again in 2017, so sign up everyone! (I'm out for swimming until late summer so probably won't be able to go, but used to live in China and would love a chance to go back for an event like this, and 2017 is perfect).

Cool, another 15 KQ slots too! Get over there everyone, it should be a blast!

I see average high of 23C and average low of 13C in October. What body of water would be used?

Also got this from wikipedia:

Air[edit]
Hefei Xinqiao International Airport replaced the old Hefei Luogang International Airport and started its operation on 30 May 2013. This new domestic aviation hub is located at Gaoliu Village, west Hefei City. The first arriving flight was China Eastern Airlines flight MU5172 from Beijing Capital International Airport. The first departing flight was China Eastern Airlines MU5468 to Shanghai Pudong International Airport. Hefei Xinqiao International Airport provides scheduled passenger service to major airports in China and international cities as well. The international destinations include Hong Kong, Macau, Taipei (Taoyuan and Sung Shan), Kaohsiung, Seoul, Jeju, Singapore, Osaka and Bangkok.

Our readers are so smart http://www.slowtwitch.com/...efei_China_5585.html

Very excited about this! I've raced Beijing International Tri - great race and I can say from experience that in very few countries will an athlete be treated with so much dignity and respect, amateur and pro alike.

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#KISPERFORMANCE

How are the 15 KQ slots going to work? You'd need 24-26 to have one for each AG.

Figure there's an AG consolidation at play?

When you're in Hefei or any of the other places in China that WTC is now obviously going to mine for profits, maybe you can inquire as to the whereabouts of this gentleman? How quickly we forget. It's shameful.

Why not ask Michael Phelps to return his 8 gold medals won in Beijing?

Let's keep this a triathlon forum, please! (I'm against that party, trust me, that's one of the reasons I left that country in the first place.)

Do you really want to get into all the countries who host triathlons... that have also committed atrocities against humanity? Can think of plenty of races in U.S. and Germany, to name just two...

Lighten up.

Sure, help me out and name the cities in the US that commit "atrocities" on par w/ w/ what the Chinese do/ did. Louisville? San Diego? Austin? Dude, I'm laughing even typing this.

First - you are condemning a nation, not cities.

Why don't you speak with some ancestors of African slaves? How about you talk with some Native Americans? How about you talk to the Japanese who were vaporized. How about you talk to the ancestors of Japanese-Americans (US citizens) who were interred in their own country. We could go on and on.

I love America as much as anyone...but you can not be ignorant to the fact that the U.S. has acted horribly over the years.

Of course, you look like you are taking the mantle of ST troll. Good for you.

You will end up like all those before you, humored a bit, then ignored.

This is my last reply to you.