New Life Time Fitness Triathlon Series to Link Premier New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Minneapolis Triathlon Events; Groundbreaking Series to Offer Cash and Prize Purse of More Than $1,000,000
EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–May 31, 2006–Life Time Fitness, Inc. (NYSE:LTM), a national operator of distinctive and large health and fitness centers, today announced the launch of the Life Time Fitness Triathlon Series in partnership with the Nautica New York City Triathlon, Accenture Chicago Triathlon, Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Triathlon, and the Life Time Fitness Triathlon, which is held in Minneapolis and broadcast nationally on NBC.
In groundbreaking fashion, the Life Time Fitness Triathlon Series the will be first-ever series to connect the four most prominent Olympic distance triathlon events in the United States and will offer a total prize purse of more than $1,000,000. To be held annually, the Series will commence in New York and end in Minneapolis, as follows: – Nautica New York City Triathlon - July 16, 2006 – Accenture Chicago Triathlon - August 27, 2006 – Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Triathlon - September 10, 2006 – Series Championship: Life Time Fitness Triathlon - Minneapolis - July 2007
“The Life Time Fitness Triathlon Series brings new innovation to the sport of triathlon,” said Bahram Akradi, Life Time Fitness, chairman and chief executive officer. “In connecting the nation’s four premier triathlon events, we will further elevate the drama, excitement and prize money within this premier, healthy-way-of-life sport. Beginning with the first Life Time Fitness Triathlon in 2002, we committed to deliver one of the best endurance sporting events in the world. In keeping with this commitment, we are proud to partner with these world-class events and look forward to all of the benefits that this new series will bring.”
“The Life Time Fitness Triathlon Series is the first to link the four major Olympic distance Triathlon events,” said Jack Caress, race director for the Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Triathlon. “It also will drive media and consumer awareness, and athlete participation in a manner never before achieved in the history of the sport.”
John Korff, race director of the Nautica New York City Triathlon added, “The Nautica Triathlon is proud to be part of the Life Time Fitness Triathlon Series. Through this groundbreaking effort, we will drive increased recognition of the world’s elite four Olympic distance events and, by extension, the sport overall.”
“We are extremely excited to partner with the benchmark triathlon events in Los Angeles, Minneapolis and New York,” said Jan Caille, producer of the Accenture Chicago Triathlon - currently the largest triathlon in the world by participation. “The Series features the Olympic distance established by the 2000 and 2004 Summer Games, and comes at a time when the World is experiencing exploding growth in the sport’s participation.”
Professional Division / Prize Purse
Professional triathlete participation in the Life Time Fitness Series events is by invitation only. Event prize purse details are as follows:
Event Date Total Prize Purse
New York July 16, 2006 $40,000
Chicago August 27, 2006 $67,000
Los Angeles September 10, 2006 $52,000
Life Time Fitness July 2007 $500,000
Series Championship Bonus(a) $400,000
Total Life Time Fitness Series Purse $1,059,000
(a) A professional male and/or female triathlete (or both) who winseach of the four Life Time Fitness Triathlon Series events in a givenSeries year will win the Series bonus of $200,000.
Elite Amateur Qualifiers
The New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago events also will serve as elite amateur qualifying events for the Life Time Fitness Series Championship in Minneapolis. The top five male and female elite amateur finishers from the first three Series events (30 total) will qualify for a race entry to the Series Championship, along with complementary airfare and lodging.
Life Time Fitness Triathlon Series Championship
Held in Minneapolis, the internationally renowned Life Time Fitness Triathlon raised the bar in the sport of triathlon in 2003 with its history making $500,000 cash and prize purse and national NBC broadcast television coverage. Adding even more drama, the event’s professional division features a unique timing format that allows a world-class field of professional women and men to compete on equal ground. Based upon past Life Time Fitness Triathlon course results along with the results of several Olympic distance events worldwide, this timing structure allow professional women to start ahead of the professional men by a predetermined amount of time, resulting in a new and innovative competition structure and an exciting race to the finish.
About the Life Time Fitness Triathlon Series Events
The four Series triathlon events will continue to be owned and operated independently. The Accenture Chicago Triathlon (chicagotriathlon.com) is produced by Creative & Production Resources, Inc (CAPRI Events). The Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Triathlon (LATriathlon.com) is produced by Pacific Sports LLC. The Nautica New York City Triathlon (nyctri.com) is produced by Korff Enterprises. The Life Time Fitness Triathlon (ltftri.com) is produced by Life Time Fitness, Inc. For more information, visit the respective event Web sites.
About Life Time Fitness, Inc.
Life Time Fitness, Inc. (NYSE:LTM) operates distinctive and large sports and athletic, professional fitness, family recreation and resort/spa centers. As of May 31, 2006, the Company operated 49 centers in nine states, including Arizona, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Texas and Virginia. The Company also provides consumers with personal training consultation, full-service spas and cafes, corporate wellness programs, health and nutrition education, the healthy lifestyle magazine - Experience Life, athletic events, and nutritional products and supplements. Life Time Fitness is headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minnesota (www.lifetimefitness.com). LIFE TIME FITNESS, the LIFE TIME FITNESS logo, and EXPERIENCE LIFE are registered trademarks of Life Time Fitness, Inc. All other trademarks or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
