Medical support during an Ironman 70.3 triathlon race

Abstract

Background: The Ironman 70.3 race is also called a half Ironman, and consists of 1.9 km of swimming, 90.1 km of cycling, and 21.1 km of running. The authors provide practical insights that may be useful for medical support in future events by summarizing the process and results of on-scene medical care. Methods: The medical post was established at the transition area between the cycling and running courses, which was close to the finish line, and staffed with the headquarters team comprised of an emergency physician, an EMT, two nurses, and an ambulance with a driver. The other five ambulances were located throughout the course. The medical staff identified participants according to their numbers when providing medical support, and described complaints, treatment provided, and disposition. When treating non-participants, gender and age were recorded instead of numbers. The treatment records were analyzed after the race. Results: The medical team treated a total of 187 participants. One suffered cramps in the calf muscles during the swimming part of the course. Nineteen were treated for injuries suffered during the cycling race. A total of 159 were treated for injuries on the running course. Five casualties, all of which occurred during the cycling race, required transport to hospital. Conclusions: Medical directors preparing medical support during a triathlon event should expect severe injuries in the cycling course. In hot climates, staff may also suffer from heat injuries as well as runners, and proper attention should be paid to these risks.

Injuries in Medium to Long-Distance Triathlon: A Retrospective Analysis of Medical Conditions Treated in Three Editions of the Ironman Competition

“…The previously reported hospitalisation rate for triathlonrelated medical conditions ranges between 2.1 and 3.2 %, while the hospital stays rarely exceed 24 hours (Gosling et al, 2010;Laird and Johnson, 2012;Yang et al, 2017). Rates favourably compare with the actual hospitalisation rate (3.1%) found in our study; however, in our series, the candidates for hospitalisation were 8.1% (n = 29).…”

Cycling is the most important predictive split discipline in professional Ironman® 70.3 triathletes

“…The Ironman ® 70.3, also known as the half-distance Ironman ® triathlon, involves a 1.9 km swim, 90 km cycle, and 21.1 km run (1). It has been gaining popularity, as evidenced by an increase in both the number of races and competitors in recent years (1)(2)(3). This surge in interest has prompted a rise in scientific research focused on this triathlon distance.…”

Predicting overall performance in Ironman 70.3 age group triathletes through split disciplines

“…Triathlon is a multi-sports discipline that includes swimming, cycling and running 1 . Triathlon races are held over different distances: sprint distance (i.e., 750 m swimming, 20 km cycling, and 5 km running) 2 , Olympic distance (i.e., 1.5 km swimming, 40 km cycling, and 10 km running) 3 , half-distance Ironman ® triathlon (Ironman ® 70.3) (i.e., 1.9 km swimming, 90 km cycling, and 21.1 km running) 4 , full-distance Ironman ® triathlon (i.e., 3.8 km swimming, 180 km cycling and 42.195 km running) 5 , and ultra-triathlons (i.e., longer or multiple times the full-distance Ironman ® ) 6 .…”