Ironman China Reviews

Caption: "Power It." After finishing the swim at Haikou's Nandu River, an athlete runs thru the showers in the transition area (TA) and onwards to the bike section. Despite the Ironman name, many participants and pros in this active-lifestyle event are women.



Caption: "Together Stronger." Swimmers prepare in the early morning at Haikou's Nandu River for the swim-portion of the Ironman China competition. Teams and friends often travel and compete together, especially in the co-event 70.3 Ironman China which is part of a 31 event-series held around the world



Caption: "Always higher." Participants from all around the world and especially Asia come to Ironman China in Haikou City "International Tourism Island" to bring out the best in themselves and also for a chance to go to Kona, Hawaii for the key Ironman race.



Caption:Ironman China airs on ESPN International, Universal Sports.Don't miss the dramatic coverage of Ironman China, presented by K-Swiss, which begins appearing on ESPN International and it's networks beginning July 18th and will run through September 4th. Check local listings for the times in your area. The show will also appear on Universal Sports.Two-time Danish Olympian Rasmus Henning and Australia's Charlotte Paul would eventually win the Ironman race. There will also be a quick recap of the Ironman 70.3 event, which was won by Aussies Chris McCormack and Amanda Balding.



Caption: Brad Dillon, Director of Photography Ironman China, based in Singapore, visits Haikou City at Crown Spa Resort Hainan to supervises motorcycle camera crew training for ESPN International filming of race in collaboration with Haikou TV.
Bikes, Motorbikes, and Lots of Practice"It was a thrill to come to Haikou at the invitation of Peter Henning, the tv producer for Ironman China. Peter has filmed and produced the Tour De France for over a decade and is an old hand at doing sports filming. As we are an international competition, the expectations on us are very high to produce a well-organized event for the athletes and also to show the event to the fans at home and around the world. For our ESPN broadcast, there are over 20 million viewers around the world. We partnered with the local Haikou television crew, who had never filmed before from a motorcycle, and held a training session for them prior to the race. I film extensively in Singapore and around Asia, and it is not easy work to film from a moving motorcycle. Safety is first, and we were impressed to see the impressive motorcycles and skilled riders from the local motorcycle club that were helping with the race. After an afternoon of training, our tv crew was excited and ready to go!" said Brad Dillon, Ironman China photography director.



Caption: At five-star Crown Spa Resort Hainan local performers celebrate at the Ironman China awards banquet. 732 participants participated in the inaugural Ironman China race at world-class resorts and Haikou City infrastructure.



Article caption: by Ironman China staff writer
First Things First: What I Do When I Arrive in Haikou
"I fly from San Diego to China and I really enjoy my time in Haikou for the Ironnman China race. It's a great stepping stone to the main Ford Ironman competition in Kona Hawaii. I have been organizing events for over a decade and it is a real pleasure to develop this international competition here in China.
I must say though, that my first stop after I arrive, is not the swim, bike or run race course. It's DC Cheng, the computer mall in the middle of Haikou City. I am a gadget-geek and I love seeing all the new computers, mobile phones and other gadgets available here. On my last visit, after visiting the pearl shop with my required list from my wife back home in the U.S, I couldn't help getting the latest mobile phone at DC Cheng. I went back two times, unfortunately the second time I went with friends who easily convinced me to buy a new smartphone!" said Murphy Reinschreiber, event director.



Caption: 70.3 Ironman China is known as a "destination" event because athletes, friends and family come both for the event and tourism. Hainan's local culture offers a cheerful island atmosphere at the awards banquet held outside in warm short-sleeves weather at five-star Crown Spa Resort Hainan.



Caption: "Jiggy w'it." Kids splash and dance to celebrate at Haikou East West park where Ironman China competitors finished the run portion of the race, often coming in close to midnight, even though their test of endurance had started in the early morning coconut-island sunlight of Hainan.



Ironman China is a"Destination Event" at Haikou, Hainan: International Tourist Island
Ironman China is held in Haikou, Hainan, China each year. It is part of a famous triathlon event called Ironman that started in Hawaii, U.S.A., and now is held in over 33 countries around the world. Although Ironman is considered even tougher than the Olympic triathlon, the fame of Ironman is not only about swimming, cycling and running the farthest. Actually, the competition started amongst friends and to this day it is the energy of athletes, friends and family in sport competition that is the true spirit of the event. Haikou, an international tourist island, is the first to hold the event in China. The beautiful weather, clear skies, and combination of modern-city infrastructure and charm of historic and rural villages make this a unique"destination" event for athletes, family and tourists visiting the city.



Ironman: A History That Began With a Challenge amongst Friends
Why does she do it? Tereza Mazel is a 36-year-old Canadian woman who has won the Ironman in Korea and was fourth in the race in the state of Florida, USA. She came to Haikou in 2009 for the Ironman China race, saying,"I heard that the bike course was very scenic and interesting, and overall the race sounded great from friends who had done it." Tereza joins a long Ironman history of friends doing challenges together. "The idea for the original Ironman Triathlon arose during the awards ceremony for the 1977 Oahu Perimeter Relay (a running race for 5-person teams) in Hawaii, USA. Among the participants were numerous representatives of the two local sports clubs, the Mid-Pacific Road Runners and the Waikiki Swim Club, whose members had long been debating which athletes were more fit, runners or swimmers." In many ways this is similar to the growing local Haikou and Shanghai Bike clubs working closely with Ironman China.
The Ironman Triathlon was the first major competition to extend the distance to an extreme endurance event. One of the founders, John Collins pointed out that a recent article had declared that Eddy Merckx, the great European cyclist from Belgium, had the highest recorded "oxygen uptake" of any athlete ever measured, so perhaps cyclists were more fit than anyone. He suggested that the debate should be settled through a race combining the three existing long-distance competitions already on the island. The debate was on, who is the greatest athlete? Together with some friends, they wrote up the rules, "Swim 2.4 miles! Bike 112 miles! Run 26.2 miles! Brag for the rest of your life."
With a nod to a local runner who was notorious for his demanding workouts, Collins said, "Whoever finishes first, we'll call him the Iron Man." Today, in Haikou another local cyclist, Shenghai Wu,is maybe starting his own legend, he is riding his bike around Hainan for 24-hours non-stop as a challenge. He will then attempt 36-hours in January. Maybe he is starting his own Iron"life."
Author: Ironman China staff writer




Rasmus Henning, 2009 Ironman China champion and two-time Olympic triathlon athlete from Denmark poses with five-star Crown Spa Resort staff, saying about the Haikou racecourse,"The conditions are pretty similar to Hawaii." (Photo credit: Crown Plaza)

Special"6+1" Haikou Fun Tours

If you are looking for the best routes to amuse yourself in Haikou, the Haikou Tourism Bureau has launched the premium tourism brand - "6 +1", a series of high-quality tourist routes that will be your best guide. Climb the ten thousand year old volcano, and gain an insight into a masterpiece created by nature; stroll along the hundred year old streets whilst listening to the echoes of history; see the "Impression • Hainan Island" show and experience a different kind of artistic feast; play quality golf as the blue sea and coconut trees move with unconstrained passion; have a dip in a hot spring spa as a bonus for your tired skin; eat a delicious seafood meal and let your taste buds open and enjoy a private journey.
Climb a Volcano
Leiqiong Haikou volcanic cluster is a world geological park located in Haikou's, southwestern town of Shisan, only 15 kilometers away from the downtown urban area. It is China's most complete volcano with abundant lava tunnels and the only example in the whole country; it is rare worldwide to have a dormant volcano cluster so near to a city.
There are more than 30 lava tunnels within the scenic area with their caves in a formation similar to an underground maze which people find fascinating. Volcanic cones, craters, ancient basalt villages, as well as production facilities for everyday items made from lava are scattered all around as if in a world made from basalt, During your ramble you will praise not only the craftsmanship of its heavenly creator but also the dream-like resemblance to paradise on earth!
Strolling through the arcades




A Century of Wind and Rain for the Arcades
Haikou's Qilou Arcades form the city's most exotic street landscapes. They radiate out from the old city district and include Zhongshan Road, Deshengsha Road, Xinhua Road, 4th Liberation Road, Po-ai Road and Changdi Road. On June 10th, 2009, during the first "Chinese Historical and Culture Streets Selection Promotion", Haikou's arcaded streets, with their fusion of European and Asian architectural epitomising the unique style of mixed cities in Europe and Asia Southeast, was one of the ten street areas to win the title of "Chinese Historical and Cultural street". Wander around the Qilou Arcades and appreciate the changes in Haikou city over a hundred years!
The Qilou Arcades bear witness to the great changes of the last one hundred years in the development of Haikou City. They have also watched an older generation of Hainan Overseas Chinese from Southeast Asia return home in their later years with a locally-rooted sense of national identity typified by the variegated white facades, delicately arched porticos - many with relief pattern finishes - French blue shutters and the pungent floating aroma of coffee. Although the buildings cannot speak, they still narrate the history of change and the continuity of life, like an inadvertent moving time tunnel



Golf
When the North of China is covered with silvery white fluttering snow, in Haikou, where the sea meets the sky, it is still spring and the breeze warm and genial. Invite three or five close friends to shoulder their golf bags and set off on a memorable island golf tour. At the seaside, lakeside, mountainside or park golf courses, swing your clubs to your hearts content as you wander next to the blue sea and sky and amongst the whirling coconut palms. Rush towards the greens with the utmost unconstrained liberty and sporting passion!



Soak in a hot spring spa
SPA hydrotherapy not only removes fatigue, but also through its mineral-rich hot spring water, can be used to treat patients with skin ailments. This has already become a popular trend amongst the world's physiotherapists. Haikou is very rich in hot spring resources, , especially tropical volcanic hot springs along the coast and tops the nation's list of such resources. Along the west coast of Haikou, spa hotels can be found everywhere; for the beauty-conscious women, bathing in the an atmosphere of heavy mist with fragrant petals falling into the aromatherapy SPA bubble pool, is the best way to reward beauty.




Eat Seafood
When traveling in Haikou, enjoying an authentic, fresh seafood meal is an essential part of the journey. A wide variety of fresh seafood at reasonable prices allows you to rush to a feast of unprecedented taste. Seafood delicacies in all sorts of colors abound! A dazzling display of shrimp, crab, fish and shellfish is a feast for the eyes, bon appetite! Perfectly cooked, fresh, plump seafood delicacies, invite you to gorge yourself then enjoy the lingering aftertaste.



Impression Hainan
Surging sea, happy ocean, illusory paradise.the audience sits in the stands of the sea urchin theater, as if they were on a continuous sand beach. Produced by famous director Zhang Yimou, with Wang Chaoge and Fan Yue as co-directors (following their production of "Iron Triangle), "Impression • Hainan Island," is adorned with beautiful lighting effects and shocking sound effects which bring us back into the embrace of the sea and an infinite expanse of ocean reverie; truly a joyful local island and seaside experience.

Third Haikou fire balloon festival begins

Dongzhai Harbour National Nature Reserve

Covering an area of 3337 hectares and located in Haikou Meilan District's Dongzhaigang State-level Nature Protection Area, is China's first protected mangrove forest nature area. In 1992 it was included on the list produced by the "International Important Wetlands Convention". This is China's largest mangrove forest ecological community and has the largest abundance of domestic varities with 17 families and 34 species of mangrove trees.

Deshengsha Qilou Arcades

Every time you walk down Deshengsha Old Street, you will always find the strong sense of South East Tradition bewildering

Hairui Tomb

Hai Rui's life was an upright and honest one and therefore subsequent generations respect and cherish his memory. In 1982, the local government re-built Hairui Memorial Park and on Hai Rui Memorial Day (February 20th of the lunar year), local people still come to pay their respects to him.

China leiqiong Haikou Volcanic Cluster Global Geopark

With an area of 108 km2, China Leiqiong Global Geopark(Haikou Scenic-Shishan Volxanic Cluster) is spread in Shishan Town and Yongxing Town,15 km southwest from the center of Hailkou City.
Possessing more than 40 Quaternary volcanoes,the Geopark boasts the variety of volcanoes,the grotesqueness of lava tunnels,all are volcanic wonders,rarely seen anywhere.Volcanoes,formed ten thousand years ago and volcanic stone culture,started a thousand years ago,fused together with tropical vegetation flora,all have created a particular geopark in tropical city,which characterized by volcanic landscape,tropical ecology and volcanic stone culture.
Having concentrated sightseeing throngh the mystical volcano,ecological and cultural experiencing,science popularizing and scientific investigation,recreation and vacationg in anintegrity,the Geopark became a new type of tour destinaton,also a specific brabd in Hainan international tourist island.
It belongs to China and the world as well as to Hainan Province.

Introduction to Maanling Crater Scenic Area

Mt.Maanling(Saddle) Crater Scenic Area,as a mark scenic area for the Shishan Vclcanic Cluster Geopark,consists of two major volcanoes-Mt,Fengluling(Furnace) and Mt,Baoziling.It looks like a saddle,hence the name.There are two parasitic volcanoes beside called Mt.Yanjingling.Four volcanoes made up a volcanic family.
There are numerous scenic spots in the area such as Basalt Garden,Corridor of amusing rocks,lava flow,grotesque Pahoehoe flow,mystical craters and volcanc stone implements,which fused with banyan trees,wild pineappls and tropic orchards,remarkably presenting the beauty and grotesqueness of volcano in tropical environment.