Triathletes are ready to go

By CASEY OLSON

The Mirror

Organizers of the second annual Reebok Women’s Triathlon are expecting anywhere from 800 to 1,000 athletes to pack Steel Lake Park on race day tomorrow morning.

The Federal Way event is the third of the four-race Reebok Triathlon Series, which also includes stops in Chicago, St. Petersburg, Fla., and San Diego.

Last year, the inaugural Federal Way triathlon drew close to 700 participants for the race, which offers athletes a choice of two different distances — the Sprint competition (.75-kilometer swim, 19.5k bike, and 6.5k run, completed as an individual or relay team), and the SuperSprint (.375k swim, 13k bike, and 3.4k run).

The 2004 race drew rave reviews from fans and participants and was won by one of the most decorated triathletes in the world — Australia’s Michelle Jones. Race organizers flew the 2000 Olympic silver medalist in from California, and she finished the course in 1 hour, 11:58 — six minutes ahead of second-place Amity Hall from New York.

This year, the triathlon won’t have the same star power, according to Patrick Doherty, economic development director for the city of Federal Way.

“That’s too bad they didn’t do that again this time,” he said about Reebok flying in star athletes. “I think they just did that to kick things off.”

Still, preparations for this year’s event are “going fine,” Doherty said. “We are just gearing up for it.”

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