Ironman Malaysia Features Stellar Field

Saturday's race in Langkawi promises to be a competitive start to the 2007 season

If all the pros registered for Ironman Malaysia make it to the start line on Saturday we could see one of the most competitive races of the year. That is especially true in the women's race, where Nina Kraft makes a return to Ironman racing after serving a one year suspension after she tested positive for EPO at the 2004 Ford Ironman World Championship.

Kraft hardly arrives in Langkawi as the prohibitive favorite, though. Australia's Rebecca Preston, who won Ironman Switzerland and Ironman Austria (two weeks apart, no less) last year, returns to the race after being forced out during the marathon in Langkawi a year ago. (Preston's 30 minute lead off the bike came despite a punctured Achilles tendon suffered in a bike crash just weeks before the race.)

Four-time Ford Ironman Florida champion, Bella Comerford, also appears on the registration list, along with another multiple Ironman winner, Nicole Leder. Both Leder and Comerford typically win events thanks to a strong running leg, while Kraft and Preston have posted their wins after dominating on the bike, then holding off their competition through the marathon. In other words ... we're setting up for an exciting race this weekend!

Included in the men’s field are last year’s runner-up, Chris Lieto, who will face a tough challenge from two-time Malaysia champion Bryan Rhodes of New Zealand. There will be some new contenders, too, including Germany’s Lothar Leder, Sweden’s Bjorn Anderson, Australia’s Andrew Johns and Stephen Bayliss from Great Britain.

More than 700 athletes from around the world are expected to race on Saturday, competing for 35 qualifying slots for the Ford Ironman World Championship in Kona, Hawaii in October.

The day begins with a two-loop swim in Kuah Bay which starts and finishes alongside a giant eagle statue that dominates the Jetty Point port area.

The three-loop bike course features a few steep hills, but despite that promises to be fast.

It is the four-loop run course that makes the race in Langkawi so tough. The terrain isn't that challenging - it's the heat that the athletes face as they go through the marathon that makes things difficult. The beautiful finish line at the Jetty Point area provides welcome relief at the end of a tough day of racing.

We’ll have live coverage of this weekend’s race including live timing data, text updates and pictures, so stay tuned for an exciting weekend of racing in Malaysia.