The gruelling Enervon Activ 226 Bohol Triathlon gets off the ground Saturday at The Bellevue Resort in Panglao town in Bohol.
Don Velasco of Sante Barley and Juan Jose Bonnin of Train Bacolod lead the Filipino challenge in major age-group categories vying for honors in the 3.8-kilometer swim, 180-km bike and 42-km run event.
The event is the toughest to conquer with the distances for the three disciplines matching those of the Ironman event.
Christopher McFaul of Singapore is the most notable foreign bet in the 40-44 age bracket which has lured the most number of participants with 23.
Velasco, whose personal best is 11 hours and nine minutes, is one of the favored entries in the 25-29 class.
Bonnin, who will see action in the 50-54 division, timed 15:43 in the 2012 edition while McFaul clocked 14:29 in 2011.
Adding spice to the competition are the nine lady triathletes who are doing the only Ironman distance race in the country.
Cut off time is at 17 hours to finish the entire race.
“We are expecting around 120 participants, mostly top long-distance elite and age-group triathletes,” said Raul Cuevas of organizer Bike King. “It will be a small race compared to the other triathlon races that we organized.” Musong R. Castillo