Ironman 70.3 Staffordshire: All you need to know

Ironman races into town this weekend.

Ironman 70.3 Staffordshire: All you need to know

This year's annual Ironman event arrives in Stafford this weekend and here's a lowdown of what to expect, where you can cheer on the athletes and details of minimal disruption around town with limited road closures.

Hundreds of athletes, their families and friends will start arriving in Stafford on Friday in preparation for the showpiece event which takes place this coming Sunday 11th June.

The Course

The 70.3 will begin with a 1.2 mile swim around Chasewater early Sunday morning. Competitors are expected to set off at around 7:30am. After they've completed the loop, they'll then transition onto their bikes for a 56 mile ride through the Staffordshire countryside including the Cannock Chase are, Great Haywood, Tixall and into Stafford town Centre. 
Once they have completed the bike course -  they will then run 13.1 miles in a two and a half loop around the town which will give spectators the opportunity to see the athletes multiple times as they run alongside the River Sow, into the town centre and up towards Stafford Castle.
This year's finish line has been switched to South Walls, due to the redevelopment work in the Market Square.

Spectators are advised to arrive early and those wishing to cheer on the athletes should take up their positions after 10am. 
Spectator hotpots include Chasewater Country Park, Stafford town centre and Stafford Castle.





 

Traffic Disruption
Organisers have made efforts to keep any disruption to minimum, but there will be a number of road closures in place this weekend in preparation for and during the Ironman event.

The bike route will start at Chasewater before heading north of Burntwood and Lichfield, through Kings Bromley and Yoxall and then head towards Draycott-in-the-Clay. The route then turns west and south past Bagot’s Wood and Admaston towards Rugeley. Cyclists will turn onto Bower Lane, around roads on Cannock Chase and back before heading to Wolseley Bridge and into Stafford via Tixall.

Roads in Stafford affected include Tixall Road, Blackheath Lane, Dartmouth Street, Fairway and roads around the town centre. Riverway will remain open this year, though South Walls will be closed from Friday until Sunday. 

Tixall Road up towards Blackheath Lane will be closed 08:30 - 14:30 on Sunday. Other key closures include; Newport Road will be open Westbound only between 08:30 - 16:30. 

Find out even more by visiting the Ironman 70.3 Staffordshire website which will also keep you across the information.

You can also tune in to 107.3 Stafford FM for accurate travel information across the weekend.