In the second of our Iconic Events series, Annie Emmerson takes a look a a race which is celebrating its quarter century this year and has seen its fair share of British involvement over that time. The fact that it's held on the Gulf Coast of Florida may have something to do with that!

The roots of the St Anthony’s Triathlon can be traced back to 1984 when the event was called the Tampa Bay Triathlon and was part of the 10-city US Triathlon Series. Back then, the event was held at Fort DeSoto and 600 athletes took part in the standard distance race. The following year, St Anthony’s Hospital ( a private, non-profit health care organization) gained ownership of the event and moved it to downtown St Petersburg, Florida, where it has remained ever since.

The history

In 1988 the hospital expanded the event from one to two days and included a sprint-distance triathlon for children. In 1993, organizers added an adult division to the race. Both divisions combined in 1994 and became the Meek & Mighty Triathlon held on Saturdays before the big race. In the same year, the St Anthony’s Triathlon became an official stop on the 'Triathlon Pro Tour' and was one of only twelve prestigious races in the world. In those days the event also served as a qualifying race for the Ironman World Triathlon Championship in Hawaii. In 1999, the International Triathlon Union chose the St Anthony’s Triathlon as the Pan-Am Games qualifying event for US athletes and designated the race as an ITU points race. After two successful years as an ITU points race, St Anthony’s was awarded World Cup status. For three years, it was the only US race to host an ITU Triathlon World Cup.

In 2004, St Anthony’s ended its relationship with ITU, but the competition continues to grow and build on its reputation as one of the USA's premier events. Named America’s 'Best Urban Triathlon' by Inside Triathlon, it also was awarded 'Race of the Year' by USA Triathlon in 1995 and 'Best Event (over 500 participants)' by Florida Sports Magazine in 2002. event. It is one of St Petersburg’s longest running sports events.

The 2006 event began with individual registrations selling out in five hours, the fastest in the race’s history. The record-breaking momentum continued when the top two male professional triathletes; Rasmus Henning (DEN) and Hunter Kemper (USA), broke a 14-year record (1:47:25) set in 1992 by our very own Spencer Smith with a 1:46:14 and 1:46:54 finish respectively.

Course highlights

In 1993 Spencer Smith won the race, his debut racing in the States, and he won it again in 1997. We asked him about the course and what he remembers about the race.

"The race is the first big race of the year in the USA, and it's always in the last week of April. The course is an ocean swim and with strong winds being common on the coast the swim can be a choppy affair, with athletes more often than not finding themselves battling the waves to sight the buoys. For the pros there's no wetsuits. The course on the bike is quite technical as it does have a few turns, it is flat and fast though. The run likewise is flat and fast and goes out and back along the coast and takes in some of St Petersburg's very posh neighborhoods. It's a very, very well organized race, with a great atmosphere and holds a lot of clout on the US circuit.

2008 milestone: 25th anniversary

The 2008, the St Anthony’s Triathlon commemorates a major milestone as it celebrates its 25th anniversary as one of the largest Olympic-distance triathlons in the United States. The race, still sponsored and produced by St Anthony’s Health Care, takes place this year on Sunday, April 27th.

"From its humble beginnings in 1984 with only 600 athletes, St Anthony’s Triathlon has become an integral part of our community, bringing in thousands of spectators, participants and volunteers for a weekend focused on fitness and fun", said St Anthony’s Health Care President, William Ulbricht.

Known for its scenic course along the downtown St Petersburg waterfront, the event now attracts more than 4,000 individual competitors and 100 relay teams from more than 45 states and 17 countries. In its 25-year history, the race has hosted some of the top champions from around the world, and this year is no exception. "This is an important and exciting year for us", said Philip LaHaye, event director. "We are thrilled to continue to draw such high-calibre competition to St Anthony’s Triathlon. Having these elite athletes participate in the event attests to the level of competition and the world-class reputation of St. Anthony’s Triathlon".

Past winners

Over the years the race has seen some of the biggest names in the sport race and take part: Mark Allen (USA), Mike Pigg (USA), Greg Welch (AUS), Scott Molina (USA), Spencer Smith (GBR), Kirsten Hanssen (USA), Colleen Cannon (USA), Karen Smyers (USA), Tim Deboon (USA) and Simon Lessing (GBR).

From 2001 to 2007 the winners were as follows: 2001; Carol Montgomery (CAN) and Simon Whitfield (CAN), 2002; Michellie Jones (AUS) and Sylvain Dodet (FRA), 2003; Laura Bennett (USA) and Tim Don (GBR), 2004; Michelle Jones (AUS) and Craig Walton (AUS), 2005; Becky Lavelle (USA) and Greg Bennett (AUS), 2006; Becky Lavelle (USA) and Rasmus Henning (DEN), 2007; Matt Reed (USA) and Michelle Dillon (GBR).

Ones to watch

Ones to watch at this years race will be 2007 Triathlete Magazine Short-course Athlete of the Year, and former winner, Greg Bennett (AUS); 2007 winner, Matt Reed (USA); 2007 Ford Ironman World Champion, Chris McCormack (AUS) and 2007 Ford Ironman World Championship runner-up, Craig Alexander (AUS).

Heading the women's field will be former winner, Laura Bennett (USA); 2007 Ford Ironman Championship runner-up, Samantha McGlone (CAN); 2007 Ford Ironman 70.3 World Champion, Mirinda Carfrae (AUS) and 2007 XTERRA World Champion, Julie Dibens.

For information go to the event's website: www.satriathlon.com

Images for this article have come from a variety of sources including the ITU, the official St Petersburg website and the St Anthony's organisation. All rights are reserved.