President Paul Kagame yesterday received Serge Pereira, CEO of Starstone, an insurance firm, and Cindy Descalzi who the Presidency said are in the country to launch Ironman Triathlon.

The race, expected to take place in Rubavu district in august this year, is one of a series of long distance triathlon races organised by the World Triathlon Corporation.

Ordinarily, most Ironman events have a limited time of 16 or 17 hours to complete the race, depending on the course.

The mandatory cut off time to complete the 2.4-mile (3.86 km) swim is 2 hours 20 minutes, while the mandatory bike cut off time for when an athlete must have completed their swim, transition and bike varies generally between 10 hours and 10 hours 30 minutes.

Any participant who completes the triathlon within these time constraints is designated an Ironman.

It is also widely considered one of the most difficult sporting events in the world, conducted in a single day.

In December last year, Delegates from 16 country members of the Association of Francophone Triathlon Countries (FRATRI) met in Rubavu for a two day General assembly, five years after becoming a member of the body.

The annual event was widely welcomed as a game-changer of the sport in the country.

The news also comes at a time the country aims to position itself as one of Africa’s major destinations for sports events, especially against the backdrop of a successful 2021.