Compiled and fact-checked by Tommo, Verus founder · Last verified August 2026 · Spot an error?
Triathlon · Middle Distance (70.3)
IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong 2027
- Race day
- Sunday, 21 March 2027
- Location
- Geelong, Victoria
- Distance
- 113 km total
1.9km swim 90km bike 21.1km run
IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong: 21 March 2027. Corio Bay swim, a two-lap bike past the salt lakes, a waterfront half marathon — cut-offs and entry.
192 days to go
Key Race Metrics & Overview
- Date
- Sunday, 21 March 2027
- Venue
- Eastern Beach Reserve and Steampacket Gardens, Geelong
- Distance
- Middle Distance (70.3) — 113km total
- Start Time
- A wave start from the beach at Eastern Beach. Exact times are confirmed in the Athlete Information Guide during race week.
- Draft-Legal Bike
- No — non-drafting
- Cut-Off
- Measured from your individual start: 1 hour 10 minutes for the swim and 5 hours for the bike, with riders who miss it collected by the sag wagons. The overall limit is published in the Athlete Information Guide. The bike cut-off here is half an hour tighter than Melbourne’s.
Also this weekend
The weekend also carries an aquabike, an IRONKIDS Aquathon and relay categories.
Leg 1 of 3
Swim — 1.9km
A beach start using a wave format, then 800m out into Corio Bay to the first right-hand turn, 700m back towards shore to another right, 300m more to a final left, and the last 100m to shore — followed by a short run to transition. Calm, protected water.
- Venue
- Corio Bay, Eastern Beach
- Elevation gain
- No official figure published — see notes above
- Surface
- Sheltered bay — calm.
Wetsuit: March water temperatures in Corio Bay average just over 18°C, and the organiser tells athletes to have wetsuits ready. Confirmed against the measured temperature on the day.
Leg 2 of 3
Bike — 90km
Two laps, and unlike Melbourne this one has a climb in it. Out of transition onto Ritchie Boulevard comes the first climb of the day, up to the top of Eastern Beach Road for views over Geelong, then through the Eastern Park Circuit and onto Ryrie Street. A sweeping left onto Point Henry Road takes the course past the salt lakes to the northern tip of the bay, then back south and left onto Portarlington Road for a straight run to a turnaround at Curlewis Golf Club — and then all of it again.
- Venue
- Eastern Park, Point Henry and Portarlington Road
- Elevation gain
- No official figure published — see notes above
- Surface
- Sealed road — mostly flat with one real climb per lap.
Non-drafting
Leg 3 of 3
Run — 21.1km
Two and a half clockwise laps of the Geelong waterfront: out along the Esplanade and through Rippleside Park, back in along the water’s edge, past the Geelong Pier and under the Geelong Star with the TriClub Village on Ritchie Boulevard, then past transition to the far turn at the top of Hearne Parade. The final lap turns right into Steampacket Gardens for the finish.
- Venue
- Geelong waterfront
- Elevation gain
- No official figure published — see notes above
- Surface
- Sealed path — flat.
Wetsuit outlook
Will you need a wetsuit at IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong?
Water temperature at open sea in March has typically been 21.3°C, ranging from 19.1°C to 22.9°C in eight of every ten years. Against IRONMAN / 70.3's thresholds for this race's 1900m swim, that means:
Wetsuit optional — and recommended
Up to and including 24.5°C (76.1°F) every athlete may wear a wetsuit and remain eligible for awards.
What would have happened in each of the last 16 years
- Optional (recommended)15 of 16
- Allowed, no awards1 of 16
What the organiser says
March water temperatures in Corio Bay average just over 18°C, and the organiser tells athletes to have wetsuits ready. Confirmed against the measured temperature on the day.
Calibrated against measured sea-surface data, to within about 1.2°C. The official temperature is taken an hour before the start, and only that reading decides the rule on the day.
Transitions
Transition is at Eastern Beach Reserve, a short walk from the main venue. The swim exit is at the east end of Eastern Beach with a 160m footpath to the transition entry and a drink station just inside. The bike mount line is on Ritchie Boulevard, 100m from transition; the run exit sits just above the footpath you came in on.
IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong Split Calculator
IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong Split-Time Calculator
Enter your own swim, bike and run pace to project a real finish time.
Projected Finish Time
5:38:03
Racing a different distance? Try the generic split calculator or the swim pace calculator.
Where IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong starts and finishes
These are the start and finish points, not the route. Verus doesn't hold course files for this race, and drawing a line between two pins would be a guess you might end up training on. The official course map is the one to use: view it on the organiser's site .
What you can qualify for
IRONMAN 70.3 races award age-group qualifying slots for the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship, published per race and per age group before race day.
Entry & Ballot
Direct entry summary
Registration is open, direct through IRONMAN, at tiered pricing that rises as the race approaches.
Ballot policy
No ballot — entry is direct and tier-priced.
Age requirement
Not published for this event — check the official race website.
Charity Places
Not published for this event — check the official race website.
Race Day Info & Checklist
On the day
- Held in March, at the end of the Australian summer racing season — the organiser pitches it as either the last race of one season or the first of the next.
- The bike cut-off is 5 hours rather than Melbourne’s 5 hours 30, which matters on a course that has climbing in it.
- The run is 2.5 laps rather than the usual two, which catches people out.
- Corio Bay water averages just over 18°C in March, so wetsuits are usually in play.
- The whole course is unusually easy to spectate, with vantage points all along the waterfront.
- On-course fuel is typically PURE Sports Nutrition Electrolyte and Maurten Energy Gels/Bars, the nutrition partners confirmed in official Athlete Information Guides for other Australian IRONMAN races — not independently confirmed for this specific event.
Checklist
- A wetsuit — March in Corio Bay is just over 18°C and the organiser says to have one ready
- A bike plan that accounts for the Eastern Beach Road climb twice, and a 5-hour bike cut-off
- Lap counting sorted before you start the run; it is 2.5 laps, not 2
- Sun protection for a March day and a flat, exposed waterfront run
- Gear bags packed to the published transition process
Transport, Spectating & Where to Stay
Transport
Geelong station is on the V/Line network, about an hour from Southern Cross in Melbourne, and roughly a fifteen-minute walk from the waterfront.
Not published for this event — check the official race website.
Closures along the Geelong waterfront, Ritchie Boulevard, Eastern Park, Point Henry Road and Portarlington Road.
Spectator guide
Eastern Beach for the swim and both transitions, the Geelong Pier and the Geelong Star for the run, and Steampacket Gardens for the finish.
The organiser describes it as a great race for spectators, and the geography backs that up — almost the whole run and both transitions are within a walkable stretch of waterfront.
Where to stay
Geelong waterfront
+ Walk to transition, the swim and the finish, with the whole run course outside the door.
– Limited stock, and it fills for race weekend.
Geelong CBD
+ More choice, a short walk to the waterfront, and next to the station for anyone coming from Melbourne.
– Slightly further on a morning that starts early.
Melbourne
+ Possible as a day trip — the V/Line train is about an hour to Geelong.
– Not on a race morning. The first train is not early enough.
Frequently Asked Questions
When is IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong?
Sunday 21 March 2027, from Eastern Beach Reserve in Geelong, Victoria.
Is the IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong bike course flat?
Mostly, but not entirely. Each of the two laps starts with a climb up Eastern Beach Road out of transition, and the rest runs out past the salt lakes to Point Henry and along Portarlington Road, which is flat.
What are the IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong cut-offs?
From your individual start: 1 hour 10 minutes for the swim and 5 hours for the bike — half an hour tighter than IRONMAN 70.3 Melbourne. Riders who miss it are collected by the sag wagons.
How many laps is the IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong run?
Two and a half, not two. It is a clockwise course along the waterfront, and the half lap catches people out.
Do you need a wetsuit for IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong?
Almost certainly. March water in Corio Bay averages just over 18°C and the organiser tells athletes to have wetsuits ready.
How do you get to Geelong from Melbourne?
V/Line trains run from Southern Cross in about an hour, and Geelong station is roughly a fifteen-minute walk from the waterfront. It is not a viable race-morning trip, though.