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Tempe Town Lake Ready For Ironman Arizona

Tempe Town Lake, the centerpiece and swim course for next month's Ironman Arizona event, is set to re-open this Tuesday, Oct. 26. See photos in the article.

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This post was originally published on October 22, 2010. Tempe Town Lake, the centerpiece and swim course for next month’s Sunday’s Ironman Arizona event, has re-opened. View images of the Ironman Arizona swim course as of October 22.

The lake plays a vital role in the area's triathlon community. Photo: Nils Nilsen

The City of Tempe will hold a re-opening ceremony for Tempe Town Lake this Tuesday at 7:45 a.m. at the lake. The opening comes just over 90 days after a bladder holding the dam together burst, emptying the lake and putting into question the fate of the lake’s fall triathlons, including Ironman Arizona. While the lake will be re-opened in plenty of time for the Nov. 21 Ironman event, the other triathlons were not as lucky. Three triathlons, all organized by local company Red Rock Co., were first turned into duathlons before eventually being cancelled all together.

Ironman Arizona will welcome a who’s who of triathlon with three-time Ironman world champion Chrissie Wellington highlighting the professional field. Other confirmed pros include Samantha McGlone, Chris Lieto, Linsey Corbin, Rasmus Henning and Matt Reed. Edited to add: Other pro names like defending men’s champion Jordan Rapp, Timo Bracht and Leanda Cave have also added their names to the mix. Continue to check back to Triathlete.com as we continue to cover the race.

See images of the lake as of Friday, Oct. 22 below: