“Whoever finishes first will be called the Iron Man!”

Does anybody think of themselves as a super fit human being, at the peak of human physical strength and stamina. So much so that you could take on one of the most physically intense and mentally gruelling challenges this planet has to offer?

Check out the IRONMAN World Championship

In Hawaii, in 1977, there was a debate about whose sport required them to be in better physical shape:  runners or swimmers. However, John Collins, a US Navy Commander, argued that cyclists were the most physically fit. So, Collins, with a number of his military buddies, posed the idea that the best way to find out was to have a big race — and when they said “big”, they meant really BIG!

3 of Hawaii’s existing long distance events were combined to create one super event. These included the 2.4 mile Waikiki Roughwater Swim, the 115 mile Around Oahu Bike Race and the 26.2 mile Honolulu Marathon.

And so, the IRONMAN World Championship was born.

The IRONMAN World Championship is revered around the world for the distance involved and the way it pushes its competitors to their limits. The name was agreed upon at the first event in 1977, when Collins reportedly said, “Whoever finishes first, we’ll call him the Iron Man!”

Collins was afraid that the race wouldn’t get much attention, but, after an article on the event was featured in Sports Illustrated, hundreds of athletes signed up. The event went from strength to strength and is still going strong today.

 Source(s): Polar