Coolangatta is Queensland’s most southerly coastal town, the gateway to the Gold Coast and Northern New South Wales. Located on the border near its twin town of Tweed Heads 100kms south of Brisbane and 900kms north of Sydney, Coolangatta is the perfect spot to enjoy a relaxing holiday tempered with the excitement of the Gold Coast just minutes away. And is where you could enjoy exciting beach activities and recreational sites. One of which is the enduring sporty activity, the 2011 Coolangatta Gold.

The 2011 Coolangatta Gold is a marathon of different activities participated by the local and tourists visiting Queensland’s paradise. The 2011 race feature a 46.65km long course and 30.5km short course. This year’s event will be held on Sunday, 25 September with competition starting from Kurrawa Beach on the Gold Coast. The race includes two categorical courses. The long course which is open for men between ages 30-39, 40+ years men, open men’s teams, open mixed teams, U19 men’s teams, U19 mixed teams. The Short Course which includes;open women, U19 men’s, U19 women’s, 50+ years men’s, 30+ women’s, 40+ women’s, open women’s teams, U19 women’s teams.

The Cooloangatta Gold was established in 1984 inspired from a movie of the same name, in which two brothers competed against each other for the same surf lifesaving prize. Kenny and his father (who was also an ironman) came up with the idea for a movie about an ironman race. The movie was filmed in conjunction with the running of the inaugural race in front of a massive crowd at Surfers Paradise and many of the scenes in the film are real footage from the race. The actual race was won by Guy Leech, who at the time was an unheralded 18-year-old from Manly. He went on to become one of the greatest surf lifesaving ironmen of all time. The race concept – a marathon test of endurance incorporating swimming, kayaking, board paddling and running up the Gold Coast coastline takes more than four hours to complete. The competition unfortunately closed at 1991 and 1992 due to the growing cost of the race, until it finally came back on 2005. Since that time, the likes of Caine Eckstein who won on three consecutive years, Alicia Marriott won on 2007 and Hayley Bateup have dominated on the podium.

This year’s event is expected to draw the best surf sports talent and endurance athletes in the world. This 46 kilometre test of endurance comprising an ocean swim, surf-ski, board paddle and run – it is the longest race of its kind in the world. With age categories ranging from under-19s to masters, the Coolangatta Gold has something for everyone. The Coolangatta Gold is proudly supported by Events Queensland, Gold Coast City Council and Gold Coast Tourism.

Aside from the Coolangatta Gold, Queensland offers much more exciting events for its visitors and its locals. These includes Coolangatta Gold Down Wind ski race, Fastest Man on Sand at Coolangatta Beach that is the first leg in a 4 stage series being conducted in south east Queensland, Junior Coolangatta Gold that is being conducted on Sunday 25th September at Coolangatta Beach. So, maybe you’d like to try this whole new exciting experience to get you out of boredom or why not consider putting a team together to share the pain, fun, excitement and the whole bunch of unforgettable experience.