Mile posts: Items on Ironman 70.3 race, Katy Jermann, Tyler Jermann, Pasca Myers, Will Norris, Stan Linton, Austin O'Brien

This is a great consolation prize.

Des Moines was passed over as a host for a new Ironman Triathlon by race officials on June 12. Iowa's capital city was beaten out by Tulsa, Okla., for the 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike and 26.2-mile run event that is, arguably, the toughest challenge in endurance sports.

But on Monday at Cowles Commons, Des Moines was rewarded for its energy and commitment to the sport when the Wanda Sports Group announced in a big celebration that Des Moines would be hosting the 2020 Ironman 70.3 North American Championship. The Ironman group has made a three-year commitment to hold the event in Des Moines, with the 2020 race on June 21.

"We are excited to have a first-class city like Des Moines, Iowa join the Ironman 70.3 series of events," Ironman Chief Operations Officer Shane Facteau. "As we went through a process to identify new host cities in the Central United States, the response that we witnessed by our athletes and the local Des Moines community was incredible. Couple this with the experience that the city brings with hosting championship events and it was the right opportunity to add Des Moines to the Ironman `Ohana. From the beautiful Gray’s Lake Park and Water Works Park, Des Moines and the surrounding areas has a great deal to offer and we look forward to our future here."

St. George, Utah, last month wrapped up its run of hosting the Ironman 70.3 North American Pro Championship. 

The 2020 Ironman 70.3 North American Championship will be a highlight race on the Ironman calendar, with 75 age-group qualifying spots available in Des Moines for the 2020 Ironman 70.3 World Championship in Taupo, New Zealand. A big professional field is also expected to chase a large prize purse that will be announced at a larger date. 

The 2020 event will be the first high-profile triathlon to come to Des Moines since the final year of the Hy-Vee Triathlon in 2014.

"The passion and commitment of our community was on full display during this journey," Greg Edwards, President & CEO of Catch Des Moines, said in a press release. "We are thrilled to be entering into a multi-year agreement with IRONMAN, and excited for the impact it will have on our region."

Officials announced in the press release that the course will be a flat, fast course that will cover Des Moines, West Des Moines and areas of rural Polk County. The course will be similar to routes the Hy-Vee Triathlon used. Gray's Lake will be the site for the opening leg, a 1.2-mile single-loop swim course. After the transition, cyclists will go on a closed bike course that will start at Water Works Park, new roads in West Des Moines and rural areas before returning after 56 miles back to Gray's Lake Park. The runners will then go on a two-loop course that goes by the Des Moines River, Raccoon River, state Capitol and Pappajohn Sculpture Park. The finish line will be on Court Avenue.

Certified Piedmontese beef will be the title sponsor for the Iowa race and will be donating 2,000 pounds of its ground beef to the Food Bank of Iowa. The Ironman Foundation also will be distributing $25,000 in grant funding that will be distributed to local nonprofit initiatives in the Des Moines area.

Here's my take on this event: After five years in the triathlon wilderness following the departure of the Hy-Vee event, Des Moines has returned to triathlon prominence nationally with Ironman's backing. Now that a central Iowa race won't have to rely on a sole local sponsor, this event has the chance to be a fixture on the Ironman 70.3 calendar, with or without the North American Championship. I have no doubt that the Des Moines area will serve as a great and welcoming host to keep the Ironman brand involved.

Some will be disappointed Des Moines didn't land the full Ironman event, but I believe the 70.3 race will be a better fit. The size of Gray's Lake Park is better equipped to handle a 1.2-mile swim than a double loop. Des Moines and area communities will be less stressed by a shorter bike leg and shorter race. In theory, fewer volunteers will be needed with a distance half the size of an Ironman.

The 70.3 is closer in distance than the Olympic distance we've grown to know with the Hy-Vee race. Also, training for a 70.3 distance is growing in popularity simply because of the additional time commitment needed for an Ironman distance. More local athletes could be participating next June with the easier target 70.3 race than an Ironman.

The race date is good for Des Moines. It comes a week before the Des Moines Arts Festival, which is this weekend. It comes at an open spot on the area sports scene. The Dam to DSM race and Principal Charity Classic are held in early June. It comes before fall football season, where the race could be lost on the calendar

The biggest concern for Ironman 70.3 coming here could be the weather. Flooding seemingly hits Gray's Lake Park and Raccoon River every year around May and June. The park has been closed for all of June for repairs, but also flooding. The course around Gray's Lake could be in jeopardy if the trend continues.

Now, it's on to the WEEKEND UPDATE of the best performances by Iowa endurance athletes. We start with iconic Grandma's Marathon in Duluth, Minn., where former Iowa State great Katy (Moen) Jermann won the women's title of the Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon by running the second-fastest time by an American this year. Jermann, a Team USA Minnesota athlete from Fairbank, covered the 13.1-mile distance in 1:10:27 from Two Rivers to Duluth to win by 16 seconds over Bethany Sachtleben. The time by Jermann, 27, also was a personal best by 1:44 and a Team USA Minnesota record for women.

Another former Cyclone, Andrea Toppin of St. Paul, finished 10th in 1:15:52. Former Iowa runner Meghan Peyton, a Team USA Minnesota athlete, was 20th in 1:18:36.

In the men's competition, former Iowa State runner Tyler Jermann, Katy's husband, also crushed his personal-best time by 1:45 while finishing fourth overall in 1:03:31. Jermann, 26, also is a Team USA Minnesota athlete living in Burnsville. The winning time was 1:02:37. Former ADM of Adel prep Mason Frank, 30, of Aurora, Colo., finished 16th overall in 1:06:14. Runablaze Iowa's Tyson Wieland, a former Johnston High prep living in Des Moines, was 49th in 1:10:20.

In the featured marathon, former women's winner Pasca Myers, 32, of Fort Dodge finished eighth in the women's competition in 2:36:11. That time gives Myers the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials standard. Runablaze had two women run the marathon, with Amanda Edwards, 31, of Dubuque finishing 145th among the women in 3:01:47 and Jessica Hruska, 39, of Asbury 146th in 3:02:06. The time by Hruska was a personal best by about four minutes. Storm Lake's Andriette Wickstrom finished second in the women's 60-64 age group in 3:35:19. Wickstrom had the same time as division winner Gwen Jacobson of Rochester, Minn.

Runablaze also had several great performances by its men in the marathon, but Spirit Lake native Will Norris, 24, was the top Iowan in 22nd place. The Boulder, Colo., resident and former Northwestern College star ran 2:18:08 to earn the U.S. Olympic Trials standard. Two spots back was Runablaze's Stan Linton, who also qualified for the Trials by crossing the finish line in 2:18:46. Linton, a former Florida State runner residing in West Des Moines, covered the second half faster, in 1:09:14. Linton's time is the eighth-best ever by an Iowa resident.

Runablaze teammate Austin O'Brien posted a nine-minute improvement from his first marathon by taking 44th overall in 2:22:36. O'Brien is a former Central College and Pleasant Valley athlete.

Former Dowling Catholic runner Jason Thomas was 50th in 2:24:18 to improve his marathon best by 2 1/2 minutes. His Runablaze teammate Ben Jaskowiak, a former Drake University athlete, also posted a new best time of 2:24:27 by finishing 53rd overall.

The Runablaze group was broken up by Dan Froeschle of Davenport, who was 71st in 2:26:47. Runablaze's Zach Baker of West Des Moines took 77th in 2:27:53 while teammate Joe Skurski of Iowa City was 90th in 2:29:48. Former Iowa City resident Matt Dewald of Dakota Dunes, S.D., was 104th in 2:32:18. Former Dowling Catholic and Simpson College athlete Ian McKenzie of Des Moines was 138th in 2:37:52. McKenzie is a Runablaze athlete.

Staying with the roads and the B.A.A. 10k in Boston, where former Iowa State three-time NCAA champion Betsy Saina finished seventh on Sunday. The Nike athlete living part-time in Beaverton, Ore., ran 32:19. The winning time was 30:36.

Back here in Iowa, Runablaze swept the top spots at the USA Days 5k on Saturday in Fairfax. Jay Welp of Coralville was the overall winner in 15:45, followed by Nate Hopp of West Amana in 16:31.

GOING BACK A WEEK: At the Diamond League event in Rabat, Morocco, on June 16, former Iowa State standout Hillary Bor finished fifth in the 3,000 steeplechase in 8:12.08. Former Iowa Central Community College great Stanley Kebenei was ninth in 8:21.25. Both are Nike athletes.

In the women's 1,500, former Webster City native Jenny Simpson broke 4 minutes for the 10th time in her career by running 3:59.83. Simpson was seventh overall.

Former University of Iowa standout Erik Sowinski competed in a couple races the week before, repeating as champion in an 800-meter race in Dessau, Germany. Sowinski covered the distance in 1:46.25 to win by .06 of a second.

Then, at the Adidas Boost Boston Games on June 16, the Nike runner living in Iowa City was fourth in the 600-meter street/elevated track race in 1:16.9. 

Closer to home, professional triathlete Ian Hoover-Grinde of Cedar Rapids was the winner of the Quad Cities Triathlon on June 15 in Davenport in 1:03:56. Josh Madsen was runner-up in 1:05:30. The women's winner was Joanna Hall in 1:13:46.

Runablaze's Phil Young of Davenport was second at the MicroBrew 6k on June 15 in Moline, Ill. Young ran 16:11. Teammate Ben Lloyd was fourth in 16:27.

MISSING A TOP IOWA DISTANCE RUNNER OR TRIATHLETE?: Let me know at bergeson@registermedia.com.