A sporting event where around 1,000 athletes are due to take part has been moved this year to limit disruption in Saundersfoot ahead of the Ironman Wales triathlon.
County councillor for the seaside village’s south ward Cllr Chris Williams said that the organisers of the Saundersfoot Tri, Activity Wales Events had agreed to move the event to Friday, September 1, instead of the Saturday, a day before Ironman Wales takes place on Sunday, September 3.
“Over the years this event has normally been scheduled the day before Ironman Wales, but this wasn’t without its challenges especially navigating The Strand on changeover Saturday, with the number of holiday units and with guests leaving and cleaners arriving, it resulted in many issues throughout the morning,” explained Cllr Williams.
“Last autumn I spoke to many businesses, Saundersfoot Harbour and holiday units regarding the prospect of moving the Tri event to the Friday evening.
“All were very supportive and the general feeling was that this event would be better suited having a road closure on The Strand for safety concerns.
“There will be roughly one thousand athletes competing in this year’s Saundersfoot Tri and they are estimating a few thousand supporters.”
Activity Wales have applied for road closures for the event, which have been set out as follows:
• The Strand, its whole length from 5 to 10 pm.
• Wogan Terrace from 6 to 9 pm, High Street, from its junction with Wogan Terrace to its junction with the Strand.
In addition to the above road closures, the one way order for Frances Lane will be temporarily suspended between 6 and 9 pm.
The event will start from around 6 pm, with a firework display on Saundersfoot beach; with the first athlete finish expected at 7.30 pm at the harbour.
There will be a full traffic management team operating during the event, and routes will be signed/marshalled accordingly.
“This event won’t affect the Harbour car park or Coppet Hall car park, and additional car parking has been arranged at the village sports field for the Saundersfoot Tri,” continued Cllr Williams.
“This should be a fantastic spectacle for not only the athletes but also the many visitors. Saundersfoot lends itself to this entry Triathlon and with the facilities and extra parking available, hopefully this will be an event that’s well supported going forward,” he added.