The Cork Ironman event at which two men died on Sunday was not sanctioned to go ahead following a water safety assessment by officials from Triathalon Ireland.
Brendan Wall, who was in his mid-40s and originally from Co Meath but was living in Solihull in the UK, and Ivan Chittenden (64), who travelled from his home in Toronto, Canada, to take part in the event, both died in the swim section of the race in Youghal, Co Cork.
Postmortem examinations are being carried out this afternoon at Cork University Hospital on the bodies of two men, which will determine their causes of death.
In a statement issued on Monday night, Triathalon Ireland, the national governing body for triathlon in Ireland said it was “reeling from the news” of the deaths of the two men and offered its condolences to the families of Ivan Chittenden and Brendan Wall.
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“For the Ironman Cork event, in line with normal practice, Triathlon Ireland Technical Officials attended before the start of the race [on Sunday] to review the conditions and carry out a water safety assessment.
“Due to adverse conditions on the day, Triathlon Ireland Technical Officials confirmed to the race organisers that it was not possible to sanction the race.
“As there is an investigation ongoing, at this stage it would not be appropriate for us to make any further comment only to state that Triathlon Ireland will provide any assistance that the authorities require.”
This comes as the organisers of the event, The Ironman Group, said a specific “on-swim safety team” carried out the standard safety protocol checks in Cork that are completed at every race and determined the water conditions “were safe for the swim to take place.”
The organisation said that, as with all Ironman events, its utmost priority was the safety to those taking part.
“The weather conditions were monitored carefully over the IRONMAN Ireland, Cork and IRONMAN 70.3 Ireland, Cork triathlon weekend, with the IRONMAN 70.3 triathlon being rescheduled to take place on Sunday, alongside IRONMAN Ireland, Cork, to provide a safer race for athletes.”
An Garda Síochána, which had officers at the site of the triathlon, said it has no role in carrying out water safety assessments for sporting events and that its responsibility is to manage crowds and traffic. “We don’t have the jurisdiction or the expertise to judge water conditions in something like this,” said a senior source.
Earlier on Monday Minister for Finance Michael McGrath said it is vitally important that a full investigation be completed.
Speaking in Cork, Mr McGrath described the deaths as a “terrible tragedy”.
“It is clear that the conditions were particularly challenging in the water from reading the testimony of many of the other participants.”
Mr McGrath said he was conscious of the sensitivities around the deaths of the two men. However, he stressed that questions need to be “comprehensively answered” on events leading up to their deaths.
Brendan Wall worked as a sales director at a steel tubes manufacturers in Wednesbury in the UK having previously been employed by an industrial machinery manufacturing firm in Cavan. He was a graduate of Trinity College Dublin and the University of Hull where he completed an MBA.
Mr Wall is survived by his fiancee Tina, parents Oliver and Gertrude, brothers Martin and Joe, sister Maria, extended family and a large circle of friends. His funeral details will be announced at a later date.
Meanwhile, Ivan Chittenden was a keen triathlete and marathon runner who had competed at events in various countries. He retired two years ago having been a senior partner at multinational firm.
He had competed in numerous events including the Boston Marathon where was a three time competitor. It is understood that he was married with children. Ivan competed in the Boston Marathon last April as part of a team effort to raise funds for the Red Cross.
He had completed Ironman events in among other places Zell Am See in Austria and in Maine USA whilst he also was a finisher at the Triathlon Mecca Challenge Roth in Roth, Germany. Mr Chittenden, who was married and had children, did his first Ironman event in 2013.
They were among several thousand competitors who entered the water at Claycastle Beach on Sunday. Some were competing in the 113.13km half triathlon whilst others were taking part in the full 226.3km race.
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The half triathlon event had to be postponed on Saturday in the aftermath of Storm Betty. It was rescheduled for Sunday along with the main Ironman event.
Mr McGrath sais it was important that “the full facts of what happened are established and that any questions that are being asked are comprehensively answered.
“I have no doubt the organisers of the event will conduct a comprehensive investigation into what happened. Cork County Council is a lead sponsor of the event, and I have no doubt that they will want a full account of what happened as well,” Mr McGrath said.
“It may be that Water Safety Ireland will also be asking questions and wish to fully understand the facts and the circumstances of what happened. It is such a terrible tragedy.”
The Ironman Group said that following the safety protocol checks on Sunday morning it was decided it was safe for the swim to go ahead, the group said.
“Due to the prevailing weather conditions, a decision was made, however, to shorten the distance of the swim as a further precaution to ensure that the significant water safety assets – such as kayaks, lifeguards and medical boats – could be concentrated over a smaller area while also allowing swimmers the ability to swim with the help of a more favourable current and incoming tide after the first 100 metres.”
“Our thoughts continue to be with the family and friends of the two athletes who passed. We are providing ongoing assistance to their families and we will continue to offer them our support as they go through this very difficult time.”
The mayor of Cork county said it was “a very hard call” for the organisers of the Youghal Ironman event to continue it after the deaths of two participants.
Meanwhile, east Cork councillor Mary Linehan Foley said that the people of Youghal were completely shocked when word filtered through of the deaths of the two men. Cllr Linehan Foley offered her condolences to the families of the deceased.
“It is just devastating and our thoughts and prayers are with both families. It is very sad news. The people of Youghal, Cork County Council and Ironman will be fully supportive of both families in their need.”
Mayor of County Cork Frank O’Flynn said that the passing of the two men “was a very sad occasion.”
“My heart and prayers go out to the families. It was a very sad day. It was a wonderful event. It (the event) was doing a lot for tourism not only in Youghal and Cork but in Munster and throughout Ireland.”
Cllr O’Flynn said that many of the participants had not been aware of what had happened until after the event. He added that the event was well organised and that safety was paramount.
The annual Ironman event in Youghal attracts up to 12,000 visitors to the seaside town and is a multi million euro boost to the local economy.
