Once Inspired

A new line of Ironman-branded premium sports drinks developed by the sports nutrition experts at PowerBar® is being launched today. Ironman® PERFORM™ sports drink features PowerBar’s state-of-the-art C2MAX carbohydrate blend, found to deliver 20 to 50 percent more energy to muscles and improve endurance performance by eight percent.

Designed for athletes who take part in intense workouts, or who exercise in the heat or humidity and experience significant fluid and electrolyte loss, the new Ironman PERFORM sports drink also enhances performance by delivering essential electrolytes, including 190 mg of sodium per serving, to replenish what athletes lose in sweat and to help avoid skeletal muscle cramps and dehydration. The convenient ready-to-drink beverage is also made with natural flavors and without the use of high fructose corn syrup.

“I have been testing out the new Ironman PERFORM sports drink in training and it has a light taste and was easy on my stomach,” said Ironman champion Samantha McGlone. “Ironman PERFORM is the most convenient way to meet all my hydration and nutrition needs during hard racing and training. It will be key for me to now have its performance-enhancing formula on course when it counts this season.”

Nestlé Performance Nutrition and its PowerBar® brand, along with the World Triathlon Corporation (WTC), are working together on the new line of Ironman-branded sports drinks, an extension of PowerBar’s longstanding global partnership with Ironman and its role as the official global energy bar and energy gel supplier of all Ironman and 70.3 events.

“We have a fundamental goal and shared mission with Ironman, which is to help athletes perform at their best,” said Phil Annett, Global Business Head at Nestlé Performance Nutrition. “Applying the latest sports science to get the right balance of performance benefits, taste and stomach comfort in the new Ironman PERFORM sports drink was a long yet essential development process designed to help athletes achieve optimum performance.”
Groundbreaking Research

C2MAX, the unique, high-octane carbohydrate formulation found in new Ironman PERFORM sports drink, was developed based on groundbreaking research published in the February 2008 issue of Medicine and Science in Sport and Exercise, the official journal of the American College of Sports Medicine. The study showed that consuming an optimized blend of glucose and fructose carbohydrates allowed athletes to perform better, increase fluid delivery and experience less perceived exertion following exercise. PowerBar, through the Nestlé Research Center, continues to support a series of follow-up carbohydrate performance field trials with lead research author Dr. Asker Jeukendrup and his team at the School of Sport and Exercise Sciences at the University of Birmingham. The aim of these trials is to apply this breakthrough science to the development of new sports nutrition tools, such as new Ironman PERFORM sports drink, for endurance athletes.

“Ironman is the pinnacle of endurance sports and we believe in having the latest tools available for our athletes,” says Ben Fertic, President and CEO of Ironman. “As Ironman celebrates its 32nd anniversary, we are excited to offer the world’s top athletes a new product that is designed to enhance their training and race day experience.”

Through the new agreement, Ironman PERFORM will be the official sports drink for the following events in 2010: Amica Ironman 70.3 Rhode Island, Ironman 70.3 Racine, Rohto Ironman 70.3 Miami, Ford Ironman Lake Placid, Ford Ironman Louisville, Ford Ironman Wisconsin, Ford Ironman Florida and Ford Ironman Arizona. Additionally, both the 2010 Ford Ironman World Championship and Foster Grant Ironman World Championship 70.3 events will include Ironman PERFORM on-course, and the product will be on course at upcoming Aflac Iron Girl events throughout the 2010 season.

PowerBar’s heritage with the sport of triathlon traces back to the company’s beginning, and triathletes worldwide have come to rely on PowerBar’s sports nutrition products for top-level training and competition. Through the company’s Team Elite™ ambassador program, Ironman and 70.3 athletes have contributed to PowerBar’s product development programs for elite athletes, and this new sponsorship and licensing agreement is a natural extension of the long-standing relationship.

The Ironman brand has become a sports icon around the globe as more and more athletes continue to take on Ironman and 70.3 events each year. Additionally, while Ironman consists of a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike and 26.2-marathon, it symbolizes passion, performance and the aspiration to challenge yourself to the fullest.

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