# IRONMAN Oman, the Middle East's first full-distance triathlon Experience Oman IRONMAN Oman takes place on Saturday 5 December 2026 in Muscat. It is the first full-distance IRONMAN race in the Middle East, with a sea swim in the Gulf of Oman, a coastal bike course and a flat marathon through the city. Source : https://sabaro-travel.com/en/events/ironman-oman/ ## A first for the region IRONMAN Oman is raced on Saturday 5 December 2026 in Muscat. It is the first full-distance IRONMAN in Oman and in the whole Middle East, a region that until now has only hosted half-distance IRONMAN 70.3 events. The race comes out of a partnership announced in Nice on 12 September 2025 between IRONMAN and Experience Oman, the tourism brand of Oman's Ministry of Heritage and Tourism. Since 2026 Experience Oman has also been the title partner of the professional IRONMAN Pro Series, and Muscat will host the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in 2029. Triathlon has some history here already: Oman held its first Olympic-distance race in 2018, with about 170 athletes, and IRONMAN 70.3 Muscat followed in 2019. ## The format A full IRONMAN is a 3.8 km swim, a 180 km bike ride and a 42.2 km marathon, all on the same day. The organiser describes the Muscat course like this: - **swim**: open water in the Gulf of Oman; - **bike**: a rolling course along the coastal roads; - **run**: a flat course past Muscat's best-known landmarks. The exact start, transition and finish locations had not been published by October 2026; they will appear in the athlete guide. As a pointer, IRONMAN 70.3 Muscat set up its race village, transition and start on Qurum Beach in February 2026. ## Early December weather The organiser expects highs of 28 °C, lows of 20 °C and an average water temperature of 24 °C. Climate normals for Muscat airport give an average December high of 27 °C. This is Oman's best season: from October to April, coastal highs stay between 25 and 35 °C, against 36 to 40 °C from May to September. ## Entering and planning the trip Entries are taken on the official IRONMAN website, on the race page. Muscat is a few hours' flight from Europe's main cities, direct or with one stop; in early December, it is 4 hours ahead of London. The documents accepted and the visa depend on your nationality: (Depends on the traveller's country: see the table on https://sabaro-travel.com/en/events/ironman-oman/) The [visa and entry requirements](/en/guides/visa-oman/) guide explains these rules in detail. Drones may only be flown in Oman with a licence, applied for in advance, and only in zones set by the military; an unlicensed drone is confiscated on arrival. ## Where to stay Muscat's beach hotels are all within 30 minutes of the airport: - in Shatti Al Qurum, on Qurum Beach: [Grand Hyatt Muscat](/en/hotels/grand-hyatt-muscat/), from around €230 a night, [Mandarin Oriental Muscat](/en/hotels/mandarin-oriental-muscat/) and [W Muscat](/en/hotels/w-muscat/); - in Al Mouj, about twenty minutes from the airport: [Kempinski Hotel Muscat](/en/hotels/kempinski-hotel-muscat/) and [The St. Regis Al Mouj Muscat](/en/hotels/st-regis-al-mouj-muscat/); - in Ghubra: [The Chedi Muscat](/en/hotels/the-chedi-muscat/), a beach resort opened in 2003. Prices are recorded including taxes, with any local taxes on top. The city is covered on the [Muscat](/en/oman/muscat/) page. ## After the race Early December is the start of the hiking season in the Hajar Mountains: [Jebel Akhdar](/en/oman/jebel-akhdar/) is about two hours' drive away, the [Wahiba Sands](/en/oman/wahiba-sands/) a little further. Athletes who prefer the half distance can race [IRONMAN 70.3 Muscat](/en/events/ironman-70-3-mascate/) on 6 February 2027, and runners the [Muscat Marathon](/en/events/marathon-mascate/) on 29 and 30 January. Since the Iranian strikes in the Gulf, foreign ministries have not all given the same advice. Yours: (Depends on the traveller's country: see the table on https://sabaro-travel.com/en/events/ironman-oman/) The [Oman travel situation](/en/guides/situation-oman/) guide has the details. ## Frequently asked questions ### When is IRONMAN Oman? On Saturday 5 December 2026 in Muscat, according to the official IRONMAN website. ### Is it really the first full IRONMAN in the Middle East? Yes. IRONMAN presents it as the first full-distance race in the region. ### What are the distances? A 3.8 km sea swim, a 180 km rolling bike course and a flat 42.2 km marathon. ### What is the weather like in early December? Around 28 °C by day and 20 °C at night according to the organiser, with the sea at about 24 °C. ### Do I need a visa? It depends on your nationality: the entry requirements table on this page gives the rule for your country.