Posted: October 21, 2004

Triathlon: NHL Hall-of Famer Pat LaFontaine to compete at 2004 Ironman Florida Triathlon for charity

Former great to raise funds for Companions in Courage through the Janus Charity Challenge

PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla.- NHL Hall-of-Famer Pat LaFontaine (Lloyd Harbor, N.Y.) will compete in the 2004 Ironman Florida triathlon set to take place on Saturday, November 6 in Panama City Beach and surrounding Bay County.

LaFontaine is one of the top U.S.-born hockey players to ever compete in the National Hockey League, being named to the NHL All-Star team six times during his career with the New York Islanders, Buffalo Sabres and New York Rangers. Forced to retire at only the age of 31 due to recurring concussions, LaFontaine was elected to the NHL Hall of Fame in 2003.

LaFontaine will also take part in the Janus Charity Challenge program at Ironman Florida, raising funds for Companions in Courage, a charity that he founded.

The 39-year-old will be one of three athletes racing for Companions in Courage at Ironman Florida, joining his friends Pete Smith (Huntington, N.Y.) and Bob DeAngelo of (Greenwich, Conn.). The former hockey star spends a lot of time on his bicycle traversing the hills of Long Island. He recently participated in "The Montauk Century," a 100-mile bike ride to the end of Long Island. He said, "I'll have to work on my open water swimming this summer, and hope that my adrenaline will carry me through the marathon run."

LaFontaine will be raising money for Companions in Courage, a charity that he founded as a response to the inspiration he derived while visiting children in hospitals during his 15-year career.

The goal of Companions in Courage is to build interactive playrooms in children's hospitals throughout North America. Through innovative communications tools, these playrooms will replace the isolation of a hospital with a connection to family, friends and celebrities during their hospital stay. The initial ‘Lion's Den Room’ (as the rooms are called) just recently debuted at Maria Fareri Hospital in Westchester, N.Y. For more information or to donate, visit www.cic16.org.

The trio will be among the more than 2,000 competitors expected to compete in Ironman Florida, which takes place for the sixth time in 2004.

Ironman Triathlon is considered one of the most grueling and most inspiring events in the world of sports. Athletes competing on November 6 will swim 2.4 miles, bike 112 miles and run a complete marathon, all in less than 17 hours. There are currently six Ironman events in continental North America. LaFontaine will be raising money through the Janus Charity Challenge program, a program that has seen more than $7.2 million dollars raised for U.S. nonprofit groups over the past three years at Ironman North America events.

As presenting sponsor of Ironman North America events in the United States, Janus Capital Group, the Denver-based investment management firm created the Janus Charity Challenge to encourage athletes to use Ironman North America events as a way to raise money for their favorite nonprofit organizations.

All athletes who compete in Ironman North America full-distance U.S. events in 2004 are eligible to participate in the program. For the top five individual fundraisers at each race, Janus will make a donation to their designated charity in the following amounts: First place, $10,000; second place, $8,000; third place, $6,000; fourth place, $4,000 and fifth place, $2,000.

To make a donation or sign up for the Janus Charity Challenge, or for more information, log onto www.januscharitychallenge.com.

More than 2,000 athletes from around the U.S. and the world are expected to compete in Ironman Florida, which enters its sixth year in Panama City Beach.

Athletes will be competing for 100 qualifying spots to the 2005 Ironman World Championship held in October in Kona, Hawaii, as well as a $50,000 pro prize purse.

For more information on the Ironman Florida triathlon, log onto www.ironmanflorida.com