Puerto Vallarta, Mexico - Considered one of the most difficult competitive sports, triathlon includes swimming (5 km), cycling (40 km) and a marathon (10 km). It is an individual sport in which each athlete competes against the clock to obtain the best time.

Both the men's and women's 2011 Pan American Games Triathlon competitions will be held on Sunday, October 23 at the API Maritime Terminal in Puerto Vallarta, where the 5 kilometer swim portion of the race will be held.

Once the swimming competition has been completed, contenders will ride their bikes on a 6.6 kilometer circuit that runs from Blvd. Francisco Medina Asencio through Fluvial Vallarta and back to the API. After making 6 laps, they will have completed the 40 km cycling portion of the race.

The competition continues with a 10 K marathon, with runners taking 2 laps on a route that goes up to Plaza Peninsula and back to the Maritime Terminal. Whoever reaches the finish line first, wins!

A total of 70 athletes (40 men and 30 women) will participate in this grueling test of endurance. The women's event starts at 8 am and ends around 10 am, and the men will start at 11 am and end at around 1 pm.

The cost of entrance is $50 pesos per ticket, which, if still available, may be purchased at ticketmaster.com.mx, or at the Pan American box office at the Beach Volleyball Stadium on the south end of the Puerto Vallarta Hotel Zone.