Dalian Wanda, the Chinese real estate conglomerate that has spent billions of dollars to command a prominent position in the entertainment industry, is aggressively establishing a beachhead in sports, too.
为了在娱乐业占据突出地位，中国房地产集团大连万达已经花了数十亿美元。现在，该集团又在体育业大举建立滩头阵地。
The company, owned by Wang Jianlin, one of China’s richest people, has added the Rock ’n’ Roll Marathon series to its leisure and lifestyle portfolio by acquiring Competitor Group Inc. and transforming the American-based Ironman company into one of the largest endurance sports organizations in the world.通过收购竞争者集团(Competitor Group Inc.)，并将总部设在美国的铁人公司(Ironman)变成全球最大的耐力运动机构，由中国顶级富豪之一王健林领导的万达，把摇滚马拉松(Rock ’n’ Roll Marathon)系列纳入了自己的休闲和生活方式资产组合。Since Dalian Wanda bought Ironman in 2015 for $650 million, the company has been on a buying spree in outdoor sports like marathons, road cycling and mountain bike races. The Wanda Sports arm of Dalian Wanda already owns or operates more than 20 running races worldwide, including the Singapore Marathon, the Auckland Marathon and Marathon Bordeaux.自2015年以6.5亿美元（约合44亿元人民币）的价格收购铁人以来，大连万达在马拉松、公路自行车和山地自行车比赛等户外运动项目中掀起了收购热潮。大连万达旗下的万达体育已拥有或运营着全球20多项跑步赛事，包括新加坡马拉松、奥克兰马拉松和波尔多马拉松。Dalian Wanda also owns part of Atlético Madrid, one of the leading Spanish soccer teams.大连万达还拥有西班牙顶级足球队之一马德里竞技(Atlético Madrid)的部分股份。The Rock ’n’ Roll Marathon series brings a festive, block-party vibe to competitive running and attracts more than 600,000 athletes a year in eight international races and 22 major markets in the United States.摇滚马拉松系列为赛跑带来一种节日的、街头派对的氛围，每年在八项国际赛事和美国的22个重要市场吸引60多万名选手。“This is an important step in the growth Ironman has seen over the last decade,” said Andrew Messick, Ironman’s chief executive. “As a globally recognized endurance brand, the acquisition of the world’s largest running platform puts us in an exciting position for the future growth of running worldwide.”“在铁人过去十年经历的增长中，这是重要的一步，”铁人的首席执行官安德鲁·梅西克(Andrew Messick)说。“作为一个全球认可的耐力品牌，收购全世界最大的跑步平台让我们站上了一个令人兴奋的位置，迎接未来全球跑步运动的发展。”Beginning in 1978 with a triathlon in Hawaii with 15 starters that was won by a taxi driver, Ironman now hosts more than 200 events in 50 countries for more than 400,000 athletes. In recent years, the company has moved into road cycling events, mountain bike races and marathons.从1978年夏威夷的一场只有15名选手参加，最终被一名出租车司机拔得头筹的三项全能比赛开始，铁人公司现在是50个国家的200多项赛事的主办方，服务的选手超过40万。近年来，该公司还进军公路自行车赛事、山地自行车比赛和马拉松。In 2012, Calera Capital bought Competitor Group Inc. and at the time valued the company at nearly $250 million. Messick declined to say how much Ironman paid for the company.2012年，凯莱拉资本(Calera Capital)收购竞争者集团，对后者的估价接近2.5亿美元。梅西克拒绝透露铁人此次收购它的价格。In recent years a surge of acquisitions has made Dalian Wanda the world’s biggest owner of movie theaters, with complexes across the United States, Europe and Australia. In January 2016 it bought Legendary Entertainment for $3.5 billion.近年来，急剧增加的收购举动让大连万达成了全球最大的影院拥有者，院线遍布美国、欧洲和澳大利亚。2016年1月，万达出资35亿美元收购传奇影业(Legendary Entertainment)。With a population of 1.3 billion people and a rising middle class with an unquenchable thirst for sports, China is a “spectacular” untapped market, Messick said. In 2016, the company held its first two Ironman 70.3 races in China — in Hefei and Xiamen. Last August, the company announced the addition of three Ironman 70.3 triathlons in China in 2017 — Ironman 70.3 Liuzhou, which has already taken place, Ironman 70.3 Qujing, recently rescheduled for Aug. 27, and Ironman 70.3 Chongqing, which is scheduled for Sept. 24.
梅西克说，有13亿人口并且对体育运动渴望强烈的中产阶级规模越来越大的中国，是一个有待开发的“惊人”市场。2016年，该公司开始在中国——分别是在合肥和厦门——举办铁人70.3比赛。去年8月，该公司宣布2017年将在中国增加三场比赛，分别是已经结束的柳州站、最近把时间改至8月27日的曲靖站和定于9月24日举行的重庆站比赛。“We are being ambitious and aggressive to help grow a mass participation sport in China,” Messick said. “We are bullish on the continued emergence of the Chinese consumer. We are convinced that as average income continues to rise and more people move into the middle class, there will be more attention paid to health and recreation.”“我们正在满怀希望地大力帮助在中国发展一项大众参与运动，”梅西克说。“我们对中国消费者会不断涌现持乐观态度。我们相信随着平均收入继续增加，更多人进入中产阶级，人们会更加关注健康和娱乐。”