Over 1,000 athletes descended on Tenby at the weekend for the first ever Long Course Weekend.

Creating spectacular sporting scenes, crowds turned out to cheer on the swimmers, cyclists and runners as they competed in the gruelling three-day competition.

The event has been hailed an outstanding success and came just hours after it was announced the town was to host the first ever Ironman Wales contest next September.

The Long Course Weekend included the Wales Swim, Wales Sportive and Wales Marathon.

Forty athletes entered all three events, with only 16 of them managing to line-up for the marathon on the third day, perfectly illustrating just how tough the challenge is.

Overall Long Course Weekend champion was Tenby's own Oliver Simon, who won both the 3,000m swim and gold placing for the bike leg and came second in the 26.2 mile marathon.

See inside for a report on the Ironman Wales launch and a full report and more pictures on the Long Course Weekend.