Ballarat Triathlon Club is behind the 2000m race which will see high-level swimming return to the lake for the first time since 2016’s Ballarat Ironman event.

BTC Secretary Tony Dundas, who will be competing on Sunday, was pleased with the number of entries, understanding it will be a slow build as the event gains recognition in the region.

“We’re going okay for a first-time event,” Dundas told The Courier.

“We’ve just got to get it happening as an annual event.

“It’s about participation, we’ve got lots of beginners, youngsters, older people – there will be a lot of variation.

“Once people hear about it (we’ll see more numbers).”

The race will take swimmers along the 1956 Olympic rowing course, there is also a 500m race offered to novice swimmers.

The event is one of only a few in-land open water swims and given the Ironman did not return to Ballarat this year, adding an event like this to the swimming calendar is valuable.

Ballarat Triathlon Club has set high long-term aspirations on the event, with the hope it will exceed 1000 swimmers and be considered a must-do open water event, much like Lorne’s Pier to Pub.

Swim to the Rings will begin at 10am, with the top competitors expected to finish around the 20-minute mark.

A forecast of 18 degrees is expected on Sunday and if conditions do not get too windy, live drone footage of the race will be shown at the lake.

There will be a number of prizes handed out on the day, with one entrant set to win a four-night cruise.