Nineteen year-old Steve Lucas (Joss McWilliam) is a young man living in the shadow of his successful brother Adam (Colin Friels). Burdened by their father's overpowering desire for sporting glory, Adam is pushed into one of the toughest training regimes of his life. Forced to make many personal and social sacrifices in order to become the elite athlete of his father's design, Adam is driven to win the coveted Coolangatta Gold Tri-Aquathon at any cost.

Determined to prove himself and stand tall against his brother, Steve sets out on his own unique journey to compete in one of the most gruelling endurance tests of Australian sport: a marathon combining a 20 kilometre beach run, 6 kilometre swim and a 17 kilometre surf ski from the stunning Surfers Paradise all the way along the golden arc of beach to Coolangatta and back to the start.

Also featuring Nick Tate, Robyn Nevin and Ironman Grant Kenny, The Coolangatta Gold captures the adrenaline-fueled excitement of salt-water sports culture, celebrating a well-established Australian tradition of surf-lifesaving and heralding the dawn of the iconic Ironman Classic, where titans of sand and surf compete for the ultimate accolade.