Created as IRONMAN’s answer to the question asked by the PTO’s T100 Triathlon World Tour, the IRONMAN Pro Series has been an unmitigated success. Pros were clamoring to enter the designated pro races to the point where waiting lists became the norm at the early season events. On top of that, some of the biggest names in the sport chose to focus on the IRONMAN series rather than sign a T100 contract, including this year’s Kona champ Patrick Lange (GER) and one of the most popular pros in the sport, Canadian Lionel Sanders. British star Kat Matthews chose to both sign a T100 contract and go after the Pro Series title.

Pro Series Standings

With two races left – IRONMAN 70.3 Western Australia and the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Taupo – Lange and Jackie Hering (USA) sit at the top of the standings. Lange won’t be in Taupo, and it looks like that could be a costly decision. Hering will be in Taupo, but despite being in the lead, it’s going to be really hard for her to take the overall win. After her runner-up finish in Nice, Matthews appears to have the best shot for the overall title.

Points for the Pro Series are based on a total of five eligible races. To push a full-distance race emphasis, three of those can be IRONMAN races, with the final two being 70.3 events. IRONMAN races are worth 5,000 points for the win, with the points decreasing by one for every second an athlete finishes behind the winner. IRONMAN 70.3 races are worth half that. The world championship races are worth a bit more – 6,000 points for Kona and Nice, 3,000 points for Taupo.

With $1.3 million of bonus money on the line, making the trip down under will definitely be worth the effort. Winning the series earns $200,000, with second taking $130,00 and third $85,000. (You can see the full break down here.)

You can see the points standings heading into the final few races here.

Lange’s to lose?

At the press conference after winning in Kona, Lange told us that he wasn’t going to be heading to Taupo in December because it already looked like he’d nailed the Pro Series title. (Turns out he also hadn’t qualified for the 70.3 worlds, so in theory his only chance to up his points total would have been to head to IRONMAN 70.3 Western Australia, but the bottom line is he wasn’t heading down under.)

In fact, he hasn’t nailed the Pro Series title. Sure, it doesn’t look like American Matt Hanson, who is currently second in the standings, could earn enough points even with a win in Taupo to move ahead. It’s also a long-shot for South African Bradley Weiss, who currently sits third. A win in Taupo would be enough to put him in front. That’s a tough ask for a guy who finished 16th at 70.3 Zell am See-Kaprun and seventh at 70.3 Alcudia-Mallorca.

There are three guys who have a huge opportunity to move to the top of the standings, though. First up is American Matthew Marquardt, who somehow balances med school and pro racing. He’ll be taking time from his studies at Ohio State to take a shot at the IRONMAN Pro Series title. He’s only done one 70.3 race to go along with his three IRONMAN finishes (third in Texas, second in Lake Placid and 15th in Kona), so if he can muster up 2,041 points in Taupo he’d gain enough points to become the Pro Series champ.

Italy’s Gregory Barnaby is in almost as good a position – he’s only 23 points behind Marquardt and also only has one 70.3 race on his list for 2024. Dane Kristian Haugenhaug currently trails Barnaby by 268 points in the standings and also has a race in hand. Here’s the other interesting thing about those two – they’ll both be heading to Ironman 70.3 Western Australia next week and then to Taupo, giving them two shots at earning enough points to move to the top of the IRONMAN Pro Series.

Matthews in the Driver’s Seat

Hering sits at the top of the standings with 18,093 points. Those come from three IRONMAN events (win in Hamburg, second in Lake Placid and ninth in Kona) and two 70.3 races – second in Chattanooga and third in St. George. The problem for Hering is that Matthews is just a few hundred points behind and only has four counting races – second in Nice, wins in Texas and Vitoria-Gasteiz and a second at 70.3 Tallinn. So, pretty much any finish that’s within roughly 45 minutes of the winner in Taupo will get Matthews the title.

Hering can make that a bit more tough with a win in Taupo – that would negate her St. George score and add about 700 points to her total. Matthews would still only need to finish within 30 mins of the winner to take the Pro Series.

It still means that it will come down to one race, which is why I was surprised not to see Matthews’ name on the start list for IRONMAN 70.3 Western Australia. A decent finish there would put her in front of the Pro Series, taking the pressure of having to finish in Taupo. That said, if you’re gunning after the world championship and you’ve raced as much as Matthews has this year, resting up before the worlds makes a lot of sense.

Maja Stage Nielsen, who currently sits third in the Pro Series Standings, is on the start list for 70.3 Western Australia. Moving up to first is very much a long shot for the Dane – if she wins in Busselton and Taupo, she’d improve her score by about 1,500 points, which would put her close to Hering’s total. A couple of good races, though, could ensure she stays ahead of American Danielle Lewis, who is only 177 points behind her.

The Netherlands’ Lotte Wilms heads to 70.3 Western Australia with two races in hand for her points total – she hasn’t done a 70.3 race this year. Wins in Taupo and Western Australia would give her enough points to move ahead of Hering, but probably not enough to top Matthews if she has even a decent race at the worlds. Kiwi Hannah Berry also hasn’t done a 70.3 race this year, so she’s heading to Busselton and Taupo with the podium of the IRONMAN Pro Series in mind.

Pro Series Finale

All of which sets up more than a little bit of excitement leading into the final few races of the IRONMAN Pro Series. By only increasing the points values for the world championship events by 1,000 (IRONMAN) and 500 (70.3) points, IRONMAN has ensured that there will be lots to race for right up to the final race of the season. It means that the Kona and Nice champions aren’t likely to be crowned IRONMAN Pro Series champ, but maybe that’s not a bad thing.

The post After Nice and Kona Some Thought the IRONMAN Pro Series was Settled. Not Quite. first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

The IRONMAN Pro Series is reaching the conclusion of its inaugural season. As expected, the 2024 IRONMAN World Championships have shaken up the standings, with five new faces moving into the critical top 10 positions with just two races remaining on the calendar.

2024 IRONMAN World Champion Patrick Lange sits atop the standings, jumping for fourth to first and with a 770 point lead over second place Matt Hanson, who improved his series points total with his 10th place finish in Kona. Bradley Weiss moved into third, with Matthew Marquardt‘s 15th place Kona leapfrogged him up from ninth to fourth in the Series. But the big mover was Gregory Barnaby, who turned sixth in Kona into fifth in the series, up 10 spots.

The remainder of the top 10:

• Kristian Hogenhaug (+8 spots)
• Jonas Hoffman (+5)
• Robert Kallin (no change)
• Paul Schuster (+2)
• Stenn Goetstouwers (+3)

But with only 70.3 Western Australia and the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championships remaining on the calendar, there are precious few points available. Winning both races, and assuming you had two open results available, would net you 5,500 points; 2,500 for the win in Western Australia, and 3,000 for the IRONMAN 70.3 World Title. For example, Hanson has scored in five events already, with his worst result a second place at IRONMAN 70.3 Boulder. If he were to win either Western Australia or place well at 70.3 World Championships, his score could only improve by a range of 191 to 691 points — not enough to overtake Lange.

But the top 10 positions are critical, with a combined prize pool to be paid out amongst those top 10 finishers $650,000 USD. As a reminder, the Series prize pool breaks down as follows:

1. $200,000
2. $130,000
3. $85,000
4. $70,000
5. $50,000
6. $40,000
7. $30,000
8. $20,000
9. $15,000
10. $10,000
11. to 50. $5,000 each

With that and the scores in mind, here’s who has a shot at the top prize.

The current leader Lange has the inside track to victory. Although he has five points scoring finishes to his name, he has two benefits: first, he has a combined 11,000 points from two IRONMAN victories this year; second, his results at 70.3 events are terrible, with two 17th place finishes gaining him just over 3,300 points total. If Lange races either of the two December events, he’s looking at improving his Series score with mediocre results, let alone if he pulls off the World title double. The last male athlete to do it, depending on how you look at it, would be Kristian Blummenfelt in 2022 (winning the “2021” title at St. George in 2022 and 70.3 Worlds that fall) or Jan Frodeno in 2015.

Weiss is another athlete that is high in the standings, but with the strong possibility of improving on his prior 70.3 results. Weiss has a 7th and 16th in his points total; with two victories, Weiss could push his season points total up by 1,593 points, bringing him over 19,000 points for the year.

Marquardt, Barnaby, and Hogenhaug have the advantage of not having five full scores in their combined points totals. A quality result at 70.3 Worlds would be enough to see them push into the top 3 without having to push a score out. Their respective disadvantage is that their one 70.3 scores are both quite good, with Marquardt earning 2,359 points for 3rd at Mont Tremblant, Barnaby 2,477 for his 3rd in Mallorca, and Hogenhaug’s 5th at Mallorca getting 2,324. One factor against Marquardt is that he has not raced outside of North America this year, and as a medical student, he might not have the availability to race in December.

The men have just over a month off until the Pro Series calendar resumes, with 70.3 Western Australia taking place on December 1st, followed by the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Taupo, New Zealand two weeks later.

Lead Photo: Donald Miralle for IRONMAN
Barnaby: Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images for IRONMAN

The post Men’s IRONMAN Pro Series Outlook Post-Kona first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

The inaugural season of the IRONMAN Pro Series is about to come to a close. For women professionals, there are just two points scoring opportunities remaining on the calendar: 70.3 Western Australia on December 1st, followed by the 70.3 World Championships in Taupo, New Zealand on December 14th.

As a reminder, scoring works as follows: IRONMAN victories are worth 5,000 points. 70.3 victories are worth 2,500 points. The recent IRONMAN World Championships in Nice awarded 6,000 points to champion Laura Philipp, and the winner in Taupo will receive 3,000 points. That makes for a maximum 5,500 points available — or less than Philipp or second place Kat Matthews earned in Nice. Points decrease for every second after first place you finish. And only five results may count towards your Pro Series points total, with a maximum of three IRONMAN finishes allowed.

So, crunching the numbers and seeing who has already maximized their possible number of finishes, here are the athletes we believe who are in contention for the Series crown — and the cool $200,000 bonus that comes with it.

The Two Favorites

Kat Matthews: Matthews trails long-time series points leader Jackie Hering by a mere 257 points, but the kicker is that Matthews only has four points scoring finishes to her name to close the gap. Her two IRONMAN wins this season, along with her podium finish at Nice, make her the overwhelming favorite for the series win. Any points scoring finish at either Western Australia or 70.3 Worlds gives her the edge, unless Hering can pull a rabbit out of her hat at 70.3 Worlds. And even that might not be enough.

Jackie Hering: It seems unfair to put the Series leader second in this. But given that she already has her five points scoring finishes to her name, there isn’t the same kind of upside potential for her points total that Matthews has. In fact, Hering could win both remaining races and still only improve her Series total points score by 741 points. That’s simply how consistent she has been all year. It’s hard to say that a top 10 finish at an IRONMAN World Championship could be her undoing for the series crown. Yet it’s her lowest points tally from an IRONMAN all year.

Still, having the lead still counts for something. It means Matthews still has to score. And if Nice taught us anything, it’s that even getting to the finish can prove to be an insurmountable task — just ask Anne Haug.

The Dark Horses

Lotte Wilms: Wilms is one of two athletes who have only scored at three races so far in 2024, meaning that she could win both remaining races and score all 5,500 points. If she were to do so, it’d push her up to a grand total of 18,788 points and likely guarantee a podium spot in the series. She’d need some help from Hering and especially Matthews for that point total to hold up for victory. It’s also asking a lot from Wilms, who last won at this distance in May 2023 at Challenge St. Polten, and hasn’t won an IM branded 70.3 event since Sunshine Coast two years ago.

Hannah Berry: Berry is the last athlete within 5,500 points of Hering, and she also happens to be the other athlete who has only scored at three events in 2024. She, like Wilms, would need plenty of help from the two athletes at the top of the points standings, along with taking the wins in Western Australia and Taupo. But unlike Wilms, Berry has more recent wins at 70.3 distance events — one this year, as well as taking the win at 70.3 Taupo last December. In fact, she’s a multi-time winner and podium finisher in Taupo — potentially giving her momentum heading into this year’s World Championships. We’ve seen this work with course familiarity before in venues like St. George — don’t count Berry out of it.

The Prize Money on Offer

Although we are looking just at who might be the winner of the series will be, let’s not forget — the bonus pool pays out to the top 50 athletes. But the big money sits in the top 10, with $650,000 divided up amongst those 10 athletes.

1st: $200,000
2nd: $130,000
3rd: $85,000
4th: $70,000
5th: $50,000
6th: $40,000
7th: $30,000
8th: $20,000
9th: $15,000
10th: $10,000
11th-50th: $5,000 each
Total: $850,000

Photos: Jackie Hering – Patrick McDermott / Getty Images for IRONMAN
Kat Matthews – Alex Koerier / Getty Images for IRONMAN
Hannah Berry – Albert Perez / Getty Images for IRONMAN

The post Women’s Contenders for IM Pro Series Crown Post-Nice first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

As speculations continue as to which women will find their way to the Nice podium on Sunday, one name seems to come up again and again: Laura Philipp.

The German has always had strong showings at the IRONMAN World Championship. In 2022, despite a drafting penalty on the bike, she still finished in fifth place. Last year, Philipp rounded out the women’s top three finishers alongside first place Lucy Charles-Barclay and second place Anne Haug.

It’s clear that this year, Philipp is all-in on going for the win at this weekend’s IM World Championship in Nice. She has spent nearly all of her year training in the mountains and spent time in Nice this past spring testing bike equipment and setups to optimize for the IMWC.

She’s had a slew of successes to build up her confidence as well: Second place at Challenge Roth, third place at the San Francisco T100 race and fourth place at the London T100 race, as well as three top-five finishes at IM-brand 70.3s this year.

And though Philipp is saving her mental and physical energy ahead of race day, we were still able to sit down with the IMWC podium finisher for a few quick questions ahead of race day.

Laura Philipp Shares Her Thoughts on Her Season and Nice

ST: How has your training gone for Nice? 

LP: My training has gone well and mostly according to plan. I did a big block of altitude training in St. Moritz over the last few weeks and rode many of the big climbs to get ready for the challenging bike course [in Nice]. We focused a bit more on improving some specific skills for the climbs and descents, but otherwise the volume and intensity remained similar to any other race preparation I would typically do.

ST: What excites you about an IM World Championship in Nice?

LP: The bike course in Nice is the most amazing bike course. It’s super tough, challenging and will most likely bring a lot of separation into the women’s pro field. I like the fact that bike skills are a necessary part of nailing this course, and that it is not only about physical power output. It was also really nice to prep [for the IMWC] closer to home and avoid another big trip [such as to Kona]. I am excited about my first racing experience in Nice and I am sure that this location is very World Champs-worthy.

ST: What are your thoughts on the IRONMAN Pro Series? Have you enjoyed partaking in it?

LP: I think the IM Pro Series is a great addition to the pros’ racing calendar and has definitely increased the strength of the field at the races in the Pro Series, which is awesome and what fans want to see. I have only participated in one IM Pro Series event so far at 70.3 Mallorca, but enjoyed the experience. I like the inclusion of Race Ranger and will definitely try to race more races of the series in the future if IM decides to continue the Pro Series.

ST: What other races will you prioritize this year after IMWC?

LP: I will continue to race the T100 series.

ST: Who are your sponsors this year?

LP: Hep Solar, Canyon, New Balance, Castelli, Spa, AG1, Whoop, Shook, SwissSide, Schwalbe, Ergon, Mnstry, Incylence, Soprema, Kickass Sports, Lever Movement

The post A Quick Check-In with Laura Philipp ahead of the IRONMAN World Championship first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

The pros are just like us: both age groupers and pros alike fear getting a dreaded mechanical issue on the bike portion of an IRONMAN race. Depending on the severity of the mechanical, it can slow you down a bit at its tamest and completely derail your race at its worst.

Last year, Dutchwoman Els Visser faced the latter when her entire pedal came off during the IRONMAN World Championship in Kona – it was still clipped onto her cleat – with only a handful of miles left on the bike course. She went from riding towards the front to slipping into the middle of the pack. 

Visser ended up finishing in fifteenth that day, and this year has returned valiantly to the racing scene with tremendous success, finishing in the top five for all but one race of the IRONMAN-brand races she’s competed in . Can she continue that streak with a podium finish in Nice?

Els Visser is Ready for Nice

ST: How has your season gone so far this year? How are you feeling about your season at this point in time?

EV: It’s been the season of my life so far. I’m in the best shape since the start of my career and have had some incredible results – finishing third in Roth and setting a new Dutch women’s IRONMAN record was super cool. I’ve been racing a lot, too – I think IMWC Nice will be something like my thirteenth race of the year and my fifth full distance IRONMAN this year. 

I’m really happy with the consistency I’ve been able to put out this season, how I’ve recovered from each race, and how the season is going.

ST: You’ve bounced back really well after your bike mechanical in Kona last year. Remind us – what exactly happened there?

EV: I was riding with Anne Haug after the turnaround in Hāwī – she was really setting the pace but I was able to follow her – we were in something like sixth and seventh place. With about 35km (~22 miles) to go, my left pedal broke and it was still clipped underneath my bike shoe. It literally broke off its pedal spindle.

At first, I stopped and got off my bike, but it was obvious that I couldn’t fix it, and I didn’t see a mechanic coming, so I thought, “Okay, the only thing I can do now is jump back on the bike and ride the last 35km with one leg.” 

It was very frustrating because a lot of girls behind me overtook me in those final kilometers and I had been in such a good place when I was riding with Anne [Haug].

At the start of the marathon, I had to mentally reset and still try to run a good marathon. It took me nearly 10km to not feel sorry for myself anymore. In the end, I finished in 15th. 

I think that given the circumstances, it was still a really good performance, but of course it could have been better had I not lost my pedal. But that’s also, I think, part of the sport and how you handle it, how you overcome obstacles and if you can still manage to deliver a good performance.

ST: What are your thoughts on the IM Pro Series? You’ve been in the pro triathlon circuit for a long time; do you think the Pro Series is ultimately a good thing for pros?

EV: At the start of the year, the IM Pro Series wasn’t really my focus, but then I did do some races in the series and kept going on that path; I could probably have done a better job of picking the right races within the series. Right now, I am in fourth place in the series.

Next year, if the Pro Series stays the same, I will definitely focus on it and train specifically for the races in the Pro Series to try to get the highest amount of points possible. I think the Pro Series is an incredible opportunity for us athletes to get rewarded – I like that if you are a consistent athlete and able to deliver good performances over multiple races you get a financial bonus for that. 

I think it’s super cool how IRONMAN bases the Pro Series on the point system and that every second really does count and that at the end of the day the Pro Series is about getting the best out of yourself.  

ST: What are your thoughts on the new IRONMAN World Championship venue in Nice?

EV: I think in the end Kona is still the race that everyone really wants to win if you compare it with Nice, but I think that’s also because Nice is still a very new IM World Championship location, so it may take some time for people to truly appreciate the race. 

Nice is definitely a course where, in the end, the best overall athlete will win the race. You will need a good swim, an incredible bike, and a good run performance; it is a very honest course. 

I also like that Nice is close by for those of us based in Europe. For Kona, most pros would do a pre-Kona camp and need to travel out to Kona a month out. This year, I won’t arrive to Nice until the Tuesday of race week. I can drive there, and because I’ve raced so much this year and traveled a lot, it’s convenient to have Nice so close. I do think some of the “World Championship” hype is missing a bit now, but maybe that is because it is so close to where I live.

ST: You are a very strong cyclist. What are your thoughts on the dynamic bike course in Nice and how will it impact the end result of the race?

EV: For this race, you can have an incredible bike, but if you over-bike and you aren’t able to run a good marathon, then it doesn’t matter. You need to pace yourself on the bike so that you can still run a good marathon. I think the race will come down to having the right combination of a strong bike and a fast run, but not overdoing it on the bike.

I don’t think the swim will be as important in Nice because with all of the climbing on the bike, I don’t think quite as many groups will form – the bike will be very honest and very much an individual effort. 

Pace yourself well, approach the race as your own race and racing against yourself, take care of your fueling plan, and don’t get too excited in the first hour on the bike are my pieces of advice. 

ST: Who are your sponsors this year?
EV: Red Bull, Breitling Netherlands, Jelenew, and a private sponsor, the Lion Capital Group.

Photos: Eric Alonso, Alexander Koerner / Getty Images for IRONMAN

The post “I’m in the best shape since the start of my career” – Els Visser on Nice Prep first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

The IRONMAN Pro Series will return in 2025, with the series set to visit seven new destinations next year.

Those seven new destination events are mostly focused in Europe, as IRONMAN made a point to offer events in a wider geographic spread in 2025.

Coming to the calendar in 2025 is the new season kickoff in Australia at IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong in March; IRONMAN South Africa; IRONMAN 70.3 Venice-Jesolo; IRONMAN 70.3 Aix-en-Provence; IRONMAN 70.3 Eagleman; and IRONMAN 70.3 Swansea. The final additional destination is 2025’s season concluding IRONMAN 70.3 World Championships, to be held in Marbella, Spain.

IRONMAN CEO Scott DeRue said, “The feedback from athletes, fans, partners, and the wider triathlon community to the inaugural season of the IRONMAN Pro Series has been overwhelmingly positive and we are excited to continue with the series in 2025. The 2025 schedule has seven new host cities and has been designed to provide athletes with racing opportunities that are more evenly distributed geographically throughout the year. With the 2025 IRONMAN Pro Series locked in, we hope that athletes can look forward to their next year of racing with excitement and begin planning their 2025 race schedule.”

Series points will be awarded in the same manner as 2024, with winners of IRONMAN events receiving 5000 points and winners of 70.3 distance races receiving 2500 points, with points for finishers thereafter decreasing by every second behind they finish. The two Championship events will award 6000 and 3000 points, respectively, to their winners. Athletes may race as many times as they wish in the Series, but only their top five points-scoring finishes count for the series.

The Pro Series will also offer a combined total prize pool of $4.2 million: $2.5 million in prize purses at races, and $1.7 million in end-of-season bonuses paid out to the top 50 athletes in the Series. Tweaks to payments for athletes finishing 11-50 were designed to increase competition outside the top 10.

Current series leader Jackie Hering said, “I’m super excited to hear that it is going to continue in 2025. The [IRONMAN] Pro Series I think offers us pros a real clarity on races to choose and how to design our season, if the series is something we are going after. For me, at this point it will load me full of motivation and excitement to know exactly what races I’m going to target for next year.”

The full 2025 IM Pro Series is as follows:

IRONMAN will also continue to offer prize purses at non-Pro Series races. Those 40 events, which also offer IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship slots to professionals, will award an additional $1.8 million in prize money, bringing the total purse on offer through IRONMAN racing to north of $6 million.

Photo: Patrick McDermott / Getty Images for IRONMAN

The post 2025 IM Pro Series, Global Prize Purse Announced first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

We now have less than a week to go before the women’s IRONMAN World Championship in Nice gets underway in the crystalline waters of the Mediterranean, the dynamic mounts of the Alpes-Maritimes, and the buzzing Promenade of Nice. 

Last year was the first edition of the IRONMAN World Championship in Nice, although regular IRONMAN Nice has been a staple of the region for many years. Frenchman (yes, we know he’s British, but he identifies more with his French nationality per his website’s bio) Sam Laidlow became the youngest-ever IRONMAN World Champion winner when he, in a shocking twist to many, claimed victory in Nice in 2023.

It’s been said before and we’ll say it again: Nice is not Kona. This race not only has practically the opposite terrain of Kona, but the strengths and strategies needed to podium are vastly different than on the Big Island.

As for which women will make their way onto the podium on Sunday – it’s anyone’s guess.

The Course

We shared an article last week with a more in-depth view of the IM World Championship Nice course, but the quick breakdown is:

• Swim: an ocean swim that will likely not be wetsuit legal for the pros, but may be for the age groupers. A relatively straightforward swim except for its slightly odd W-shape.
• Bike: a doozy. Begins with a punchy climb that turns into a long endurance ascent with rollers on the plateau at the top followed by a descent that requires care and focus right when athletes are at their most exhausted.
• Run: flat and centralized. Although the run is as flat as it gets, challenges like little shade and mounting heat may catch some by surprise. The course will be buzzing with spectators thanks to its central location on the Promenade.

Five Possible Podium Picks

As Laidlow proved last year, even at the IM World Championship, anything can happen. If we had to make some educated guesses about who is most-ready to tackle the dynamics of Nice, though, we’d go with the following, in no particular order:

• Lucy Charles-Barclay: Never bet against a returning champion, especially when they appear to be healthy, fit, and also won IRONMAN Nice by nearly 20 minutes earlier in the year. Lucy’s swim will set her apart, as will her typically strong bike splits. However, she’ll have many incredible runners seeking to chase her down on the marathon.

• Laura Philipp: After finishing in third place at Kona last year, Laura seems to have doubled down on her quest to make it to the top step of the podium, spending much of her year training in the mountains. She’s also found success at the 100km distance as part of the T100 races; she’s had a couple of top five finishes so far there, too. Laura is a phenomenal cyclist and very solid runner. She will need to call upon all her bike strength to keep her in play all day and set her up well for a strong marathon.

• Kat Matthews: Kat had a tough go at Kona last year, DNF’ing on the bike shortly after the turnaround at Hāwī. She came roaring back in 2024 with wins at IRONMAN Texas and IRONMAN Vitoria-Gasteiz. Her run is always one to watch, but can she hang on through the dynamics of the bike course to make it count?

• Anne Haug: Anne came in second at Kona last year largely in part to her excellent run abilities – but she also put together a solid bike split, too. This year, Anne has had a slew of private medical issues that has kept her from racing consistently. When she has raced, though, she’s come away with results like a victory at IM Lanzarote, which is another course with a killer bike leg and a flat run. If she’s been able to get enough training volume in, she could be a contender here in Nice.

• Els Visser: Although she may not be brought up in as many podium picks as the other four women, Els has had an incredibly strong season in the IM Pro Series so far, taking fifth at IM Hamburg after dealing with a mechanical issue on the bike and then second at IM Vitoria-Gasteiz behind Kat Matthews just over a month later. After Els’ pedal-falling-off fiasco in Kona last year, she is definitely hungry to get some redemption. Els can easily be outrun by the likes of Kat Matthews and Anne Haug, so she’ll need to have an all-around magical day to make it to the podium.

Ones to Watch

Podium predictions are fun and all, but on race day it’s always neat to see someone unexpected find themselves in the mix. A few women with that potential are:

• Jackie Hering: This year marked American Jackie Hering’s return to IRONMAN-distance racing after about a decade-long hiatus, and a more-than-decade-long break from competing in an IRONMAN World Championship. She returned to 140.6 racing with gusto, though, taking the win at IM Hamburg and coming in second at IM Lake Placid.

• Danielle Lewis: Another American with the potential to shake things up, Danielle Lewis came in first at IRONMAN Lake Placid this year after a ninth place at IRONMAN Texas and a DNF in Kona. Lewis faced some health issues during her off-season but seems to have returned to form as demonstrated at Lake Placid. Her strong bike and run skills could net her a spot on or near the podium if all goes well for Danielle on race day.

• Lotte Wilms: Lotte seems to be rarely mentioned in conversations around World Championship podiums, but she has every right to be. She finished third at IRONMAN Texas and second at IRONMAN Cairns earlier this year. She relies heavily on her dominant bike to give her a lead going into the run – this could be an advantage given Nice’s challenging bike course, but a flat run means she’ll have a lot of work to do to keep her momentum once on the marathon.

• Chelsea Sodaro: Chelsea is of course a former IM World Champion herself, and she took the win at IM New Zealand in March of this year after finishing sixth in Kona last year. She switched coaches mid-season as well as relocated from Reno, Nevada to the triathlon hub of the U.S.: Boulder, Colorado. Chelsea has had some struggles this year, like her DNF at the T100 Singapore race, but her run has always been a threat and depending on how her new coaching relationship is going, she just might pull out a podium or near-podium finish.

Word on the Street: Kona and Nice

As you’ll read in both our course preview article which features commentary from retired professional triathlete Renee Kiley and in two upcoming interviews with Laura Philipp and Els Visser, the women pros seem to be overall glad about the IRONMAN World Championships rotating to different locations other than Kona. 

In summary, pros seem glad to have a chance to succeed at a race that isn’t one big time trial out in the lava fields followed by an exposed, humid, and desolate run. The Nice bike course is a welcome change, as is the spectator-filled Promenade. The different location gives pros with varied strengths a chance to succeed on the world stage. 

Although it remains to be seen if IRONMAN will continue to do the every-other-year rotation between Kona and Nice after the next couple of years, the gist from most pros is that they hope the new locations for the IM World Championships are here to stay.

Tune in beginning at 7:15 a.m. CEST on Sunday, September 22 to watch the women’s IRONMAN World Championship.

Image Credit: Donald Miralle/IRONMAN

The post IRONMAN World Championship Nice Preview first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

Kona is a brutal race for anyone, amateur or pro. Arguably, though, the pros taking the start line feel even more pressure than the age groupers. There are sponsor obligations to meet, meticulous race strategies to execute, and often, the desire to prove that you as a pro “deserve” to be out on the Queen K. 

New-ish pro Rachel Zilinskas, who turned pro in late 2021, knows these feelings all too well. Zilinskas, who trains in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, competed in her first-ever IRONMAN World Championship last year in Kona where she finished 25th in the pro field with a time of 9 hours and 10 minutes.

While many of us regardless of gender aspire to such a fantastic finish time, Zilinskas was disappointed in her World Championship debut; she was sick with a head cold during the race and battling the self-imposed pressure of acing her first time in Kona. 

Now, a year and a fourth place finish at IRONMAN Lake Placid later, Zilinskas is once again ready to take on the IRONMAN World Championship, but this time in Nice. 

We caught up with Zilinskas ahead of her departure to France.

Rachel Zilinskas’ Journey to Nice

ST: Despite your podiums at IRONMAN Mt. Tremblant and IRONMAN Lake Placid, yours may still be a name that folks are unfamiliar with. Give us a little bit of background as to how you got into triathlon and how and when you turned pro.

RZ: I grew up as a competitive swimmer and that was my life for almost 20 years. I swam for the University of Georgia and had an amazing career there. Unfortunately, I had a shoulder injury that kind of derailed my original dream, which was to aim for the Olympics. I had actually come quite close to qualifying before I tore my rotator cuff; I finished seventh in the 10-kilometer open water trials in 2012 and ninth in the 800-meter free in the pool, so I wasn’t too far off from qualifying.

It’s pretty hard to come back to competitive swimming after a torn rotator cuff and I was really struggling with the transition from competitive swimming to not really having any athletic goals. I grew up watching my mom do some triathlons as a kid, but then she took a break from competing when we were young. In 2018, we signed up for a 70.3 together and that’s how I got started in triathlon. 

I started working with my coach, Andrew Yoder, who is still my coach today. I fully intended to just see if I even liked triathlon after that first 70.3 – I only had the intention of it being a hobby. But…I fell in love with the sport after that first 70.3 in 2018 and kept progressing very naturally. After a couple of years of racing as an age grouper and getting good results, I made the decision to turn professional in 2021.

ST: Not only have you qualified for the IRONMAN World Championships twice as a professional, but you also work a full-time corporate job. Do you feel that this helps or hinders you in your professional triathlon journey?

RZ: I work full-time in procurement for Clark Associates, a wholesale food service supplier. I was working full-time as a statistician on clinical trials before I came to Clark Associates and that was a great job but it was extremely high-pressure. It was too much for me to balance both professional triathlon and the statistician job, to be quite honest. Last year, I decided to take a step back and try to find something different that could fit into my life a little bit better, which brought me to Clark Associates.

I’m still working full time and it still is difficult to balance. But I think that the big thing for me is that now, when I leave the office for the day, I can leave work behind me and fully “log off.” 

I would be lying if I said that my schedule is not extremely challenging. I wake up at 4:00 or 4:15 every single morning and get in a morning swim or a morning session and then I go to work. I’m in the office two days a week but even when I’m working from home, I am working standard office hours all day. After I wrap up my work day I head back out for another training session and then I finish up by about 7:00 at night, eat a quick dinner and try to get to bed by 8:00. It’s a huge grind for sure. 

However, I do feel like there are some benefits to this lifestyle, as well. Having a stable salary and health insurance are the biggest benefits, especially the health insurance. And then it is kind of how when I’m at work, especially when I’m in the office, I kind of forget about triathlon for a few hours. I love the sport very much, but it definitely takes some of the pressure off when I’m in the office because I’m  surrounded by people who don’t honestly know too much about triathlon and I can be known just for “me,” which takes a little bit of pressure off of results and racing. 

ST: On top of work, last year was also your first-ever IRONMAN World Championship, regardless of being pro or amateur. Your day didn’t go exactly as planned – walk us through your day in Kona in 2023.

RZ: I first qualified for Kona as an age grouper, but then it was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. So, my coach and I planned that I would race as an age grouper in 2021 and then turn professional after Kona in 2021.

But then, Kona got postponed again and I decided to turn pro without waiting for Kona. I fortunately qualified in 2022 for 2023 Kona at IRONMAN Mt. Tremblant.  

Going into Kona in 2023, I was putting a lot of pressure on myself. I was extremely busy leading into the race with my full time job and trying to balance the demands of training for a world championship. It was stressful trying to tie it all together mentally and physically.

When I got to Kona, I started feeling a little bit under the weather. And the whole week ahead of the race I was trying to convince myself that it was allergies .I was like, “No, this cannot happen. This has to be allergies. I’m fine. I’m fine. I’m fine.”

In hindsight, I probably should have shut it down and rested that week before the race. Mentally, though, I just could not handle that at the time and I kept pushing through trying to do my race prep. You know it’s bad when I sleep like a baby the night before the race – usually, I’m the type of person who has a hard time falling asleep before a race. But the night before Kona, which is, like, the biggest race in my life, I was asleep before my head hit the pillow.

I was definitely ill – I was able to kind of make it through the race but I think I ran myself down too much. I was obviously extremely disappointed. But, I like to come out of every single race and have a period of reflection. It was not a performance that I was super happy with, but I was really happy with all the lessons that I learned from it, just in terms of learning to take care of myself and put a bit less pressure on myself. It was honestly kind of a privilege to be unhappy with a race – much better than to have zero races to be happy or unhappy about.

ST: How has your 2024 season been so far with the IRONMAN Pro Series?

RZ: Unfortunately, I had an injury at the beginning of the season. I had a really strong off season and was really excited to race in the IRONMAN Pro Series, but I moved from Arizona to Pennsylvania earlier this year and was under a lot of stress and suffered an injury, which delayed the start of my season. I was very frustrated and didn’t even think I’d be able to race IRONMAN Lake Placid a few weeks from race day. 

Fortunately, things started to fall into place before the race. My run training was  extremely limited heading into the race, but my swimming and biking were going really well. My coach and I decided to roll the dice and try it out and I was able to finish with a good result – fourth place female pro. 

I was super excited with that result and the Nice qualification and, yeah, again, I’m bummed that I didn’t get to take part in more of the IRONMAN Pro Series. However, being able to qualify for Nice and hopefully have a strong second half of the year is exciting to me.

ST: You’ve raced in Kona, which is of course an iconic location in our sport. What are your thoughts about now racing an IRONMAN World Championship in Nice?

RZ: I’m honestly super excited about it. When I initially heard the news about Kona and Nice, I was a little bit disappointed just because everyone wants to race in iconic Kona. After watching the men’s IRONMAN World Championship last year and talking to people that raced the course, and looking at my own progression in the sport, I think Nice is actually going to be a fun course for me. I like courses with a lot of climbing. I like courses that are kind of challenging and engaging.

It’s also exciting for me because I’ve never been to Europe. It’s a good excuse to take two-and-a-half weeks off from work and go to Europe. It’ll be unlike anything I’ve ever done before.

ST: Who are your sponsors this year?

RZ: Varlo Apparel and DeBoer Wetsuits have both been supporting me since the beginning of my career, and they’ve been awesome to work with. Another sponsor that’s been absolutely amazing for me and new this year is Certified Piedmontese. They’ve provided great support in the nutrition space and are just fantastic people to know in the triathlon space.

The post A Second Shot at Worlds: Rachel Zilinskas first appeared on Slowtwitch News.