The way Matthews bounced back from that challenge, though, pretty much personifies her season – she got on a plane and flew to San Francisco, where she took second to Taylor Knibb at the T100 event the following weekend. She followed that up with yet another IRONMAN win at Vitoria-Gasteiz, then bounced back two weeks later to take third at T100 London.

Racing well week in and week out is one thing, but Matthews also proved to be at her very best when it counted, taking second at both the IRONMAN world championship events. So, while she is thrilled to have taken the Pro Series title (along with fourth in the T100 Triathlon World Tour), she was rightfully proud of her ability to race well when it really counted.

“This is the first year that the (Pro) series has been running,” she said. “I think in future years it will just grow and grow and grow and it will really draw people into this sort of multirace series. “I think to get second here (in Taupo) and second at the full IRONMAN (Nice), I think that’s what I’m really proud of.”

“I think consistency isn’t always super sexy, but … I’ve really peaked for the big races,” she continued, referring to her runner-up finish to Laura Philipp in Nice and then her second-place finish behind Taylor Knibb in Taupo. “So this race I really trained for and to come 1:15 behind Taylor, that’s a sort of PB for me, so it’s not just the consistency. I’ve been able to see those significant, key races as my pinnacle, key races.”

Comeback

It’s hard to believe that just a few years ago we were all wondering if Matthews would ever return to the highest levels of the sport. Just 10 days before the IRONMAN World Championship in Kona, Matthews was hit by a car.

“She fractured her skull, two vertebrae in her neck, her sternum, a rib and she recently also discovered she’d fractured her hip socket,” the Daily Mirror reported as she prepared to return to racing in April, 2023. “By her own admission she could have died in that crash.”

While we might all be amazed at her impressive return to the highest levels of the sport, she has very much moved on.

“You know, the first six months of recovery was more about getting back to professional racing,” she said. “Now I’m better than I ever have been. That was a PB run, you know, this year I’ve put down PB bike power, PB swim, so it’s not about getting back.  It’s more about genuine gratitude for being able to race and to have this as my job, and to be around so many people who love the sport – this is literally my dream.

Second Career

Matthews has surged to the top of the triathlon world after having served in the British Armed Forces for many years. It remains a key part of what drives her in triathlon.

“That community, and the support from the British army, it is fundamental and it makes me really believe I’m not just fighting for myself as an individual, I’m fighting for for everybody to get behind that ethos of trying to be your best,” she said. “It really motivates me. And we even have people here who are posted from the British army overseas in New Zealand coming to support the race. So it really fills my heart.” 

2025 Racing

At the post-race press conference, Matthews made reference to trying to figure out what changes needed to be made in order to beat Knibb. I couldn’t help but ask if she thought that a reduced race schedule might help.

“To be honest, I actually feel like I’ve got fitter after every race,” Matthews said. “For this race, I don’t think I was disadvantaged by a busy racing schedule. Perhaps you could say for the full IRONMAN I need to commit to slightly different training or, you know, change something up in terms of my preparation, especially for Kona, so that’s definitely something I’m going to take into 2025, but for this specific race, no, I don’t feel like my schedule impacted it.”

All of which means we’re likely to see Matthews at a lot of races again next year. Consistency might not be sexy, but it sure can make for an impressive, and it sure doesn’t hurt the bank account.

The post Kat Matthews: Consistency Might Not Be “Super Sexy,” but it Pays Off in the End first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

Overwhelmingly, men qualifying for the IRONMAN World Championships choose ISM saddles to ride, with the brand ridden by nearly a third of the field. Even when you combine the totals of second and third place Selle Italia and Fizik, it’s still 91 saddles short of the count that ISM puts up.

Saddle choice, as we know, is a critical component of bike fit. And ISM has led the way in split-nose saddles for decades now. They continue to tinker, having multiple lengths, widths, and padding options. It also helps that multiple third-party companies make accessories dedicated to their saddle designs (e.g., XLAB’s hydration systems). And ISM has also become a common stock offering on bikes, including Quintana Roo.

Selle Italia, meanwhile, enjoys part of its growth from a similar OEM arrangement, except you can find some of their saddles on new Canyon bicycles. But the Watt Superflow offers a split-nose design that riders frequently prefer as they move more forward in their respective positioning. It’s also the preferred saddle range of IRONMAN World Champion Patrick Lange.

Fizik in third may not seem like much, but it’s a sizable fall from their second-place finish in the count the last time men raced in Kona. Fizik tends toward slightly more traditional shaping out of their saddles; I, for one, love them as a road saddle but is not my preference for triathlon. Still, there’s also some creative innovations, like their Adaptive 3D printed padding in the Transiro Aeris Long Distance line.

Other interesting factoids: Prologo edged Specialized for fifth place by a single saddle. Smaller saddle companies continue to make in-roads to the counts, as Gebiomized, Cobb / JCOB, and Dash all had somewhat strong showings. And I’m still somewhat shocked that Shimano doesn’t make better in-roads, as their three triathlon-specific saddles (as well as the Stealth road saddle) are all quite comfortable options. I think as Eric has alluded to in some of the other count articles, Shimano seems to be struggling with the market more in the multisport space, which is hurting them despite having solid options available to riders.

The total counts we have are below. As a reminder, professionals are excluded from results, which is why you don’t see a brand like Wove included in these totals. Also some saddles are just missed so the totals may be off a little as well.

The post ISM Remains Preferred Saddle Choice in Kona first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

Breaking down the riding choices of the top bike splits from this year’s race in Kona, a few trends emerge. First, Continental retains brand supremacy in tires — eleven of the top 15 bike splits were taken by riders using their products. There’s also a consensus emerging for 1X cranks in Kona. And yes, customized cockpits are now the norm, rather than the exception and everyone was on tubeless.

Here are, in order, your fastest riders from the 2024 men’s IRONMAN World Championships and the bikes they used to get there.

1.) Sam Laidlow – 3:57:22

Frame: Canyon Speedmax CFR
Wheels: HED Vanquish V84 (front), HED Jet 180 (rear)
Tires: Continental Aero 111 (front), Continental GP5000TT TR (rear);
Cockpit: Canyon Custom
Drivetrain: Shimano 1X
Crank: 165mm
Pedals: Favero Assioma
Rear Derailleur Hanger: Ceramicspeed OSPW Aero
Saddle: Prologo Dimension Tri CPC
Front Hydration: Canyon, Dual Bottle XLAB Gorilla Cage
Rear Hydration: Canyon, XLAB Gorilla Cage

2.) Leon Chevalier – 4:01:38

Frame: Cervelo P5
Wheels: HED Vanquish V84 (front), HED Jet 180 (rear)
Tires: Continental GP 5000 TT TR
Cockpit: Drag2Zero
Drivetrain: Shimano 1X
Crank: 170mm
Pedals: Look Keo Blade
Rear Derailleur Hanger: Ceramicspeed OSPW Aero
Saddle: ISM PN 3.0
Front Hydration: Dual Bottle BTA
Rear Hydration: Single rear bottle

3.) Robert Kallin – 4:01:44

Frame: Orbea Ordu
Wheels: Ron Wheels Ultron (front), Ultron 105 (rear)
Tires: Continental GP 5000 TT TR,
Cockpit: Uniqo
Drivetrain: Shimano 2X
Crank: 172.5mm
Pedals: Favero Assioma
Rear Derailleur Hanger: unknown
Saddle: ISM PN 3.1
Front Hydration: 2 Bottle BTA, TriRig Cages
Rear Hydration: XLAB Gorilla Cage

4.) Magnus Ditlev – 4:02:52

Frame: Scott Plasma
Wheels: HED Vanquish V84 (front), HED Jet 180 (rear)
Tires: Schwalbe Pro One Aero
Cockpit: Custom
Drivetrain: Shimano 1X
Crank: 172.5mm
Pedals: Garmin
Rear Derailleur Hanger: Ceramicspeed OSPW Aero
Saddle: Wove V8
Front Hydration: Single Bottle BTA
Rear Hydration: 3 bottle custom, XLAB Gorilla Cage

5.) Kristian Høgenhaug – 4:03:32

Frame: BMC Speedmachine 01 ONE
Wheels: DT Swiss ARC 1100 DICUT 80mm
Tires: Vittoria Corsa Speed 26mm
Cockpit: Profile Design and aeroGain.dk cups
Drivetrain: SRAM 1X
Crank: 170mm
Pedals: Shimano
Rear Derailleur Hanger: Ceramicspeed OSPW Aero
Saddle: Selle Itallia Watt 3D Kit Carbonio Superflow
Front Hydration: Mono Dual Bottle BTA with XLAB Gorilla Cage
Rear Hydration: Large plastic box with XLAB Gorilla Cage

6.) Cameron Wurf – 4:03:59

Frame: Pinarello Bolide F TR
Wheels: Princeton Carbonworks Mach 7580 TS V2
Tires: Continental Aero 111 (front), Continental GP5000TT TR (rear),
Cockpit: Most
Drivetrain: Shimano 1X
Crank: 165mm
Pedals: Shimano
Rear Derailleur Hanger: Ceramicspeed OSPW Aero
Saddle: Fizik Arione
Front Hydration: Single Bottle BTA, XLAB Gorilla Cage
Rear Hydration: XLAB Gorilla Cage

7.) Matthew Marquardt – 4:04:55

Frame: Trek Speed Concept
Wheels: Princeton Carbonworks Mach 7580 TS V3
Tires: Continental Aero 111 (front), Continental GP5000TT TR (rear)
Cockpit: Sync
Drivetrain: SRAM 1X
Crank: 175mm
Pedals: Shimano
Rear Derailleur Hanger: SRAM
Saddle: JCOB Type 5
Front Hydration: Dual Bottle BTA, XLAB Gorilla Cage
Rear Hydration: Single Rear Carrier

8.) Menno Koolhaas – 4:05:02

Frame: Scott Plasma
Wheels: Zipp 858 NSW
Tires: Continental Aero 111 (front), Continental GP5000TT TR (rear)
Cockpit: SpeedCo
Drivetrain: SRAM 1X
Crank: 170mm
Pedals: Look Keo Blade
Rear Derailleur Hanger: Ceramicspeed
Saddle: Syncros Belcarra
Front Hydration: Dual Bottle BTA, XLAB and Syncros Cage
Rear Hydration: Single Rear Carrier

9.) Nick Thompson – 4:05:28

Frame: Cervelo
Wheels: Princeton Carbonworks Mach 7580 (front), HED Jet 180 (rear)
Tires: Pirelli P Zero Race TLR RS
Cockpit: Vision Superbar
Drivetrain: Shimano 1X
Crank: 165mm
Pedals: Favero Assioma
Rear Derailleur Hanger: Ceramicspeed OSPW Aero
Saddle: Dash
Front Hydration: Single Bottle BTA, XLAB Gorilla Cage
Rear Hydration: XLAB Gorilla Cage

10.) Kristian Blummenfelt – 4:05:47

Frame: CADEX Tri
Wheels: CADEX Aero 4-Spoke
Tires: Continental GP 5000 TT TR, 25mm
Cockpit: Drag2Zero
Drivetrain: SRAM 2X
Crank: 165mm
Pedals: Shimano
Rear Derailleur Hanger: SRAM
Saddle: Wove V8
Front Hydration: Single Bottle BTA, XLAB Gorilla Cage
Rear Hydration: Mono Dual with XLAB Gorilla Cage

11.) Rudy Von Berg – 4:05:49

Frame: Factor Hanzo
Wheels: Cadex Aero 4-Spoke
Tires: Continental GP 5000 TT TR
Cockpit: Speedbar
Drivetrain: SRAM 1X
Crank: 175mm
Pedals: Look Keo Blade
Rear Derailleur Hanger: Ceramicspeed OSPW Aero
Saddle: Wove V8
Front Hydration: Single Bottle BTA, XLAB Gorilla Cage
Rear Hydration: Mono Dual with XLAB Gorilla Cage

12.) Kacper Stepniak – 4:06:01

Frame: BMC Speedmachine 01
Wheels: Evolve TroikaMAX (front), Prototype (rear)
Tires: Continental GP 5000 TT TR
Cockpit: Drag2Zero
Drivetrain: SRAM 1X
Crank: unknown
Pedals: Look Keo Blade
Rear Derailleur Hanger: unknown
Saddle: Bontrager Hilo
Front Hydration:
Rear Hydration:

13.) Gregory Barnaby – 4:06:08

Frame: Trek Speed Concept
Wheels: Vision Metro SL 81
Tires: Vittoria Corsa Speed, 26mm
Cockpit: AeroCoach
Drivetrain: Shimano 1X
Crank: 165mm
Pedals: Favero Assioma
Rear Derailleur Hanger: Ceramicspeed OSPW Aero
Saddle: Fizik Transiro Aeris
Front Hydration: Single Bottle BTA with Vision Cage
Rear Hydration: Single Vision cage

14.) Patrick Lange – 4:06:22

Frame: Canyon Speedmax CFR
Wheels: Swiss Side Hadron 800
Tires: Continental Aero 111 (front), Continental GP5000TT TR (rear); logos blacked out
Cockpit: Canyon Custom
Drivetrain: Shimano 1X
Crank: 165mm
Pedals: Wahoo/Speedplay
Rear Derailleur Hanger: Ceramicspeed OSPW Aero
Saddle: Selle Itallia Watt 3D Kit Carbonio Superflow
Front Hydration: Dual Bottles, XLAB Gorilla Cage and lower mounted aero bottle 
Rear Hydration: Canyon, XLAB Gorilla Cage

15.) Antonio Benito López – 4:06:32

Frame: Orbea Ordu
Wheels: Progress A-7F Tri-Spoke
Tires: Continental GP 5000 TT TR
Cockpit: Uniqo
Drivetrain: Shimano 2X
Crank: 165mm
Pedals: Favero Assioma
Rear Derailleur Hanger: Unknown, carbon cage
Saddle: Selle Itallia Watt 3D Kit Carbonio Superflow
Front Hydration: XLAB Torpedo
Rear Hydration: Mono Dual Rear with Vision Cages

The post The Bikes of the Fastest Pro Riders in Kona 2024 first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

Other popular brands amongst the fastest runners in the pro field were ASICS, HOKA, and Adidas. All four brands featured have been towards the forefront of carbon plated run shoe development. Of them, ASICS and HOKA have the more robust stable of athletes sponsored in the field; Nike has extremely limited triathlon sponsorship, whereas anything Adidas does is focused in their home of Germany.

Here’s what we saw on the feet of the fastest professional men on the run in Kona. Interestingly, almost a third of these came from athletes who did not earn prize money; the bike pace was just that hard.

1.) Patrick Lange – 2:37:34 – IRONMAN World Champion
Shoe: Adidas AdiZero Adios Pro Evo 1
This shoe was run to the marathon world record in its debut race in Berlin last year. It’s astonishingly light for a carbon racer, coming in at a mere 4.8 ounces for a men’s US size 9. It’s perhaps the best of both worlds shoe some have been looking for — the weight of pre-carbon racing flats, with all of the benefits that high cushioning and carbon plating can give you. It comes with a price, though: $499 USD.

2.) Matt Hanson – 2:45:23 – 10th Place
Shoe: On Cloudboom Strike
It is no surprise to see Matt Hanson carve through a field on the run. He’s been wearing the Cloudboom Strike for a couple of seasons now. Considered to be On’s marathon racing shoe, it has all of your typical features you would expect: highly cushioned yet rebounding foam, full length carbon fiber plate, slight rocker in the forefoot. It’s 3 ounces heavier than the Adidas Lange wore — that’s not a knock on this shoe. This is more in line with what you would expect a carbon racer to weigh. And as evidenced by Hanson’s run time, it didn’t make much a difference.

3.) Jonas Hoffman – 2:45:46 – 16th Place
Shoe: Adidas Adizero Adios Pro Evo 1
Another German wearing Adidas, Hoffman takes the unfortunate mantle of “first guy not to earn prize money.” Hoffman’s background is in running, so seeing him make this list should be an expectation.

4.) Magnus Ditlev – 2:46:10 – 2nd Place
Shoe: Nike AlphaFly Next%
Ditlev is the first Nike wearing athlete on the list. Curiously, he chose to wear a nearly three-year old model of the AlphaFly for this race. One of the advantages that the current generation shoes have is that the move to Pebax cushioning over EVA means shoes have a longer shelf life. If you find a shoe you love, you can squirrel them away for a couple of years and burn through them. My suspicion is that Ditlev’s foot fits this upper quite well, and wet comfort is critical in Kona conditions.

5.) David McNamee – 2:47:09 – 13th Place
Shoe: Nike AlphaFly 3
Meanwhile, McNamee used the current generation AlphaFly for the fifth fastest run of the day. This generation of AlphaFly features more ground contact under the midfoot, enhancing platform stability. It’s also the lightest version of the AlphaFly, coming in at 7.7 ounces for a men’s size 9.

6.) Rudy Von Berg – 2:48:11 – 3rd Place
Shoe: TYR Valkyrie Elite Carbon Runner
TYR isn’t a brand you think of when it comes to running shoes. The Valkyrie Elite Carbon Runner (yes, that’s the full name) features — you guessed it — Pebax foam sandwiching a full-length carbon fiber plate. The knit upper helps reduce potential friction points.

7.) Dylan Magnien – 2:49:49 – 27th Place
Shoe: Nike Vaporfly Next%
Magnien appears to be shoe agnostic; a cursory look through his Instagram sees him in a wide variety of shoes at races. A classic VaporFly appears to be his current preference, having worn it both here and for his third place finish at IRONMAN Barcelona just three weeks before Kona.

8.) Leon Chevalier – 2:49:56 – 4th Place
Shoe: HOKA Cielo X1
Chevalier had been wearing the Rocket X2 since its debut in Kona in 2022. However, for this race, he opted into the more recent Cielo X1. Launched in late 2023, the Cielo X1 is the heaviest shoe here, outweighing its prior platform mate by 40 grams. That said, the Cielo trades that off with a more robust plate and foam combination that, for those it fits, seems to provide a racier ride.

9.) Menno Koolhaas – 2:50:02 – 5th Place
Shoe: Nike AlphaFly 3
The first man out of the water, Koolhaas was also quite fleet on land. He, too, opted for this year’s AlphaFly on his way to fifth place.

10.) Cameron Wurf – 2:50:11 – 7th Place
Shoe: Nike AlphaFly 3
Wurf had a strong performance in Kona. The long-time Nike affiliated athlete had one of his best runs in Kona as he took seventh place, narrowly missing out on catching the next athlete on our list. Wurf, as you would expect, wore this year’s AlphaFly.

11.) Gregory Barnaby – 2:50:33 – 6th Place
Shoe: ASICS MetaSpeed Sky Paris
It’s perhaps only surprising that it took to 11th place to find an ASICS wearing athlete. The MetaSpeed line has steadily gained share amongst professionals and age groupers. The Sky, meant for athletes who gain speed via longer stride length versus turnover, is more popular with professional men; the Edge (for athletes who gain speed via turnover) appears to have better in-roads with women. Yawn if you’ve heard it before: PEBAX foam, sandwiched by a carbon fiber plate, then try to add lightness. The MetaSpeed Sky Paris only trails the Adidas for lightness here at 6.5 ounces in a men’s size 9.

12.) Kieran Lindars – 2:51:49 – 8th Place
Shoe: Nike Vaporfly 3
Lindars opted for the original carbon racer Vaporfly over the AlphaFly. By comparison, the Vaporfly is half an ounce lighter than its stablemate. The Vaporfly is also a bit lower to the ground in stack height which, combined with a revised midsole geometry for this year’s shoe, makes it a bit friendlier to those with fatiguing run form.

13.) Mathias Petersen – 2:52:37 – 12th Place
Shoe: HOKA Rocket X2

14.) Braden Currie – 2:54:25 – 28th Place
Shoe: ASICS MetaSpeed Sky Paris

15.) Mike Phillips – 2:54:35 – 17th Place
Shoe: ASICS MetaSpeed Sky Paris

The post Nike Reigns Supreme Among Fastest MPRO Runs in Kona first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

Deboer was worn by the fastest swimmer of the day, as well as by five other men in the top 15. Sailfish was also quite popular amongst the front of the field.

Without further adieu, here’s your top 15 MPRO swims of the day and the gear they used for it.

1.) Menno Koolhaas 47:02
Swimskin: Deboer tsunami 3.0

2.) Sam Laidlow 47:06
Swimskin: Sailfish Rebel Pro Plus1

3.) Antonio Benito Lopez 47:08
Swimskin: Orca Athlex

4.) Patrick Lange 47:09
Swimskin: Aquasphere Phantom

5.) Gregory Barnaby 47:12
Swimskin: Roka Viper X

6.) Kieran Lindars 47:12.
Swimskin: Synergy Synskin 3

7.) Ben Kanute 47:15
Swimskin: Deboer tsunami 3.0

8.) Finn Große-Freese 47:16
Swimskin: Deboer tsunami 3.0

9.) Sam Appleton 47:16
Swimskin: Sailfish Rebel Pro Plus1

10.) Paul Schuster 47:17
Swimskin: Sailfish Rebel Pro Plus1

11.) Matthew Marquardt 47:18
Swimskin: Deboer tsunami 3.0

12.) Rudy Von Berg 47:18
Swimskin: ARK

13.) Kacper Stepniak 47:20
Swimskin: BlueSeventy PZ4TX+

14.) Kristian Blummenfelt 47:21
Swimskin: Deboer tsunami 3.0

15.) Braden Currie 47:22
Swimskin: Deboer tsunami 3.0

The post Swimskins of the Top 15 Pro Swimmers in Kona first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

The IRONMAN World Championships in Kona are notoriously hot and humid. Although this year’s race was gentler than average on conditions, it still reduced plenty of men to doing everything in their power to cool themselves off. Where do they usually start that problem? The bike. So it’s always been common to see creative solutioning to carry more and more fluid on board bikes, despite averaging an aid station every 11 miles.

There’s also, of course, the chase for aero benefits on front hydration systems. With the prohibition on using empty bladders down a tri suit, we’ve seen more athletes using a bottle in that space to try and fill the space between the arms and chest.

So it perhaps comes as a slight surprise that of the nearly 2,300 bikes that the collective team counted in Kona, only slightly more than half of them — 1,253 — had front hydration systems that we could identify. Rear hydration remains more popular, with 1,661 systems counted. And of those, there’s one brand that dominates: XLAB. They accounted for 42.2% of all the rear hydration systems, nearly doubling the count of second-placed Profile Design.

PD, however, outpaced XLAB on front hydration carriers, 412 to 315. But the most popular front solution was one integrated into the frame or bars from the manufacturer. I think this is something that we’ll need to watch for over the next couple of seasons, especially if Canyon continues its trajectory in the bike counts; any of their bikes will come with some type of front-mounted hydration either built into the frame (CFR, CF SLX) or with one available to purchase (standard CF).

Same with Quintana Roo and their V-PRi, which has an integrated FuelBay system. Both Profile Design and XLAB are helped by other QR bikes, though. Either a Profile Design or XLAB hydration system is offered as part of the purchase on the V-PR or X-PR bikes (the PD Aeria system is included, with the XLAB Torpedo a minor upcharge offering).

No other brand cracked a combined total of 100 carriers, either front or rear. The closest was Bontrager, which had 48 front carriers, 46 in the rear. And how the mighty have fallen, as Speedfil has just 5 total systems in the field, a far cry from their days as a major age-group team sponsor (and, in turn, showing up on the pier).

The totals:

Perhaps the most interesting statistic to me, though, are the roughly 630 athletes who eschew either a front or rear hydration system, relying instead on traditional frame bottle bosses (or their best Faris Al-Sultan impression). Was it a matter of budget, a lack of aero knowledge, or some other factor that led them there? We’ll need to keep an eye on this end of things as well, particularly if bike prices continue their march upward.

Photos: Eric Wynn / Slowtwitch

The post XLAB is Top Hydration Carrier in Kona first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

Thanks, at least in part, to the folks at Strava and Zwift, power is king to all the geeks. I would say this is perhaps even more so than watts saved in the wind tunnel. Power is something we see everywhere. Even if you don’t have it on your bike, Strava just makes it up for you. It’s so sacred that some pros won’t even share it.

Power started to come into cycling in the late 1980’s. It began with wired rear-wheel hubs, worked its way into cranks and Bluetooth and ANT+ data transmission, and then moved into pedals. It’s become one of the most recorded data sources next to HR for all things performance.

Like anything we have in our quiver, it is something that can be a huge help and, at the same time, can be a huge deterrent if not used correctly. So, who is leading when it comes to the source of your power?

Assioma made huge inroads on Garmin (compared to 2023 Kona), while Quarq remains the top dog. 2023 is in blue, and 2024 is in orange above.

Now, moving on to the men’s 2024 race, it appears that men have a larger appetite to have power-based cranks than pedals, compared to the women’s race here in 2023. We see from the 2024 stats that 62% of power meters were crank-based and 38% were pedal-based. The women last year were almost the exact opposite, with 30.1% crank power and 69.9% pedal power. And last month in Nice, there were even more pedal-based power meter’s on women’s bikes than there were at 2023 Kona.

The total breakdown was not all too out of the norm. We generally see the cranks win, but I will say that over time, that percentage is shrinking as we have more power pedal companies in the mix. With everyone having an N+1 bike need, it’s the most affordable way to get power on all your bikes. This is probably why Assioma is gaining so much traction on Garmin — they are about 30% less expensive for equivalent products.

The bigger question is not if, but when will Shimano and SRAM come out with a power pedal?

The post Who is the King of Power from Kona 2024? first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

It’s that fun time of year again when we get to count up the results of the Kona count, share the data, and put our opinions next to it.

Once again, Zipp owns the most significant piece of the wheel count pie. And they did it with very little help from others.

Here is the data for wheels from the 2024 Kona bike count.

This count gives us a total of 1972 wheels that were countable from our expert counters. The missing wheels are 100% non-identifiable wheels and the fifty-ish pros that we do not put into the count. I would like to note that the two superstar ladies who counted wheels are the best in the business. So if the two of them couldn’t figure out the wheel as it went by… well, it is what it is.

Now, with that disclaimer, we can all probably agree that with the law of averages, the count is what it is, and if you disagree. Please let me know if you would like to help next time we really do have a great time.

Here are my quick thoughts on the data. DT Swiss, who came in 2nd place, has made the intelligent choice to attach themselves to Canyon and others. These OEM partnerships paid huge dividends by putting wheels on bikes. But it also tells me that customers like the wheels, because as we know: the dudes spend big money on bikes. Just look at ZIPP. They have minimal OEM partnerships with Triathlon bike brands and continue to lead, so people continue replacing OEM specs with ZIPP wheels, although that lead is shrinking from years past.

HED had massive success with the count this year, and much of that is due to the continued success of the rear “Non-disc,” but almost a disc Hed Jet 180. The wheel was brought to life within 2 months of the 2022 two-day Kona race and, in 2024, there were 48 riders using the 180. That total alone is better than 17 of the wheel companies present. The wheel also set the new Kona Bike course record under Sam Laidlow in 3:57:22. Looking at this wheel, I’m starting to think the rule of no discs at Kona is time for a revisit.

Bontrager was in the mix in 4th, but it surprises me as we had 338 Treks, and considering they currently only spec Bontrager wheels and have for a while, this means the Speed Concepts are either older, many guys are jumping ship for other wheel brands, or they are buying frames alone and building up their own components.

ENVE rounded out the World Championship podium in 5th. The company lost a lot of its OEM business and volume numbers when it went into the bike manufacturer business years ago. However, it is on its way back to a healthy return to its roots in triathlon and rebuilding its D-to-C and OEM wheel business. We have more stories about that coming up. We shall see what happens with its efforts in the coming years. Having had many conversations with the brand, I can say that they are committed to the cause.

The biggest loser of the day was Shimano, which I find sad. Mainly because they genuinely have a better product than most people ahead of them. But when you turn your back on marketing to the people, sales, or the lack thereof, starts to follow. This also could be that Shimano has yet to bring wheels into the D to C market like most of these other companies, and with the triathlon market going heavily D to C, this may be something for them to really consider as dealers aren’t helping. Still, with all the nay sayers with hookless, they are one of the very few large companies making pure hooked carbon fiber wheels. It’s a little odd that a company with such a large market cap is neck and neck with Profile Design in the wheel department.

The post ZIPP Owns The Wheel Count of Kona 2024 first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

This past Saturday’s race in Kona completed the 2024 IRONMAN World Championships. In total, 25 age group champions were crowned between September’s women’s race in Nice, France and the October men’s race in Hawaii.

The United States and Switzerland led the way with producing four age group champions each. The USA brought home three women’s world titles and one men’s championship, whereas the Swiss team was evenly split in producing champions. Denmark rounded out the podium with three age group championships.

Other countries represented by winners are China, Poland, the Czech Republic, Germany, Great Britain, Japan, France, Finland, Belgium, and Estonia. France and Estonia are home to the respective woman and man top amateurs by time.

Here are the full lists of the 2024 IRONMAN Age Group World Champions.

2024 Women’s Age Group World Champions (Nice, France)

F18-24: Yixuan Chen (China) 11:09:00
F25-29: Caterina Mariani (Switzerland) 10:18:25
F30-34: Lea Riccoboni (France) 9:54:07
F35-39: Joanna Soltysiak-Vrebac (Poland) 9:56:33
F40-44: Jana Richtrova (Czech Republic) 10:25:21
F45-49: Laura Jalasto (Finland) 10:21:26
F50-54: Janette Dommer (Denmark) 10:45:06
F55-59: Loubna Freih (Switzerland) 11:32:17
F60-64: Christine Glah (USA) 12:25:05
F65-69: Judy McNary (USA) 13:14:30
F70-74: Missy Lestrange (USA) 15:13:39

2024 Men’s Age Group World Champions (Kona, HI, USA)

M18-24: Frederik Wester (Denmark) 8:34:15
M25-29: Nicola Christiaens (Belgium) 8:34:39
M30-34: Timmo Jeret (Estonia) 8:27:01
M35-39: Miao Hao (China) 8:30:10
M40-44: Christian Haupt (Germany) 8:46:09
M45-49: Donald Brooks (Great Britain) 8:34:56
M50-54: Mike Schifferle (Switzerland) 9:53:16
M55-59: Lennie Lange Kristensen (Denmark) 9:30:25
M60-64: Adrian Santonastaso (Switzerland) 9:53:16
M65-69: Herman Scheiring (Germany) 10:33:11
M70-74: Arthur Halttunen (USA) 12:27:19
M75-79: Marek Musiał (Poland) 14:45:46
M80-84: Hiroshi Nakata (Japan) 15:59:08
HC: Jan Tomanek (Czech Republic) 12:15:11

Photo: Jason Strohbehn

The post The 2024 IRONMAN Age Group World Champions first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

As I wrote in my lead-up articles to yesterday’s IRONMAN World Championships, I repeated the same phrase over and over again: Kona is full of surprises. Yesterday’s race was no exception.

The first, to me, being just how fast everyone went. The expected surf on the water never materialized, creating a much larger front pack starting the bike together. And once everyone realized that Sam Laidlow had gone up the road and was planning on distancing himself, the bike became classically frantic. That main pack had many moving parts to it, especially as Magnus Ditlev arrived to the party.

And then the wind kicked up a little, and the temperatures got hotter.

In the final 35 miles of the bike, Laidlow extended his lead out from 2:40 (over Ditlev) to almost a full six minutes (to Robert Kallin). Ditlev had seemingly cracked — he was another minute back. The chase pack splintered apart, with Kristian Hogenhaug, Matthew Marquardt, Leon Chevalier, and Menno Koolhaas in the first bit of the remains, and Nick Thompson, Kristian Blummenfelt, Gregory Barnaby, Kacper Stepniak, Rudy Von Berg, Patrick Lange, and Antonio Benito Lopez bringing in the rear. That group had lost nearly four minutes in the same time period.

On paper, this was Laidlow’s race to lose. But, as Von Berg noted in his post-race interview, “Kona hits different.”

Patrick Lange won this race on Ali’i Drive. “Well, Ryan, they finish on Ali’i Drive. Of course he did.” No, I mean in the opening 10 kilometers of the run course out-and-back along Kailua Bay. Lange ran the outbound section in 5:34/mile pace, or 2:25 marathon pace. By doing so, he passed nine men on the road to move into second. He was still just over seven minutes behind Laidlow.

But it was that action — of crushing the first part of the run — that looks like it may have forced Laidlow into upping his pace. On his way back to town, Laidlow’s pace jumped by 10 seconds per mile, despite the return leg being slightly more uphill. He had been running in the 6:05-6:10/mile range, but once he had seen Lange post turnaround, it became sub-6:00 miles. That may not seem like much, but given the totality of conditions, it was enough. By the time Laidlow had gone over the top of Palani he looked like he had completely melted, and it was now Lange in firm control.

Full credit to Laidlow: he stuck around to finish in 18th place. Putting the speed of the day in perspective again, he completely fell apart on the marathon, running 3:12:49, and still had a total time of 8:02:01. It’s just that fast now.

Other notes:

Bike Course Record Blown Away

Seven different men all beat Laidlow’s prior bike course record of 4:04:36.

Much will be made about whether Laidlow overbiked; the classic adage of “there’s no such thing as a good bike followed by a bad run” comes to mind. That said, I do not think the case is that simple. I think a better argument might be that Laidlow overbiked given the tactical choices he made on the run. I think he had a game plan of trying to run in the mid-2:40s and to try to see if anybody would catch him and he got caught out by Lange’s surge out of transition.

That said, it was a mixed set of results for those who biked this fast. Laidlow, Chevalier, Kallin, and Ditlev all suffered immensely at some point during the run. Of them, it was Ditlev and Chevalier who rebounded and were able to finish second and fourth (with Chevalier nearly hunting down Rudy Von Berg again for third). Wurf and Hogenhaug both had good runs to take 6th and 9th, respectively. Kallin, like Laidlow, could not rebound and finished 23rd.

As for Foley: after coming out of the water nearly last, he had nearly ridden onto the back of the primary chase group when he crashed in the final miles of the bike. He was able to get back on and finish riding, but did not finish the race. A shame, as he looked like he had potential to run through this field.

Also, a special shoutout to Australian age-group athlete Sam Askey-Doran, who is the proud owner of the swim course record. His 45:43 swim took 56 seconds off the previous record, set by Jan Sibbersen in 2018. Askey-Doran would finish in 9:26:29 total time, good enough for 17th place in the M18-24 age group.

One for the Old Guys

Lange is 39, and his six year time gap between world titles is the longest in IRONMAN history. For all the talk of young guys changing the game, it was some of the old guard that had the best days.

In long course triathlon terms these days, Gregory Barnaby (33), Cameron Wurf (41), Kristian Hogenhaug (33), Matt Hanson (39), Bradley Weiss (35), and David McNamee (36) are ancient. (Yes, it pains me being the same age as Hanson to say that; M40-44, here I come!) But the wily veterans proved that race-craft still exists. Roughly half of the paychecks earned yesterday went to guys 33 and over.

Of those performances, I think Wurf and Hanson stand out the most. Wurf has always raced well in Hawaii with a worst performance on debut in 2017 of 17th. Otherwise, he’s been in the top 12. Yesterday was no different, using his best-ever marathon run in Kona to take a well deserved 7th place. Hanson, on the other hand, has almost had the opposite luck. He has been long-suffering poor results here, never finishing higher than 15th. A best ever swim, along with his consistent run, saw him take 10th place — and a good enough result to earn more critical points in the IRONMAN Pro Series.

Underrated Performance of the Day

Leon Chevalier takes this in my book. He was 34th coming out of the water, more than 3.5 minutes off of the lead. And he rode his tail off on the second half of the bike. It was his efforts late that turned the chase pack into scattered remnants. On the run, he was one of many to be suffering; perhaps one of the more famous images of the live stream will be him sticking his entire head into a plastic trash can full of ice, desperately trying to cool down in the Natural Energy Lab. It was here he lost his podium position to Rudy Von Berg, but nearly gained it back before the finish line.

Chevalier has flown under the radar at World Championship events. He’s now gone seventh, fifth, and fourth. He will be impossible to ignore going forward.

Honorable Mention: Magnus Ditlev. Ditlev was written off by many, myself included, when he faded hard in the final miles of the bike and then took significant time in transition. Although the bike fade certainly wasn’t part of the plan, the time in transition was; Ditlev knew that he had to keep his temperature down in order to have a chance.

In hindsight, he made the absolute right call. He was one of the few to be able to collect himself and rebound, carving through the field on his way to a second place. He is bound to win an IRONMAN World Championship one day. It’s just a matter of when and where (I think he may have a better shot in Nice than Kona, due to the nature of the course).

The Spectacular Explosions

Kristian Blummenfelt: It felt…off…to keep the camera on Blummenfelt for as long as they did while he was doing his best Family Guy ipecac impression. Blummenfelt simply could not stop vomiting for what felt like an eternity. It felt like he’d be off the bike in Hawi.

Of course, that isn’t how Blummenfelt rolls, coming into transition as part of what was left of the chase, and was outrunning everyone not named Lange on Ali’i. It looked a repeat of Hamburg, where Blummenfelt also struggled with stomach issues and somehow won. But Blummenfelt is, in fact, human. He slogged through a 3:32 marathon for a 35th place finish.

Other athletes with marathons over 3:10: Laidlow, Robert Kallin, Ben Kanute, Lionel Sanders, Daniel Baekkegard, Tomasz Sala, Jason Pohl, Jackson Laundry, Andre Lopes, Thor Bendix Madsen, Igor Amorelli, and Stephen McKenna.

And your DNF counter: Gustav Iden, Chris Leiferman, Leonard Arnold, Trevor Foley, Arnaud Guilloux, Robert Wilkowiecki, Reinaldo Colucci, Denis Chevrot, Clement Mignon, Pieter Heemeryck, Matt Burton, and Arthur Horseau. That’s 12 men, or 22% of the men’s pro field that wound up not completing the event for one reason or another. It’s also an increase of four athletes not finishing the race over last year’s event in Nice.

As Von Berg said: Kona hits different.

Photos: Jason Strohbehn

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