IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship

The IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship sees the world’s best middle-distance triathletes face off in a spectacular annual event.

Introduced as a championship race in 2006, the 70.3 World Championship took place in Clearwater, Florida until 2010 before moving to Nevada for a short stint in Las Vegas. Now it (usually) moves to a different venue each year.

We say “usually” because in 2022 it will again take place in St George, Utah – the same venue as for the 2021 edition, which took place in September 2021. The world’s finest will again convene in Utah in October 2022. Upcoming venues are as follows:

2022: St George, Utah (October 28 and 29)
2023: Lahti, Finland (August 26 and 27)
2024: Taupo, New Zealand (December 14 and 15)

Taupo should have played host in 2020, but there was no event in that year due to the impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic.

The 70.3 World Championship is staged over the classic middle distance of a 1.2-mile (1.9km) swim, a 56-mile (90km) bike and a 13.1-mile (21.1km) run.

Who has won the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship?

Swiss superstar Daniela Ryf holds the record for most wins at the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship with five victories. She also claimed the event three times consecutively in 2017, 2018 and 2019 before Britain’s Lucy Charles-Barclay snapped the streak with a brilliant victory in St George in 2021.

A number of men have won the event twice, in the shape of Australian legend Craig ‘Crowie’ Alexander, German trio Michael Raelert, Sebastian Kienle and Jan Frodeno, Spanish great Javier Gomez and current king Gustav Iden (Norway).

Iden has been champion since claiming his shock first victory in Nice in 2019. We of course then had that one-year COVID hiatus before Gustav dominated again in 2021. With the Championship absent in 2020, Gustav won the biggest race of the season, the PTO 2020 Championship at Challenge Daytona, which further cements his status as the current middle-distance king.

Previous winners are as follows:

PRO Women

2006: Samantha McGlone (CAN)
2007: Mirinda Carfrae (AUS)
2008: Joanna Zeiger (USA)
2009: Julie Dibens (GBR)
2010: Jodie Swallow (GBR)
2011: Melissa Rollison (AUS)
2012: Leanda Cave (GBR)
2013: Melissa Hauschildt (AUS)
2014: Daniela Ryf (SUI)
2015: Daniela Ryf (SUI)
2016: Holly Lawrence (GBR)
2017: Daniela Ryf (SUI)
2018: Daniela Ryf (SUI)
2019: Daniela Ryf (SUI)
2021: Lucy Charles-Barclay (GBR)

PRO Men

2006: Craig Alexander (AUS)
2007: Andy Potts (USA)
2008: Terenzo Bozzone (NZL)
2009: Michael Raelert (GER)
2010: Michael Raelert (GER)
2011: Craig Alexander (AUS)
2012: Sebastian Kienle (GER)
2013: Sebastian Kienle (GER)
2014: Javier Gomez (ESP)
2015: Jan Frodeno (GER)
2016: Tim Reed (AUS)
2017: Javier Gomez (ESP)
2018: Jan Frodeno (GER)
2019: Gustav Iden (NOR)
2021: Gustav Iden (NOR)

How to enter IRONMAN 70.3 Worlds

As with the IRONMAN World Championship – traditionally held at Kona each October – entry for the 70.3 World Championship is by qualification only.

IRONMAN offers a specific number of slots to PRO and Age-Group athletes each year from a designated calendar of races, giving them the opportunity to qualify.

The highest finishers in these races are offered the relevant slots. If athletes who are already qualified finish in those slots, the slots are then offered to the next unqualified athletes.