Challenge Family World Bonus – Who’s in the running for a share of the $100,000 prize purse?

While we might be inclined to credit the T100 series with creating the first season-long shoot-out between PRO triathletes for an end of season bonus. Challenge Family were actually first out of the blocks, implementing their Pro Athlete World Bonus scheme back in 2019. Since then, the World Bonus scheme has seen everyone from established triathlon legends – including Patrick Lange and Anne Haug – to up and coming young athletes, end their season with a slice of the Challenge Family pie.

But who’s in contention for 2024? And which races left on the calendar could shake up the rankings? We take a look at the current standings, and highlight the potential battles that might unfold as the season draws to a close.

What is the Challenge Family World Bonus and how does it work?

Challenge Family created their Pro Athlete World Bonus scheme in 2019. “We felt we needed some sort of series that rewarded those athletes that were loyal to us,” Belinda Granger explains. The prize purse is worth a total of $100,000 US dollars, paying 5 deep for the women and the men as follows:

1^st place: $22,000
2^nd place: $14,000
3^rd place: $8,000
4^th place: $4,000
5^th place: $2,000

The bonus is in addition to prize purses at individual races. Athletes earn points based on their finish place at eligible races, and their 6 best race results, one of which can be a full distance race, count towards their overall ranking in the World Bonus standings.

Certain middle distance races are classified as Tier 1 and Tier 2, with the former awarding more points than the latter. Long distance races carry more points than middle distance races – though only one long distance result can be counted as 1 of the 6 total results. Challenge Roth awards more points, and Challenge The Championship also carries a higher points tariff.

At long distance races and The Championship, World Bonus points are awarded to the top ten finishers. Meanwhile at middle distance races, only the top six will earn points towards their World Bonus ranking.

For 2024, the final race of the season that contributes to the World Bonus ranking is Challenge Canberra.

Women’s Challenge Family World Bonus standings

“This year’s World Bonus is going to be a very close affair for the women,” says Belinda Granger. “Rising star Alanis Siffert is currently leading after her incredible race in Challenge Almere where she finished 2nd in her first ever Full Distance race. At only 22 she has an incredible career ahead of her.” 

Siffert further cemented her status as one to watch with a decisive win at Challenge Mallorca, where she not only beat World Bonus rival Aurelia Boulanger and Lisa Norden to take the victory – but set a new course record time, finishing in 4:10:21. That performance has helped Siffert to further extend her lead in the World Bonus standings.

A 3rd place finish at Challenge Sanremo in September saw Rebecca Robisch move past Els Visser to sit in 3rd place. A 5th place finish from Aurelia Boulanger at Challenge Vieux Boucau followed by 2nd place at Challenge Mallorca has been enough to keep her ahead of Robisch to hold on to 2nd place.

1. Alanis Siffert – 1100 points
2. Aurelia Boulanger – 825 points
3. Rebecca Robisch – 800 points
4. Els Visser – 750 points
5. Anne Haug – 600 points
6. Laura Madsen – 550 points
7. Regan Hollioake – 500 points
8. Laura Phillip – 500 points
9. Marlene De Boer – 500 points
10. Daisy Davies – 500 points
    *Note 7-10th place are currently all tied with equal points.

Men’s Challenge Family World Bonus standings

In the men’s field, a focus on Challenge Family racing is paying dividends for New Zealand’s Jack Moody, who maintains his lead ahead of Stojanovic as we come into Challenge Xiamen which is likely to be the decisive race for World Bonus Standings.

1. Jack Moody – 1,100 points
2. Ognjen Stojanovic – 900 points
3. Tom Hug – 750 points
4. Jesper Svenson – 690 points
5. Joshua Lewis – 610 points
6. Magnus Ditlev – 600 points
7. Thomas Bishop – 500 points
8. Panagiotis Bitados – 500 points
9. Will Draper – 450 points
10. Harry Palmer – 450 points
11. Jack Hutchens – 450 points

Movers and shakers – how the remaining races could shake up the order

There are just two races left on the Challenge Family race calender which contribute to the ranking points: the inaugural Challenge Xiamen and Challenge Canberra. Though it’s worth noting that athletes have to race both the sprint and the standard distance races at Canberra for their points to count. And as Canberra is a Tier 2 race, Xiamen is likely to play the deciding role in where athletes will finish.

All eyes on Challenge Xiamen

Now the dust has settled on Challenge Mallorca and Barcelona, all eyes are on Challenge Xiamen. In the men’s field, Jack Moody’s lead in the World Bonus standings has been brought down to just 200 points ahead of Ognjen Stojanovic – who took third place in Mallorca. Jesper Svenson has been knocked down into 4th place, after Tom Hug’s win in Mallorca saw him rocket from 7th to 3rd. Hug isn’t set to race in Xiamen, leaving the door open for Svenson to score vital points and reclaim his third spot.

Further down in the World Bonus rankings, you’ll notice a tie for 9th place between Will Draper, Harry Palmer and Jack Hutchens – who broke into the top 10 after taking 2nd place at Challenge Mallorca. Of those three, Draper is the only athlete set to race in Xiamen. Given that he’s only 50 points behind Tom Bishop and Panagiotis Bitados, Draper could make a significant jump up the rankings if he has a good performance in Xiamen. A 2nd place finish or higher would also get Draper up into 5th place – knocking Brit Josh Lewis out of the final prize purse eligible spot.

In the women’s race, we can expect a battle between Alanis Siffert and Aurelia Boulanger who currently sit 1st and 2nd in the rankings. Siffert will be looking to secure her top spot, and Boulanger will surely be on the hunt to take 1st place for herself. Els Visser is also set to make her return to racing after injury hampered the latter stages of her season. The Dutch star currently sits in 4th place in the rankings, just 50 points behind Rebecca Robisch and only 75 points off Boulanger. A strong performance in Challenge Xiamen could see Visser ending her season on a high, though even if she takes the win she won’t be able to secure enough points to chase down Siffert in the World Bonus standings.

Previous Challenge Family World Bonus winners

The first Challenge Family World Bonus winners were named in the 2020/21 season. Over the years we’ve seen a range of ‘big’ name athletes and up and comers alike top the charts.

Take a look at the previous top 3 finishers for each year below:

2023 winners

Women:

1. Magda Nieuwoudt
2. Imogen Simmonds
3. Els Visser

Men:

1. Mathis Margirier
2. Caleb Noble
3. Thomas Bishop

2022 winners

Women:

1. Fenella Langridge
2. Sara Perez Sala
3. Lucy Byram

Men:

1. Sam Long
2. Niek Heldoorn
3. Magnus Ditlev

2020/21 winners

Women:

1. Anne Haug
2. Sarissa de Vries
3. Lucy Buckingham

Men:

1. Patrick Lange
2. Magnus Ditlev
3. Frederic Funk

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