Search
shop

Rewriting the history books: Can Gustav Iden three-peat?

Can Gustav Iden become the only man to ever win three IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship titles this Saturday in St George?
Staff Reporter
Last updated -
STRENGTH. ENDURANCE. PERFORMANCE.

Since its inception in 2006, there are six men who have managed to claim the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship title more than once: Craig Alexander, Michael Raelert, Sebastian Kienle, Javier Gomez, Jan Frodeno and most recently, Gustav Iden.

Of those six, only three have ever won consecutive titles, Raelert in 2009/10, Kienle in 2012/13 and Iden in 2019/21. Fresh off his IRONMAN World Championship win, Iden this weekend has the opportunity to be the only man ever to win more than two 70.3 World titles – and to do it in back-to-back-to-back style.

Advertisement

Momentum on Iden’s side

In his pre-race interview on the Breakfast with Bob show (embedded below), Bob Babbitt brought up the topic of the possibility of a historic three-peat, to which Iden just answered “we will see if it can be done this weekend”.

The 26-year old, from Bergen in Norway, cemented his status as a middle distance powerhouse in 2019, where he took down Alistair Brownlee convincingly at the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championships in Nice to take his first title.

Since then, Iden has gone from strength-to-strength in the world of PTO and IRONMAN racing, with wins so far this year at the PTO Canadian Open and the IRONMAN World Championship putting him at number #2 in the PTO rankings behind training partner Kristian Blummenfelt.

Blummenfelt, the Olympic and World Champion, is widely considered by many to be the only man who can challenge Iden for the title in St George. However, Iden convincingly put Blummenfelt to bed with a three-minute gap on the Big Island at the start of the month and it is hard to see how the 2021 IRONMAN World Champion might take him down.

Blummenfelt, who last got the better of Iden over the 70.3 distance in Bahrain in 2018, has never finished on the podium at an IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship. It will be interesting to see how he has recovered from his third place finish in Kona when he is up against the likes of Sam Long in the fight for the podium in Utah.

“My career doesn’t depend on this”

Addressing the race this weekend, Iden comes across as relaxed in his interview on the Babbittville channel, as he explains how Kona was “the race that I was all-in for this season”, which has made getting in the right head space and recovering for St George quite challenging.

Gustav Iden
Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images for IRONMAN

On the topic of recovery, Iden told Babbitt that he “doesn’t feel like I’ve done the training I needed to perform this weekend”, with the “change in time zone and climate” coming from Kona posing some challenges. However, it is impossible to count out Iden, and it might work in his favour that he has been forced to take more time to recover properly than he might have initially anticipated.

On his plan for the race, Iden suggested a measured approach might be the tactic he deploys this weekend, as he plans to “sit back and just see what happens” as the race unfolds. With such great experience at the top end of long course racing, the field this weekend should be wary of Iden’s tactical nous as they try to take him down.

Whatever happens in St George this weekend, a strong argument can be made for Iden’s name to be at the forefront of any conversations around the greatest male IRONMAN 70.3 athlete of all time. A win this weekend, however, and the possibility of a three-peat, could be the race that cements his status as the best ever.

Tomos Land
Written by
Tomos Land
Tomos Land is a triathlon & running journalist whose expertise lies in the professional world of short course & long distance triathlon, though he also boasts an extensive knowledge of ultra-running.
Discover more
Dave Ellis / Luke Pollard - World Para Triathlon Championships Pontevedra 2023
Golden opportunity – British Triathlon launches search for LA2028 paratriathlon guides
IRONMAN Lanzarote 2024 - Anne Haug on run course
Best marathon shoes for Ironman – the ‘legal’ super shoes you CAN wear to level up your run split
Challenge Sanremo 2024 - Photo: Jose Luis Hourcade
How to fuel your triathlon training: Expert nutritionist tips to help you nail every session
swim start IRONMAN World Championship Kona 2024 photo credit Tony Svensson IRONMAN
Level up your Ironman swim split – must-read tips from an expert swim coach
Ironman gear guide – everything you need to get to the finish line of a full distance triathlon
latest News
Taylor Knibb 2024 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship Taupo New Zealand
US triathlon phenom Taylor Knibb hails great rival Kat Matthews for record-breaking IRONMAN Texas win
Richard Varga Jonny Brownlee Arzachena
Triathlon legend Jonny Brownlee reveals ‘Last Dance’ motivation behind latest challenge
IRONMAN Kona 2022 Age Group Results
How will “re-imagined” IRONMAN World Championship at Kona actually look for Age Groupers?
Lucy Charles-Barclay IRONMAN World Championship Kona 2023 Finish
IRONMAN World Championship goes ALL IN on Kona again with men and women to race on same day from 2026
Laura Philipp and Kat Matthews on the run at the 2024 IRONMAN World Championship
Nice gets consolation prize of 70.3 Worlds after IRONMAN World Championships return to Kona
triathlon on your terms
Never miss out with our triathlon alerts & digest. Get a dose of adventure & inspiration with Boundless.
The 247 Group

The home of endurance sports

Share to...