Search
shop

Triathlon GOATs: Is US phenom Taylor Knibb ALREADY in the conversation?

Is triple IRONMAN 70.3 World Champion Taylor Knibb already one of the best to ever do it?
Last updated -
Get the ultimate guide to destination racing

Daniela Ryf and Jan Frodeno are considered by many to be the greatest of all time (GOAT) when it comes to long-course triathlon.

Swiss superstar Ryf is a five-time IRONMAN World Champion and five-time IRONMAN 70.3 World Champion. She dominated the sport in incredible fashion between 2014-2019 before securing her fifth full-distance crown in 2022.

German legend Frodeno, meanwhile, claimed a quartet of IRONMAN World Championships, a pair of 70.3 World crowns and was the Olympic Champion in 2008. Both are now retired with their places in triathlon history assured.

However, in the latest the latest Triathlon Hour podcast, host Jack Kelly added a third name to the GOAT conversation – none other than current US superstar Taylor Knibb. But what did Taylor make of that lofty comparison?

IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship Podium 2024 Taylor Knibb Kat Matthews Ashleigh Gentle
Taylor Knibb, Kat Matthews and Ashleigh Gentle stand on the podium after the 2024 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Taupo, New Zealand (Photo – Fiona Goodall, Getty Images for IRONMAN).
Advertisement

Knibb unbeatable at middle distance

Knibb of course claimed her third consecutive IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship crown in 2024 and was undefeated in six races across the year. Her performances earned her the PTO #1 World Ranking spot at the end of the year and also the crown of T100 World Champion.

Dating back to October 2022, the US superstar has 10 wins from 10 races over middle distance. She has earned over 100 PTO points in each of her last five outings, although she was quick to praise her fellow competitors for helping up her scores.

“I think it’s easier to achieve a higher score on the women’s side because our rankings are getting higher,” she argued.

“We keep pushing them up so our SOF (strength of field) gets higher every race – so it’s raising the scores every time.”

The 26-year-old also defended the T100 Tour in relation to PTO World Rankings. She pointed out that it is possible to reach world number one without success in the PTO’s flagship series.

“I want to give the T100 a bit of defence mechanism as people say its just this self-fulfilling prophecy. I think the two highest PTO scores of the year will be Laura Philipp at the IRONMAN World Championship in Nice (102.71) and mine at 70.3 Worlds (102.82).

“Which means if you were me at 70.3 Worlds, you won Nice like Laura did and you had a race like I did at Oceanside 70.3, you could be ranked number one in the world without competing in the PTO T100 – that needs to be noted.”

Taylor Knibb wins T100 Lake Las Vegas 2024 photo credit PTO
Taylor Knibb – won four T100 races in 2024 including in Las Vegas [Photo credit: PTO]

Does Taylor think she’s GOAT worthy?

After a scintillating 12 months, it is hard to argue that Knibb has the potential to one day go down in history as one of the greatest ever to toe the line. Kelly says she’s already there as one of the three GOATs alongside Ryf and Frodeno.

Taylor though believes there is plenty still to accomplish before that is a credible argument – notably a victory in one specific race.

“I don’t think I can be in that conversation until I win an IRONMAN World Championship. That’s the pinnacle of long course in our sport,” she said

“I think Daniela (Ryf) in her peak was probably more dominant. I don’t know if she’d beat me, I don’t know if I’d beat her, but I feel Daniela had a lot of strengths. She would win the IRONMAN World Championship and 70.3 Worlds in one year – and that’s huge.

“I don’t think 70.3 Worlds is respected at the same level. I still think people revere the IRONMAN World Championship – there is a certain respect to that and I haven’t done that.”

Stuart Dick
Written by
Stuart Dick
Stuart is a graduate of the University of Sunderland with a masters' degree in Sports Journalism. He spends a lot of his time running and cycling around West Yorkshire, England.
Discover more
TRI247 podcast p/b Challenge Family episode 2
Go behind the scenes at Challenge Roth with the latest episode of the TRI247 podcast
Cadomotus Chronos triathlon cycling shoes
The triathlon cycling shoe that promises a 10-watt saving: Cadomotus Chronos Aero triathlon cycling shoes review
Challenge Family Roth
Five things you need to know about the Challenge Roth bike course
Challenge St. Pölten 2024 - image credit Jose Luis Hourcade / Challenge Family
Expert swim coach on the three most common swim mistakes age group triathletes make (and how to fix them!)
TRI-FIT VANGUARD tri suit review
The entry-level tri suit with a serious amount of performance for the price point – TRI-FIT VANGUARD review
latest News
ironman hamburg 2025 podium laura philipp kat matthews solveig lovseth beer
Challenge Roth 2025: Laura Philipp backed to make triathlon history by crashing through magical time barrier
Challenge Roth press conference 2025
Challenge Roth 2025: Date, start times, how to watch live and who’s racing
Georgia Taylor Brown wins supertri Toulouse 2024
British Olympic legend Georgia Taylor-Brown to make triathlon return
Gwen Jorgensen reflective World Triathlon Cup Vina del Mer 2023
‘Unbreakable’ Gwen Jorgensen ‘bruised’ after bike crash but vows to bounce back
IRONMAN CEO Scott DeRue Women For Tri 2024
IRONMAN announce new age-group qualification system for Kona and 70.3 Worlds
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...