Last weekend the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championships finally touched down in Taupō, New Zealand – four years later than planned thanks to the pandemic. To say it was worth the wait would be an understatement.
An estimated 6,000 qualified athletes flocked to New Zealand’s North Island to finish the 2024 race season with a bang. And while all eyes were on the PROs as Taylor Knibb made it a three-peat, and Jelle Geens beat home favourite Hayden Wilde to the line. Elsewhere on the course there were plenty of inspiring age-groupers fighting their own battles for a slice of the glory.
Inspiring Age Group stories from the 2024 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship
From the 80-something year-olds proving that age isn’t a barrier, to those overcoming struggles to show the power of resilience and that strength that comes from having a goal. We take a look at just a few of the incredible age groupers who took to the race course in Taupō.
Age is no barrier – Cherie Gruenfeld and Warren Hill
If someone asked you to guess what a person in their 80s did at the weekend – ‘becoming an IRONMAN 70.3 World Champion’ probably wouldn’t be top of your list of answers. But over the weekend Cherie Gruenfeld (USA) and Warren Hill (NZL), 80 and 85 years young respectively, did just that. Proving that age really is just a number.
Cherie completed the 70.3 mile race in 7 hours 36 minutes and 40 seconds. And Warren wasn’t much slower, finishing in 7 hours 44 minutes and 37 seconds. They both became IRONMAN 70.3 Age Group World Champions in the process. Impressive stuff, and proof that if you use it – you won’t lose it.
Car crash to 70.3 Worlds
Olivia Ritchie faced a major bump in the road on her journey to the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship. In June 2023, she was involved in a car accident that not only left her with a fractured vertebrae, but initially unable to walk. Determined to get back to the sport she loves, Olivia slowly regained her movement and with a lot of hard work was able to complete IRONMAN 70.3 New Zealand earlier this year, qualifying for worlds. She finished the race in Taupō in an impressive time of 4:55:30, placing 21st in her age group.
An unbreakable bond
Valentin Francavilla (FRA) and his brother Theophile had the crowds behind them as they made their way around the course in Taupō. Theophile lives with Cerebral Palsy, and without assistance he is unable to move. But with the help of his brother, Theophile got to race on one of the biggest stages in triathlon.
The pair completed the race in 6hrs 30 minutes, with Valentin reflecting: “I am the physical strength, Theophile is my mental strength”.
How life-changing surgery opened up a new path
Anne Roesler (GER) was an avid cross-fitter, but in the summer of 2023 she had to undergo life-changing surgery to remove an aggressive tumour that ultimately led to 70% of her liver being removed. After the surgery, Anne was no longer able to take part in high-intensity exercise, and so instead she started cycling. That proved to be the gateway sport that saw her eventually take up triathlon. For most, simply completing a 70.3 in their first year of competing in triathlon would be an incredible achievement. But Anne went a step further, and qualified for Worlds at her first ever 70.3 in Luxembourg. An incredible story of tenacity and determination.
Paving the way for Muslim women in sport
Kelly Diggs, a USAAT certified coach and previous co-host of the “If We Were Riding” podcast, was the first woman on Team USA in triathlon to compete in a triathlon wearing a Hijab. She said her goal was to promote a positive image of Muslim women through sport.
A recent survey into women’s experiences in triathlon by SheRACES and Fund Her Tri reported that women from Muslim background who responded to the survey highlighted a lack of modest change facilities and requirements to race with bare arms to display race tattoos as a significant barrier to participation. Showing the importance of representation, and race organisers providing inclusive environments to accommodate religious and cultural needs so that triathlon can be a welcoming environment for all.
IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship 2024 age group world champions
Thousands of age groupers took to the race course over the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship weekend. For some, just making the start line was a bucket list achievement. Meanwhile others were racing with another goal in mind: a world champion title. Here are the age group champions from the 2024 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship:
Women’s IRONMAN 70.3 age group world champions
| Age group | Name | Country | Swim time | Bike time | Run time | Overall finish |
| F18-24 | Jasmine Brown | Australia | 27:12 | 2:25:42 | 1:27:20 | 4:25:51 |
| F25-29 | Kelly Barton | USA | 29:11 | 2:27:47 | 1:27:40 | 4:31:20 |
| F30-34 | Francesca Smith | UK | 28:34 | 2:25:40 | 1:28:42 | 4:28:28 |
| F35-39 | Becky Woods | Ireland | 29:10 | 2:29:40 | 1:24:28 | 4:29:29 |
| F40-44 | Alina Hanschke | Mexico | 31:08 | 2:36:02 | 1:22:37 | 4:36:12 |
| F45-49 | Claudia Weidekamm | New Zealand | 31:44 | 2:25:20 | 1:45:51 | 4:50:58 |
| F50-54 | Beni Gras-Thompson | USA | 33:06 | 2:30:57 | 1:37:55 | 4:49:01 |
| F55-59 | Michellie Jones* | USA/AUS | 30:06 | 2:37:06 | 1:39:13 | 4:52:28 |
| F60-64 | Gill Fullen | New Zealand | 33:59 | 2:42:05 | 1:37:46 | 5:00:59 |
| F65-69 | Janie White | USA | 34:56 | 2:58:28 | 1:53:07 | 5:36:47 |
| F70-74 | Missy LeStrange | USA | 36:21 | 3:22:47 | 2:32:22 | 6:44:24 |
| F75-79 | Pauline Higgins | USA | 1:05:05 | 3:55:19 | 3:03:54 | 8:22:03 |
| F80-84 | Cherie Gruenfeld | USA | 41:44 | 3:46:23 | 2:51:30 | 7:36:15 |
Men’s IRONMAN 70.3 age group world champions
| Age group | Name | Country | Swim time | Bike time | Run time | Overall finish |
| M18-24 | Leo Ouabdesselam | France | 0:21:25 | 2:09:02 | 1:19:56 | 3:56:22 |
| M25-29 | Thomas Page | Australia | 0:27:27 | 2:03:37 | 1:20:20 | 3:56:24 |
| M30-34 | Alexandre Caille | France | 0:27:20 | 2:04:54 | 1:19:27 | 3:58:29 |
| M35-39 | Will Clarke | Australia | 0:24:10 | 2:06:37 | 1:21:33 | 3:58:50 |
| M40-44 | Francois Reding | Belgium | 0:29:02 | 2:15:44 | 1:15:50 | 4:06:14 |
| M45-49 | Olivier Godart | UAE/Argentina | 0:26:12 | 2:07:05 | 1:23:33 | 4:03:13 |
| M50-54 | Chris Bradford | Australia | 0:30:08 | 2:09:00 | 1:29:47 | 4:14:48 |
| M55-59 | Mark Clough | Australia | 0:26:26 | 2:24:56 | 1:26:17 | 4:23:49 |
| M60-64 | Christophe Jouffret | France | 0:26:49 | 2:20:58 | 1:35:48 | 4:29:39 |
| M65-69 | Kevin Fergusson | Australia | 0:29:44 | 2:24:29 | 1:45:00 | 4:47:05 |
| M70-74 | Gilles Macherey | France | 0:34:55 | 2:44:12 | 2:00:31 | 5:29:29 |
| M75-79 | Guy Fritz | France | 0:53:55 | 3:04:20 | 2:04:38 | 6:11:50 |
| M80-84 | Gennaro Magliulo | USA | 0:52:46 | 3:25:04 | 2:51:20 | 7:25:14 |
| M85+ | Warren Hill | New Zealand | 0:46:25 | 3:39:31 | 3:01:17 | 7:44:37 |
| M-HC | Nic Beveridge | Australia | 0:32:04 | 3:30:17 | 1:16:30 | 5:26:48 |
If watching this year’s IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship action unfold on TV from your sofa gave you a serious case of FOMO, read our tips on how to qualify for 70.3 Worlds to find out how you can be on the start line next year. And check out our analysis of ‘what’s a good IRONMAN 70.3 time?’ to see how your current PR stacks up.
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