“Ironman World Championship in Nice an absurdity”
Triathlon legend Hellriegel no longer understands the world
09/06/2023, 4:08 p.m
The Ironman World Championship will be held outside of the USA for the first time this weekend. The myth of Hawaii is crumbling. Financial constraints and insufficient capacity divide the sport of triathlon. “An absolute absurdity,” complains Thomas Hellriegel, who made history in Hawaii in 1997.
For Thomas Hellriegel, the first German Hawaii triumphant, the upcoming first Ironman World Championship in Nice is “an absolute absurdity”. The now 51-year-old former world-class triathlete from Bruchsal said with a view to the premiere on the Côte d’Azur and the myth that Hawaii exudes as the birthplace of the Ironman: “You can’t move Wimbledon to Monaco or anything. Monaco has I’m sure there are nice tennis courts too, but it’s not Wimbledon. It’s just not possible.”
This Sunday, the title will be awarded for the first time outside of the USA. However, only men will compete in southern France. The women will start in Hawaii in mid-October. It is then exchanged annually for the time being. The decision also caused a great deal of incomprehension among active athletes and caused massive criticism.
The corona pandemic changed everything
“Honestly, I’m glad I’m through with my career, that I don’t have to do it anymore,” said Hellriegel, who finished at the Kailua-Kona finish in 1997 after swimming 3.86 kilometers, cycling 180.2 kilometers and 42 .2 kilometers running as the first German to triumph. Because he was particularly strong on the bike, he was nicknamed “Hell on wheels”. “I started in Hawaii 16 times in a row, and there was never anything. No cancellation, no interruption and no relocation. And I’m really happy about it,” said Hellriegel.
Because before Ironman made the decision for the two-part World Cup, separated spatially and temporally by gender, the corona pandemic had caused the World Cup in Hawaii to be canceled twice. There was no Ironman there in 2020 and 2021. The 2021 World Cup was then repeated in May 2022 in St. George in the US state of Utah, and in October of the same year the professional men and women competed on different days for the first time.
The reason for this was the large number of qualified age group athletes. The practically twice as high number of guests in turn led to problems on site. Those responsible at Kailua-Kona made it clear that they were only available for one race per day. Since the number of starters should not be reduced again, an alternative solution had to be found. “Ultimately, it’s all about the coal,” said Hellriegel.