Taylor Knibb Earns Third Straight Title in Yet Another Dominant Performance at The 2024 VinFast IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship Triathlon in Taupo, New Zealand

December 14, 2024

- Taylor Knibb (USA) becomes just the second athlete to claim a hattrick of IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship titles on the bounce - Kat Matthews (GBR) and Ashleigh Gentle (AUS) round out the podium at the 2024 VinFast IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship triathlon - Matthews’ 2,925 points earned today cemented her place as the first ever IRONMAN Pro Series Champion

TAUPŌ, New Zealand (Dec. 14, 2024) /SPORTSWIRE WOMEN/ – American Taylor Knibb cemented her name in the history books yet again as she took her third consecutive title at the 2024 VinFast IRONMAN^® 70.3^® World Championship with an overall finish time of 3:57:34. Knibb swam 24:30 over the 1.9 km (1.2-mile) ROKA swim course, biked the 90km (56-mile) FulGaz bike course in 2:10:09, and ran a 1:19:20 on the 21.1km (13.1-mile) HOKA run course to finish among cheering crowds on Tongariro Street in the heart of Taupō.

Kat Matthews of Great Britain closed a 3:46 minute gap on Knibb in a nail-biting run to eventually finish just over one minute behind the American for a hard fought second, earning the overall IRONMAN Pro Series title in its inaugural year. Ashleigh Gentle (AUS), who started the run in sixth place, ran herself into third to complete the podium.

“The run course was amazing. There was no one on the bike course, but everyone was on the run course. I don’t think there was a step on the course where you didn’t have people supporting you and cheering. It was like, wow. This was such an impressive community, so thank you to everyone that was out there and supporting,” said Knibb on the finish line.

“I’m very tired and it’s very hot, it is a bit of a relief, but I am also very grateful. I think it is really cool that each of my [IRONMAN] 70.3 wins has been in drastically different courses on a different continent. Thank you, it’s such a great community here and I always forget how much I love IRONMAN races,” Knibb continued.

Set to the stunning backdrop of Taupō with its vast lake, towering mountains, and rolling countryside, triathlon fans worldwide got to witness the world’s best female professionals and age-groupers alike take to the waters of Great Lake Taupō, challenge themselves on a rolling bike course in the Kiwi countryside, and enjoy lakeside views and epic spectator support on the run downtown.

Asserting herself as the one to beat coming into the race with back-to-back IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship titles, Knibb leapt to an early lead in the swim as she took the inside line to the first turn buoy in Tapuaeharuru Bay. A solid chase group formed, with Imogen Simmonds (CHE), Lotte Wilms (NLD) and Rebecca Clark (NZL) forming the front of the pack. However, it was Spain’s Sara Perez Sala that ultimately made it back to shore the fastest in a time of 24:20. The top 12 women out of the water all knocked out sub-25-minute swim times, before heading out onto the bike to chase the lead.

Despite exiting the water in fifth position, Knibb made quick work of getting to the front of the race and establishing her trademark dominance on the bike. While world class athletes in the shape of Matthews, Simmonds, Julie Derron (CHE), and Paula Finlay (CAN) all jostled for position, Knibb continued to build an increasing gap as she rode through the rolling hills and punchy climbs of the New Zealand countryside.

Carrying over a four-minute lead heading into T2, Knibb darted out onto the two-lap run course along the Taupō lakefront in a great position to never look back and secure her third straight title. As Knibb crossed the finish and took her third consecutive IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship, she etched her name into history becoming just the second athlete ever to win 3 consecutive IRONMAN 70.3 World Championships, matching the legendary Daniela Ryf (CHE) who finished her career with five IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship titles.

Behind Knibb, Matthews and Simmonds raced along the final kilometres of the bike to enter T2 within seconds of each other. With two titles on the line as the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship was also the deciding race for the inaugural IRONMAN Pro Series, Matthews immediately got to work on the run creating a gap from Simmonds and put together an outstanding display that proved she is up there with the very best runners in the sport. Matthews continued to claw back reducing the gap to Knibb. Her relentless pace nearly paid off as the Brit reduced the gap to just over a minute before ultimately running out of road securing her place at the top of the IRONMAN Pro Series.

“Taylor got the best of me again. Obviously, she’s the best in the field at moment, all year, I’m so incredibly proud to come second to her. For the [IRONMAN] Pro Series, I don’t think it’s sunk in yet, but that consistency has now paid off,” said Matthews.

“Honestly, best course I’ve raced all year. The spectators, the crowd, literally from the first step out of the swim to the last on the run, it was incredible. Thank you.”

Speaking to Matthews consistency during the year, Ashleigh Gentle remarked, “What Kat has done to win the [IRONMAN] Pro Series is just mind blowing. Hat’s off to her because that is an extraordinary feat. She is still running a 1:15:30 to finish the year. It’s pretty incredible.”

While the podium had been shaping up to be a carbon copy of the 2023 VinFast IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship with Imogen Simmonds (CHE) holding strong behind Matthews, Gentle had different plans. The Australian, who was suffering with stomach issues early in the run, made a strong comeback to recover the time and chase down Simmonds to take third place. Gentle made her pass around 15km and maintained her position to cap off an impressive podium performance in what was her debut IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship race.

Top five professional women’s results:

News and Notes 

• The hattrick of wins puts Taylor Knibb (USA) among triathlon’s royalty, making her only the second athlete to win three IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship titles, behind Daniela Ryf (CHE) who captured five titles in 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2019.
• Kat Matthews’ (GBR) result today leaves her with two second place finishes at the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship after finishing on the podium in Lahti, Finland in 2023, in addition to two second place finishes at the IRONMAN World Championship (St. George 2021 and Nice 2024).
• Spain’s Sara Perez Sala was first athlete out of the water, clocking the fastest swim time of the day in 24:20, only seconds ahead of the Netherlands’ Lotte Wilms (24:21) and New Zealand’s Rebecca Clarke (24:22).
• Following her performance over the 90km ride, Knibb secured the fastest bike split of the day with a time of 2:10:09, over four minutes ahead of Imogen Simmonds (CHE) who finished with a time of 2:14:34.
• Even with a dominant lead off the bike, Knibb did not mess around in T2, also clocking the fastest transition of the day with a time of 1:01.
• Matthews, who started the run five minutes and one second behind Knibb, made up a 3:36 deficit, eventually running an impressive 1:15:34 split for the second fastest run of the day.
• It was Daniela Kleiser (DEU) however who bagged the fastest run split of day with an incredible 1:14:15 half marathon.

Tomorrow, the men will take centre stage as their VinFast IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship race gets underway. The professional men will start at 7:00 a.m. NZT, followed by the PC/ID division at 7:02 a.m. The first age-group athlete wave will begin at 7:10 a.m. Live race day coverage will start at start at 6:30 a.m. NZT and be broadcast across multiple platforms for global viewers including proseries.ironman.com, DAZN, YouTube, Outside TV exclusively for the U.S. and Canada, L’Équipe Live in France, on  iQIYI in China, and beIN Sports for the Middle East, North Africa and Asia-Pacific regions. In addition, viewers in the host country of New Zeeland will be able to tune into Sky Sport Now.

Full results for the 2024 VinFast IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship women’s race can be found at www.ironman.com/im703-world-championship-2024-results.

For more information about the 2024 VinFast IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship event, please visit www.ironman.com/im703-world-championship.To learn more about the IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 brands and series of events, please visit www.ironman.com. Media inquiries may be directed to press@ironman.com.

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About the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship

In 2006 the inaugural IRONMAN^® 70.3^® World Championship triathlon was held in Clearwater, Florida, becoming another test for the world’s elite triathletes. Since that auspicious beginning, the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship triathlon has grown in stature and popularity moving first to Henderson, Nevada in 2011, where athletes encountered a more challenging terrain and then to Mont-Tremblant, Quebec—its first stop on the new “global rotation” for the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship race. The event reached European soil for the first time ever in 2015, with Zell am See, Austria, hosting an epic and memorable event. In 2016, the race moved from the mountains to the beaches of the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Australia. In 2017, the race returned to the United States, taking place in Chattanooga, Tennessee where it became a two-day event for the first time. In 2018, the event reached the African continent for the first time and was hosted in Nelson Mandela Bay in South Africa. Continuing the rotation, 2019 saw the French Riviera and Nice, France play host to the ever-growing IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship event. After a year in which the event was not able to take place due to a global pandemic, the race returned in 2021 with over 3,500 athletes competing in St. George, Utah. The event again took place in St. George, Utah, returning to a two-day format on October 28-29, 2022. After a successful two-day event in Lahti, Finland the race moves to Taupō, New Zealand on December 14-15, 2024. The event will go to Spain for the first time in 2025 with Marbella earning the right to host the event. Historically, more than 200,000 athletes have participated annually in a series of qualifying races, consisting of over 100 global events. Hosting more than 5,000 athletes from around the world, participants in the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship triathlon have ranged in age from 18 to 85-plus. For more information, visit www.ironman.com/im703-world-championship.

About IRONMAN Pro Series

The IRONMAN Pro Series™ is a year-long performance-based world series that will see professional triathletes earn points at 20 select races in 19 locations globally to vie for the title of IRONMAN Pro Series Champion and a share of the lucrative USD $1.7 million year-end bonus prize pool. Athletes will also continue to battle for each individual event’s prize money equating to over USD $2.5 million and coveted world championship qualifying slots. The IRONMAN Pro Series will consist of six full-distance IRONMAN^® triathlons and 10 half-distance IRONMAN^® 70.3^® triathlons in addition to the split location women’s and men’s VinFast IRONMAN World Championship^® triathlons and two-day women’s and men’s VinFast IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship triathlons. Open to approximately 1,000 eligible professional triathletes worldwide, the IRONMAN Pro Series will usher in a new era of IRONMAN racing where Every Second Matters with every second behind the race winner equating to a point earned or lost. Incorporating iconic distances, challenging courses, and stunning destinations, every IRONMAN Pro Series race will be broadcast live and free to a global audience. An additional 18 events throughout 2024 will also offer IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 professional racing and world championship qualifying opportunities, as well as over USD $1.6 million in prize money to create a total 2024 professional prize purse of nearly USD $6 million. For more information, visit proseries.ironman.com.

About The IRONMAN Group

The IRONMAN Group operates a global portfolio of events that includes the IRONMAN^® Triathlon Series, the IRONMAN^® 70.3^® Triathlon Series, 5150™ Triathlon Series, the Rock ‘n’ Roll^® Running Series, IRONKIDS^®, World Triathlon Championship Series, premier running events including the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon™ and City2Surf^®, UTMB^® World Series trail-running events including the Canyons Endurance Runs™ by UTMB^®, Tarawera Ultra-Trail™ by UTMB^® and Ultra-Trail Australia™ by UTMB^®, Epic Series™ mountain bike races including the Absa Cape Epic^®, road cycling events, and other multisport races. The IRONMAN Group is the largest operator of mass participation sports in the world, providing participants the benefits of endurance sports through the company’s vast offerings. Catering to the full athlete experience, the company portfolio also includes FulGaz^® virtual cycling, the most realistic indoor riding experience connected fitness application aimed at preparing athletes for real-world events. Since the inception of the iconic IRONMAN^® brand and its first event in 1978, athletes have proven that ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE^® by crossing finish lines around the world. Beginning as a single race, The IRONMAN Group has grown to become a global sensation with hundreds of events across 55+ countries. The IRONMAN Group is owned by Advance, a private, family-owned business, and Orkila Capital, a growth equity firm focused on building great brands. For more information, visit www.ironman.com/about-ironman-group.

About Advance

Advance is a private, family-held business that owns and invests in companies across media, entertainment, technology, communications, education and other promising growth sectors. Our mission is to build the value of our companies over the long-term by fostering growth and innovation. Advance’s portfolio includes Condé Nast, Advance Local, Stage Entertainment, The IRONMAN Group, American City Business Journals, Leaders Group, Turnitin, and Pop. Together these operating companies employ more than 14,000 people in 29 countries. Advance is also among the largest shareholders in Charter Communications, Warner Bros. Discovery and Reddit. For more information visit www.advance.com.