The new Kona and 70.3 Worlds qualification system with Russ Cox | EP#467
That Triathlon Show
Kona and 70.3 Worlds Qualification Changes
This chapter examines the new five-year rolling average qualification system for Kona and 70.3 Worlds, discussing its implications for various age groups and potential equity issues. The conversation highlights disparities in slot allocations, particularly for younger athletes, and explores how historical performance data impacts modern classification. Concern over the fairness of these changes and their effect on athlete participation is a central theme in this analysis.
Russ Cox is the man with the data when it comes to Kona and 70.3 Worlds qualification. In this episode we discuss the new qualification system announced by Ironman in July 2025, and the implications for athletes wanting to qualify.
HIGHLIGHTS AND KEY TOPICS:
- A detailed view on the inner workings of the new qualification system work
- How do the "Kona standard" and "70.3 standard" (coefficients for normalised age-graded times) work?
- Common misconceptions about the new system
- Pros and cons of the new qualification system
- Fairness
- Are there winners and losers with the new system?
- Implications of the new system for athletes wanting to qualify for Kona or 70.3 Worlds
- Can you predict the time needed to qualify?
- Optimising race selection under the new qualification system
DETAILED EPISODE SHOWNOTES:
- We have detailed shownotes for all of our episodes. The shownotes are basically the podcast episode in written form, that you can read in 5-10 minutes. They are not transcriptions, but they are also not just surface-level overviews. They provide detailed insights and timestamps for each episode, and are great especially for later review, after you've already listened to an episode. Naturally, as great as they are, they do not cover absolutely everything in as great detail as we can do in a 45-90 minute podcast episode.
- The shownotes for today's episode can be found at www.scientifictriathlon.com/tts467/
LINKS AND RESOURCES:
- Russ' website - coachcox.co.uk
- Russ' Instagram and Facebook
WHAT SHOULD I LISTEN TO NEXT?
If you enjoyed this episode, I think you'll love the following episodes:
- Christophe Balestra – Obstri, PTO, and Fantasy Tri | EP#431 - another interview with a man who's built great resources for the benefit of the triathlon community
- Kona qualification: what it takes (in hard numbers) with Russell Cox | EP#76 - the original interview with Russ from November 2017
You can find our full episode archives here, where you can filter for categories such as Training, Racing, Science & Physiology, Swimming, Cycling, Running etc.
You can also find separate archives for specific series of episodes I've done, specifically Q&A episodes, TTS Thursday episodes, and Beginner Tips episodes.
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