Hawaii's Ironman goes Ironwoman

You could argue that it would be more fitting to refer to the 2023 triathlon in the small municipality of Kailua-Kona on the island of Hawaii as the "Ironwoman." For the first time since the Ironman made its debut in 1978, only women will be competing in the race that features a 3.8-kilometer (2.4 miles) swim, a 180-kilometer bike ride and a marathon.

"The energy and the vibe around town is going to be different – I'm looking forward to it," said Britain's Laura Siddall ahead of what will be her fifth Ironman in the Pacific US state.

It's an "opportunity to get more women here, there are so many first timers, so (it's) really bolstering the female side of the sport," Siddall added.

However, four-time winner of the Hawaii Ironman, Daniela Ryf, who is again among the favorites, doesn't seem quite as enthusiastic about the new format.

"I'm going to miss the guys a little bit. It will change the race dynamic. And the vibe before the start," said the Swiss athlete, who set a new world record at the Ironman in Roth, Germany, in June.

"Now we women have the stage completely to ourselves."

However, this isn't the first time the men and the women have been separated – last year they competed on two different days. While this did have the desired effect of putting the women in greater focus than previously, it didn't solve the problem of what had become an unmanageable number of visitors to the island. The number of participants had grown to around 5,500, more than double that of the previous edition prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. That's not to mention the athletes' partners and supporters.

Empty grocery store shelves

It proved to be simply too much for Kailua-Kona and its 23,000 inhabitants.

"The infrastructure isn't designed for that," said DW reporter Tobias Oelmaier, who was in Kailua-Kona as a triathlete himself at last year's Ironman. "At times, the local grocery store ran out of pasta and bottled water,"

This was not to the liking of the athletes ― or the locals.

"They were angry because they had to close their businesses for longer than usual, angry because they couldn't get to work because athletes were everywhere and acting like they owned the place," said Canadian former triathlete Sara Gross of last year's event.

"We learned… that more than one race day during IRONMAN week is too many for the community to manage," concluded Hawaii County Mayor Mitch Roth.

Organizers came to the same conclusion, which led to the decision to separate the men's and women's races not only in time, as in 2022, but also in space. Now the plan is for the men and women to alternate between Hawaii and Nice on the French Riviera until at least 2026. This year's men's Ironman World Championship was held in Nice on September 10.

The change is not without its critics, among them, two-time Hawaii winner Patrick Lange. The German, who took silver at the premiere in Nice, insists that "this race belongs in Hawaii."

"I have adjusted to the challenge of Nice by necessity," he told the Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper.

'The island likes me'

More than 2,100 triathletes from 73 nations will compete in Hawaii this Saturday ― 53 of them in the professional category. Among the contenders on the professional side is Germany's Anne Haug, who won the women's event in 2019, and finished third in 2018 and 2022.

"The island likes me. I always win a medal," the 40-year-old said in the run-up with a wink. 

Like Ryf, it seems German contender Laura Philip will miss the men a bit.

"It feels weird, I have to be honest," the 36-year-old Philipp said. "But also in a good way. I'm sure it will be really cool.

"I heard from Nice that there was an excess of testosterone without the women. I can't say yet whether I feel like there's a surplus of estrogen here," added the 2021 and 2022 European champion.

Equal pay never an issue

Her preference, she said, would be for the event to be held in the future at a location in which women and men could compete together again – just on different days.

Incidentally, equal pay has never been an issue at the Ironman in Hawaii. Starting in 1986, when prize money was first awarded, the men and women have always received the same amount. This year, the winner in Hawaii will receive $125,000 (€118,000) – exactly the same amount as Frenchman Sam Laidlow, who finished first in Nice.

This article was originally published in German.