As WTC increases the number of IM races globally and the sport becomes more popular, as we all know it is becoming increasingly difficult to qualify for Kona.
I raced Ironman Canada this past weekend, and Cameron Wurf won the M30-34 category, outsplitting the entire pro field on the bike. As I understand it (and correct me if I am wrong), Cameron was a pro cyclist in the 2014 season but came out of contract when Garmin-Sharp and Cannondale teams merged. Racing in this age group, he is clearly still of competitive age for his original profession.
Rather than taking particular issue with this specific example though, the question I have is where does one draw the line between professional and amateur? For example, hypothetically if Crowie started racing Ironman as an amateur in the 40-44 category, a few folks gunning for slots might feel agrieved. If that is considered 'over the line', where is that line?
We are seeing professional athletes, particularly pro cyclists, turn their hand to triathlon, some in a pro capacity and some as amateurs. A non-exhaustive list of folks (present and recent past) just from my knowledge (so please forgive omissions or errors):
Magnus Backstedt - originally racing amateur, now pro
Lauren Jalabert - amateur
Antonio Colom Mas - amateur
Lance Armstrong - pro
Michi Weiss - pro
Emma Pooley - originally amateur, now pro
Cameron Wurf - amateur
Some of these folks have dope-tainted history as well, which complicates the discussion, but for the purposes of this topic let's assume all are clean (now at least). Should there be a line at which point WTC intervenes to say to athletes 'you are a professional athlete and need to race against professionals, not amateurs' or 'if you choose to race amateur, you're not eligible for a Kona slot'?
Interested to hear views.
I raced Ironman Canada this past weekend, and Cameron Wurf won the M30-34 category, outsplitting the entire pro field on the bike. As I understand it (and correct me if I am wrong), Cameron was a pro cyclist in the 2014 season but came out of contract when Garmin-Sharp and Cannondale teams merged. Racing in this age group, he is clearly still of competitive age for his original profession.
Rather than taking particular issue with this specific example though, the question I have is where does one draw the line between professional and amateur? For example, hypothetically if Crowie started racing Ironman as an amateur in the 40-44 category, a few folks gunning for slots might feel agrieved. If that is considered 'over the line', where is that line?
We are seeing professional athletes, particularly pro cyclists, turn their hand to triathlon, some in a pro capacity and some as amateurs. A non-exhaustive list of folks (present and recent past) just from my knowledge (so please forgive omissions or errors):
Magnus Backstedt - originally racing amateur, now pro
Lauren Jalabert - amateur
Antonio Colom Mas - amateur
Lance Armstrong - pro
Michi Weiss - pro
Emma Pooley - originally amateur, now pro
Cameron Wurf - amateur
Some of these folks have dope-tainted history as well, which complicates the discussion, but for the purposes of this topic let's assume all are clean (now at least). Should there be a line at which point WTC intervenes to say to athletes 'you are a professional athlete and need to race against professionals, not amateurs' or 'if you choose to race amateur, you're not eligible for a Kona slot'?
Interested to hear views.