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For the more serious types who do Ironman (Slowtwitchers for example) the technology available now means there is no real reason that fitness can't be maintained and training continued during 2020. Sure some will suffer slower swim times but the smart ones should have been able to mitigate a lot of that loss and have bike and run fitness carry over to the swim.For the rest,which I would say is the vast majority,who aren't quite so serious and just want to complete then there will be little difference as most don't do much swimming anyway.I could see relays increase in 70.3 events but not Ironman distances. 2021 is a long way off in training terms and who knows what will happen between now and next year.

I would agree with you as an Ironman athlete for the past decade, but was surprised to find that Mont Tremblant has a relay division at their full and that is an incredibly popular race. From a business perspective, I would imagine it could be additional revenue for IM. We shall see.

I think an overall shift to 70.3's make more sense from a business and athlete affordability/training perspective.The race directors do not need to shut down the race venues for so long.They don't need as many volunteers/services and 70.3's don't "need" to have carbo and awards dinners/lunches.Athetes don't need so many room nights and can train less.If we see any races fall by the wayside as a result of post CORONA-19 economic decline,I predict that some of the full ironman's will be the ones to go, leaving the 70.3s to keep the almighty M-Dot rolling along.

My local IM Western Australia used to have a relay. You would get up to 100 teams take part. They stopped the relay when the race started selling out. In the early days the income from the teams kept the race going.

I think that IM will be looking at strategies to increase participation and decrease costs. Running a 70.3 at the same time as the full and having relay teams would achieve this.

I just don't get the attraction of an IM relay.

From the individual's perspective, want to do a long(ish) open water swim event, choose from an array of ocean or lake swims that costs far less and are less likely to be cancelled.

Want to do a long cycling event, choose a cycle race or non-competitive event depending on your competitive juices for a fraction of the cost.

Plenty of marathons to choose from, again better priced, starting at a better time of day, running against or with people of similar ability.

Yes, it may suit a few who are no longer able to run because of injury, but as a sport, I'd imagine finishing your day crossing the timing mat at the end of the bike would get pretty ordinary after one or two races. Or it may be a fun thing to do as a one-off with some mates, but it surprises me that it has been or would be consistently popular.

I've done a couple of IM relays, and they are really fun (especially for the swimmers). This may not be something for our core ST'ers *right now,* but as we age up or circumstances change, well, never say never. At the inaugural IM Australia in Melbourne, all 3 relay members crossed the finish line with the runner. It's a great way to involve more athletes, and some might consider it as a "gateway drug" for athletes who might be "thinking" about doing a full IM, but want to race only one or two parts of it. I have also noticed some very competitive relays made up of single-sport stud athletes (past olympians, pros, etc) going head to head.

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Karen ST Concierge