I am European and always saw Kona as a more exotic, legendary special place than Nice. I am now in Nice to race Sunday (qualified for Kona for 24) and have to say, I am starting to doubt it. The sea is beautiful, the bike course will be epic, the crowds on the run will be incredible (I did 70.3 worlds here in 2019), I flew from London (just 1h40min) and I am not jet lagged, it did not cost me a fortune, it is quite hot but not stupidly so to the point that the level playing field will be fair as opposed to favoring the athelte with the best extreme heat/humidity resistance. It will also be hard to draft on the bike so likely fair race. MOST importantly, the city is equipped to host big events, everybody is welcoming, transportation is top notch (10 euro tram from airport every 8 minutes), hilariously across the same square from Ironman village there is another event village for the Rugby World Cup. There is space for all and no NIMBYism here.
I think the real issue I see is I still donāt understand why they segregated men and women. It is so strange walking around the expo that there is just so many males. I donāt like that. We should have men + women WC on the same weekend. If Kona canāt host it, we either go back to single day with smaller fields, or we just drop Kona - Nice is just as good as Kona and easier to get to than Hawaii even for US East Coast. As for the picture with the lava fields in teh background, Iāll take it next year in Lanzarote. Still looking forward to Kona 24, but I suppose I have actually now given up complaining and really look forward to the weekend ahead.
Best of luck this weekend !!!
And to your point, just move the entire thing, men and women to Nice in 2025. Just leave Kona hanging. They donāt really want the race and donāt deserve it at this point. People will get to love Nice guranteed. It is faster to get to for all of Europe, Middle East, Eastern North America, most of South America. Kona is just faster to get to if you are in Western North America and far east/NZ/Aus. But most of the world can get to Nice more quickly.
I also hope to see genders combined in the future. Probably not worth doing a 2 day event ever again but if the field size is capped at 2,500 (for example) it makes it more compelling and competitive to get in no matter the location.
I also hope to see genders combined in the future. Probably not worth doing a 2 day event ever again but if the field size is capped at 2,500 (for example) it makes it more compelling and competitive to get in no matter the location.
Didnāt Nice do 2 day for 70.3 Worlds 2019 with both genders, or did that only start with St. George 2021? I can see Nice being able to handle 2000+3000 over two days. Doing two full IMās in two consecutive days is just an endurance nightmare for organizers and volunteers. 2x70.3 is easier to pull off given that you have an extra 8 hrs of breathing space between end of race one at 3 pm and start of race two logistics at 5:00am. With 2x IM, youāre barely done work on day one at 1am and have to get rolling with day two at 5am (actually more like 4 am)
Iām not on the ground in Nice butā¦Kona week has been my sports Christmas since they started broadcasting it live online. I raced Kona 3 times and covered it for more than a decade. This year will be different. I just watched 20+ hours of live coverage from UTMB last weekend. Courtney Dauwalter was my main interest, but just watching the elites running the trails around Mont Blanc was very compelling and Iāll likely watch most of the live coverage in coming years.
The UTMB coverage was fantastic and the crowds in Chamonix were very enthusiastic so I donāt have any doubt that IMWC in Nice will be world class and I see the value of moving the WC to different parts of the world. I do, however, have doubts about separate races for men and women. After watching the men and women race together in Chamonix it will be a bit sad watching men and women in separate IMWC championships. I wonāt be watching Nice live because Iāll be doing a tri Sunday morning. I probably wonāt watch Kona live either but instead spend a couple of hours on each race watching the replays of the live coverage, assuming they will be on Youtube. In previous years, I watched multiple hours of Breakfast with Bob interviews before and after Kona. Iāve watched none from Nice leading up to this weekendās race.
I realize that UTMB could include 10K participants of both sexes last week in races of multiple distances because they race primarily on trails in a mainly rural environment.
P.S. From Ohio itās about the same distance (as the crow flies) to Kona as it is to Nice.
I am European and always saw Kona as a more exotic, legendary special place than Nice. I am now in Nice to race Sunday (qualified for Kona for 24) and have to say, I am starting to doubt it. The sea is beautiful, the bike course will be epic, the crowds on the run will be incredible (I did 70.3 worlds here in 2019), I flew from London (just 1h40min) and I am not jet lagged, it did not cost me a fortune, it is quite hot but not stupidly so to the point that the level playing field will be fair as opposed to favoring the athelte with the best extreme heat/humidity resistance. It will also be hard to draft on the bike so likely fair race. MOST importantly, the city is equipped to host big events, everybody is welcoming, transportation is top notch (10 euro tram from airport every 8 minutes), hilariously across the same square from Ironman village there is another event village for the Rugby World Cup. There is space for all and no NIMBYism here.
**I think the real issue I see is I still donāt understand why they segregated men and women. It is so strange walking around the expo that there is just so many males. I donāt like that. **We should have men + women WC on the same weekend. If Kona canāt host it, we either go back to single day with smaller fields, or we just drop Kona - Nice is just as good as Kona and easier to get to than Hawaii even for US East Coast. As for the picture with the lava fields in teh background, Iāll take it next year in Lanzarote. Still looking forward to Kona 24, but I suppose I have actually now given up complaining and really look forward to the weekend ahead.
Ya, it would be a bummer walking around the expo with mainly guys around. I hate it when that happens.
One thought would be do it on Friday and Sunday so there is a full day between. Nice is a big enough city to manage that and the French are very familiar with events that take place on weekdays. Having one big spectacle is good for IM and moving it around the world where cities like Nice can support the combined event would be ideal. Not sure there are many options that can hold 5k athletes in a weekend though.
Iāll say from the remote-spectating side itās nice that the two races are on different weekends. It was really hard to find time/convince the wife to watch the two races when they were just a couple days apart. Same day or different weekends is nice for that.
To me the interesting thing is watching all the Breakfast with Bob interviews, just about every pro feels that they stand a better chance here than they do in Kona. The two exceptions are Frodeno and to a lesser degree Lange - who just happen to be the past winners who are participating.
Now whether this is some degree either optimism, Bobās line of questions, or having to put a positive spin on it, I donāt know - but it seems like the pros are very much are looking for a challenge which is different than Kona.
Kona seems to hold a mystique in the interviews, but as far as racecraft goes, Nice seems to be the winner.
Honestly, Iām surprised that this got done for this year. Ironman is incredibly lucky, they got sandwiched into this weekend, otherwise it definitely would not have been available. Thereās this thing called the Rugby World Cup that kicked off today and *Les Bleus *defeated the All Blacks today in Paris and Nice will be hosting four matches starting next weekend.
Yeah, to do well in Kona you just need to be able to handle the insane humidity/heat. A few people just really have an advantage there over most others. Nice kinda nurfs that aspect of the race a little. The climbing and descending in Nice of course is a bit moreā¦ so the bigger guys might be at a little bit of a disadvantage.
In general Nice has a bit of glamour to it that Kona does not. But having been there for the first time last year, the history is definitely palpable throughout Kona. Going to breakfast at Lava Java or in the evening at Huggos or On the Rocks feels special. Nice will develop its own history and traditions, Iām sure.
Much better vacation destination. Nice itself is nice. The maritime Alps are spectacular. (Hundreds of ancient hilltop villages, deep gorges, alpine valleys). The coast is crowded, but interesting and scenic. Much more interesting and beautiful than American beach resorts.
Value for money- accommodations is cheaper, better and more interesting. Food is same price, but better and more interesting. Airfare is a little more, but not a lot more. Much more to see and do.
More of an adventure.
Weather is a bit better for racing. It will be hot and humid on the run, but a bit less than Kona. The bike should be much cooler.
Bike course is super exciting and interesting.
Run course is more iconic.
Itās not Kona- if you have raced Kona 3 times or more, you will appreciate this.
Nice Disadvantages;
The bike course is going to be terrifying!!
To do this race right, one should train the decent 3 times or more.
This would be a big investment in time.
(Like many US triathletes I am a bad descender and I only did the decent once. I am going to lose 10 minutes on my more prepared competition).
Terrible Jet lag- it is a lot easier going east to west (you just have to stay up late). Going west to east is awful. One needs a week or more to adjust
Run will be more monotonous. (Although Kona run is hardly awesome).
Itās not Kona- if you are only going to one WC, and itās important that itās āKonaā - than Nice is an disadvantage.
In terms of losing 10 min on decents, when I raced IMFrance, one of the guys who I was even with starting all the climbs, I beat to T2 by 15 min. He was a much better runner than me and spent the entire marathon out running me and passed me in the final 1km. But that was a lot of free speed on a superior athlete. On my tri bike, I moved my bars up and back, and saddle quite a bit back to put more weight on my back wheel so that I could carry more speed through switch backs. I also dropped my saddle 5mm for more control on the technical descents, noting that I would be more āsitting up at the back of my saddle for long seated climbingā. The slight adjustments paid off. I tested all of this out on the Col dāEze going up to La Turbie and Eze Village on race week to get comfortable.
Probably too late for anyone to do these tye of adjustments at this point. I had the advantage of numerous trips to the Alps and had an appreciation for the bike handling in that type of terrain.
My one mistake was wearing an unvented aero helmet. The climb up Col dāEcre was baking hot and at the low speed there was no airflow and I ran our of liquids and if I recall it was 20km to the next aid station and then after that it was too technical to properly hydrate till it was a lot later.
Much better vacation destination. Nice itself is nice. The maritime Alps are spectacular. (Hundreds of ancient hilltop villages, deep gorges, alpine valleys). The coast is crowded, but interesting and scenic. Much more interesting and beautiful than American beach resorts.
Value for money- accommodations is cheaper, better and more interesting. Food is same price, but better and more interesting. Airfare is a little more, but not a lot more. Much more to see and do.
More of an adventure.
Weather is a bit better for racing. It will be hot and humid on the run, but a bit less than Kona. The bike should be much cooler.
Bike course is super exciting and interesting.
Run course is more iconic.
Itās not Kona- if you have raced Kona 3 times or more, you will appreciate this.
Nice Disadvantages;
The bike course is going to be terrifying!!
To do this race right, one should train the decent 3 times or more.
This would be a big investment in time.
(Like many US triathletes I am a bad descender and I only did the decent once. I am going to lose 10 minutes on my more prepared competition).
Terrible Jet lag- it is a lot easier going east to west (you just have to stay up late). Going west to east is awful. One needs a week or more to adjust
Run will be more monotonous. (Although Kona run is hardly awesome).
Itās not Kona- if you are only going to one WC, and itās important that itās āKonaā - than Nice is an disadvantage.
Would only disagree on your point regarding the Nice coast being much more interesting and beautiful than American beach resorts. There are many beaches aside from Florida and California in New England and in the Pacific NW that rival Nice.
Iāve never been to either Kona or Nice (sorry for calling a fact an opinion here ).
I would not race Kona even if the slot was free. I would race Nice, albeit not for $1,800.
World Champs courses should be challenging. (An opinion for once!)
Kona may not be such an easy bike course with 1800 meters of elevation change, but itās a massive draft fest, so maybe the rolling nature of the course makes it not hard after all. Illegal drafting on a challenging course would typically be difficult for age groupers.
For a PRO, the Kona bike course is easy enough that you canāt break away; or you can break away and implode Laidlow ā24 style.
Nice does favor a certain type of athlete - the heavier guy will struggle, as will the athlete with no ability to learn how to descend (for example, a poor Mongolian person). However, Kona favours an even more specific kind of athlete: one who handles heat and humidity well. It pretty much eliminates from contention people who arenāt great in heat and humidity.
Also, doesnāt heat and humidity kind of ruin the experience? Would you enjoy running a half marathon in Saigon where the elites finish in 1:15?
Having raced both I personally prefer Nice as a town, nice bike course and the swim and run about equal although kona run course is more difficult in rolling easier in that u get to it quicker. Both places quite hot,didnt feel Kona was that hot in 2024.
I did better and enjoyed nice more also itās half the price and logistics from Asia much easier less travel time.
Kona has the mystique and history. Nice sadly didnāt manage to cement itself as a 2 gender separate location, I wonder if Ironman might consider to position Nice as some sort of 2 gender awa event maybe single day or 2 days on top of existing nice IM separating out the Std ironman with some 2nd day extra event with a solid pro field and slightly different course, maybe slots to kona etc.
It is a bit like taupo had the Std 70.3 and wc in same year. Maybe nice could run every 2 or 4 years opposite years from the 70.3 in early sep enough time to race kona as a mid tier Ager also (top tier would pick one or the other) and while we know women probably canāt go far over 1300 if there is 2000 men 1300 women thatās a monster event for a day bigger than Kona in numbers.
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