At last! I assume the delay was just ‘final done, laps counted, holidays’ syndrome.
3+ minutes, 6+ minutes and 4+ minutes for those three, to whom add Perez Sala @ nearly 3 minutes, are serious outliers, amassed in a mean of 31 yoyos. Presumably we could even add more time and yoyos to Salthouse as her data were incomplete, assuming she rode consistently, in this respect.
As a comparison, the mean illegal time of the other WPros was 19 seconds averaging 3 yoyos each!
With Derron #3 and Salthouse #4 it’s not as if these ‘yoyo’ athletes were at the back of the field with minimal ref scrutiny.
Discounting Koolhaas and the ‘incomplete data’ athletes and the ‘out the back’ BP swimmers, the men also averaged circa 19 secs illegal time. Reformed character Keulen only 7 secs and Luis only 9!
I wonder why there are such anomalies from the norm. Attitude? Literal carelessness? Expectation that 20m wouldn’t be enforced on the ladies? Colour blindness? I further wonder whether these data are captured centrally near real time and build through the race. If so clearly this is both targeting material and even info for commentators to add colour to the repetitive short lap chit chat.
maybe pohle was hoping to get a bit of the secret juice of imo by staying close lol . more seriously, I think pohle had serious panic attacks in that race , during the swim, so maybe was a bit out of it on the bike. overall she did swim and cycle bellow par 2025.
Amazing to get Knibb there - I assumed she’d lock in to Oceanside, a week later.
I surmise keeping her season’s options open and some $$. With her PTO Ranking she will get a start, if she wants, at every T100. I presume IM Texas after this. Got all of May and June to get a 70.3 in, but that will need to be weaved in with WTCSs Yokohama, Alghero and Quiberon (two of).
After listening to Knibb’s interview with Jack Kelly, I am very surprised to see her on the start list. She sounded very down on the T100, and I would have thought she’d want to avoid the travel. In any case, it sure makes for an exciting race!
I didn’t get that vibe at all, she just like to tell the truth about situations, good and bad. I never felt that she would hold a grudge against any of the 3 series she races in, hell she is looking at the Olympics again after trashing the whole parking lot ride thingy. I think now that she is back perhaps on some ITU Olympic track, it makes sense to do more T100’s than Ironmans and half’s, similar training and run speed for both of those. And of course there is the money issue, not even close when you compare between series, t100 crushes all of them..
Plus, I wouldn’t be surprised if they tempted her in with really solid appearance fee now that the contracts are done away with.
I often take the interviews they give to be honest, but a bit of asymmetrical negotiation-fare. It only works to their benefit if the top dogs play a little hard to get.
If they see Taylor as leaning away from T100 based on the broadcast personal embarrassment issues, trophy issues, late payment issues, fining issues, her personal travel concerns, etc. that can’t hurt in the negotiations.
I didn’t expect that she’d never race another T100–the money and competition are too good to resist–but I am surprised she chose to kick off her season there with Oceanside so much closer. I though the combination of travel and lingering acrimony would keep her stateside.
Out of curiosity, I went back to the interview and I think this is what left the impression she had soured on the T100. In the context of discussing her decision to skip Singapore and the whole issue of contracts, TK stated:
…I’m not going to sacrifice my career for an organization who I don’t think would respect. Like imagine if I’d had a duplication of Kona in Dubai or Qatar. I can based on what they did to me in Dubai. I don’t think they would have respected my health and me if that had happened again. They would have just preyed on it,…SO I’m not going to put myself in a position for someone who I don’t trust..
That sounded pretty harsh to me. However, she did go on later to say she was more frustrated with, rather than resentful of, the T100.
In any case, she’s going to the Gold Coast and so I guess you’re right. Either way, I’ll be psyched to watch her race Waugh, Derron, and the others.
Knibb:
I’m with @monty : Knibb just says it the way she sees it, with no faux-negotiations dressing.
But not alongside with the ‘just 100s and 70.3s, no IMs’: Kona remains the A+ race with Nice as an option to be raced within the Kona build - late decision (but would need to Q before 30th June. As for “T100 crushes it on money” 3 races might make her $100k. I suspect she will not race Qatar: too late and prejudices 2027. If this instead of Nice and Kona then a #2 and a #3 there would make her $100, plus the Q races another $22. No races were crushed in this comparison. I think the choice is a false one.
As for @Lurker4 's “appearance fee” imagination - think v unlikely, but feel free to call me naive. I think there was some contract fee negotiating last New Year but otherwise not. Do it for one opens a bag of worms. But their list of ‘issues’ is good: “broadcast personal embarrassment issues, trophy issues, late payment issues, fining issues, her personal travel concerns”. Resentment retained on PTO release of the shoddy Dubai video clip.
Like @Changpao I am surprised she’s trucking all the way to Queensland. Certainly there’s more $$ available but would need to come #2 at least to get more than a win at Oceanside. I suggest that the key aspect is that racing T100 Gold Coast is a week earlier than Oceanside which will give her more time (4 weeks) before Texas.
Dunni what you think the Ironman prize money is but a win at oceanside is only $7500 that would be outside rhe top 10 in the t100 with the 2026 prize money.
You need to take a wider view (well I try to).
Edit: I realise you are reacting to my careless “Certainly there’s more $$ available [at Gold Coast] but would need to come #2 at least to get more than a win at Oceanside.”
In arriving at those figures (which I didn’t calculate in detail cos assumptions) I assumed Knibb would win Oceanside and come second in Texas (her “Q races”). That would reward her with $7,500 and $17,500 (=$25k). Coming second in Nice and third in Kona would get her $90k: total = $115k)
Three T100 races with two #2 and a #3 earns her $110k.
IF she raced a fourth T100, most likely the final (‘if’) that’d be another $30 (for #3) plus $70 for third in the final T100 Standings - so another $100k. (Total = $210k)
IF Knibb wished to increase her remuneration from IRONMAN races she’d race one more IM Pro Series 70.3 (Happy Valley? - she won’t want to race another full). She’d come #2 or #3 in the IM Pro Series ($130k/$85k) - to be clear I don’t think Knibb will do this. (Total = $200k)
I’ll say again: one 'series does not “crush” the other. Clearly what will actually happen is double dipping unless Knibb drops her Kona helicopter chasing dreams. But even then surely she’ll race Nice - she’d murder the climb to Col de Vence but not so sure she’ll enjoy the descent from Coursegoules.
I wish GTB was racing this instead of the Lanzarote World Cup. She really built some momentum there towards the end of last season. Aren’t the Brits coming over for their annual Aussie camp anyway? Or she doesn’t have to come after moving to a new group?
The start list has been filled for T100 Gold Coast with the following additions:
First Name
Surname
Nation
Imogen
Simmonds
SUI
Katrine
Græsbøll_Christensen
DEN
Nicole
Van_der_Kaay
AUS
Jessica
Fullagar
GBR
Danielle
De_Francesco
AUS
The two ‘noticables’ are Fullagar and Simmonds. Former did rather well in Noosa last November: let’s see how double the distance goes.
McDonald has dropped from the list.
One more wildcard slot to fill.
Definitely a wild card, but (see below) maybe inspired, certainly all the way to T2.
Can this Simmonds bloke swim then? Sounds as if he thinks SkiMo might offer a better second sport, but really a 2 minute uphill burst seems too short.
Pretty handy 10 years ago in the water: 4:10 for a 400 LCM.
Before cycling, Danielle represented Australia at four World Open Water Swimming Championships across the 5km and 10km events. https://www.procyclingstats.com/rider/danielle-de-francesco
Her Arkéa-B&B Hotels team ran out of road before Christmas so I guess, aged 33, she’s reverting to triathlon - she competed in in her teens, before the OW swimming.
Btw, hope all your training for 70.3 Taupo has gone well. What’s next? Actually racing Roth?
That would be rad. Men’s road cycling is significantly less niche than triathlon. Having a big-name road cyclist at the T100 start line to see how he performs against professional triathletes would be a great way for the PTO get additional audiences interested in their race series. It’s not going to happen, though. No WorldTour team will send one of their active star riders to do a triathlon (and train for it) instead of doing WorldTour races. Especially not with how packed the WorldTour calendar is nowadays.