We were discussing this on the weekend riding.
We think it was around 1995.
Can anyone confirm?
I don’t know. But I think it was in mid to late 80’s.
I am not sure, but I know it was not before '84. After the just sign up years which I think went through 83 or 84, there was a you can qualify if you were a national level swimmer, Cat 1 or 2 cyclist, or national level runner. I am not sure if that only lasted a year or two. Ironman Canada began in '86 and I think qualifying for Hawaii started around then. Side note: Ironman Canada was called something like the Canadian Ultra Triathlon before it became Ironman Canada in '86
I guess most qualifying events were HIM or similar back in the early years? (lack of IM dist events)
1983 http://ironman.com/...onship#axzz1XAK9DSIV
IMNZ was the first international qualifer in 1985.
I guess most qualifying events were HIM or similar back in the early years? (lack of IM dist events)
Well considering the HIMs are only a few years old… that would be a neat trick. Ironman 70.3 World Championship only came into being in 2006. Some races have also grown. One of the first 70.3 was the Honu, but originally in 2004 it was an Olympic race.
I guess most qualifying events were HIM or similar back in the early years? (lack of IM dist events)
Well considering the HIMs are only a few years old… that would be a neat trick. Ironman 70.3 World Championship only came into being in 2006. Some races have also grown. One of the first 70.3 was the Honu, but originally in 2004 it was an Olympic race.
Half irons predate races called 70.3s by decades. The Troika in Washington was an IM qualifier back in the 80s.
Hugh
I know many start popping up but the late 90s, and I was thinking of Eagleman, the Gold Coast, etc., but did not think these had qualifying entries.
Thanks for the education on Troika. 31 years is pretty amazing
My first half Ironman was the Vermont Green Mountain Steelman in 1986 in Brattleboro Vermont. It was a Kona qualifier. There were a series of qualifiers already established…however, you could sign up general entry up to a certain date, and when general entry filled, you could get a slot through qualifier later in the year.
Dev
Qualifying ‘standards’ for Kona began in, I believe, October of 1982. I had already done Ironman 2x and it caught many by surprise at the time.
I guess most qualifying events were HIM or similar back in the early years? (lack of IM dist events)
Well considering the HIMs are only a few years old… that would be a neat trick. Ironman 70.3 World Championship only came into being in 2006. Some races have also grown. One of the first 70.3 was the Honu, but originally in 2004 it was an Olympic race.
What sciguy & Dev said.
Thanks for the education on Troika. 31 years is pretty amazing
No worries. I know that there are many new people in the sport. Based on the USAT numbers the sport has more than doubled in size in the past 5 years. However, it’s important to know that the sport does have a history now. It not so new anymore. There are races of significance in the sport as others have pointed out dating back about 30 years. In fact, next year IMC celebrates it’s 30th anniversary.
FWIW - 30 years ago I did my first triathlon. For an account of that, please go here:
Dev
Was that race put on by Hank Lange?
Do you remember Murray Banks?
btw- I grew up in Brattleboro!
Way back in the day Memphis in May was a qualifier.
One year there was a race in Sea Isle City / NJ…a little longer than International distance.
They cancelled the swim due to fog…a friend I was training with ran track a @ Villanova.
…she crushed the duathlon, her 3rd triathlon - ever - was Kona!
Chicago Olympic distance was a qualifier the first time I did it in 1996. My college roomate and I were hoping for a roll down spot at the post race party behind the Hyatt as if it was a need to be present to win kind of thing. I think we had some sort of record carbo recovery thing going on as well… good times.
Yeah, Chicago had slots, and a slew of other Olympics did as well. The almost half iron in Muncie had slots.
There were not many full iron races around, much less full IM’s as IM qualifiers!
I don’t think an Olympic as a Kona Q made sense. It was like running a 5k to qual for Boston.
I think qualifying might have depended on where you lived. I lived in Singapore in the mid-1980s. In 1984 a friend (a Brit) from Singapore did the race and he swam breaststroke. In 1985 another Brit friend went and he was a smoker. In 1986 two Singaporean guys raced (and I would have gone if my wife had not been in her 9th month when the race was scheduled).
These 4 guys did not qualify because there was no where to qualify. And except for one of the SIngaporeans, there is no way possible they could have qualified.