In looking at the top pros, there seems to be an optimal height range, and few guys are over 6" 1" or so (Cam Widoff being one exception.) Why do you think this is? I would think that a guy who is 6’5" or so would have an advantage over a shorter triathlete if both were equally lean. What am I missing?
Higher running cadence.
They spent all their formative years playing basketball instead of swimming…
Even larger physically, they do not have a proportionately larger heart, lungs, etc…
It’s the same Engine that must pump blood out to those lanky limbs.
Taller people weight more. We have more weight to move, we have more wind resistance, and we have more cells to feed with the oxygen we consume.
The genes that make a person tall are related to bone growth, there is no mechanism that guarantees your lungs and heart will be proportionally larger to accommodate your extra size.
Height can be an advantage in the swim and on a flat bike stage, but not running.
How about Andy Potts, Hunter Kemper, Matt Reed, Simon Lessing, Craig Walton, Greg Remaly, Bevan Docherty, etc, etc, etc…all ranging 6’1" to 6’5" tall, and I’ve heard these guys do okay 
If you look at these names, the trend is actually quite the contrary…
I was just going to say Matt Reed is huge!
If you watched the broadcast of the Escape from Alcatraz Triathon over the weekend and listenede to the commentary, you’d certainly think that Yao Ming would be the greatest triathlete in the world…
Possibly demographics? If there are more people of a given height participating then developing through into racing then won’t more of the winners be of the most common height of the group?
Taking this further, I’d be interested to know if the average height of the whole population is close to the average winners height. This would, I suppose, indicate whether triathlon is a sport that favours a particular stature.
That’s interesting. I had no idea those guys were so tall. I thought they all topped out at 6’ or so. I wonder if the original question applies to top IM pros then?
They spent all their formative years playing basketball instead of swimming…
Guilty
Craig Mottram is over 6’3 I believe.
Scarier still, he came from triathlon originally and is still only 26(?). I’d love to see him re-enter tri…
So not everything is bigger?
jaretj
He’s closer to 6’2"…but yeah, pretty fast.
I must say it’s a good thing
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That is correct actually, there is no correlation between height and…“size”
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Peter Reid is 6’3", he did ok at IM
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How about Andy Potts, Hunter Kemper, Matt Reed, Simon Lessing, Craig Walton, Greg Remaly, Bevan Docherty, etc, etc, etc…all ranging 6’1" to 6’5" tall, and I’ve heard these guys do okay
I’ve heard this guy Dave Scott was pretty good too… Standing next to him I believe he’s 6’ 2" or better…
This question came up on letsrun. It asked, “Why are most good distance runners average height.” The answer: “Most people are average height.”
I was the 5th tallest in a class of 300 in my school. Though I was the fastest distance runner, the odds were heavily stacked against someone over 6’2" tall being that man when you figure that 5 guys have to compete for the same slot that 295 other people have a shot at.
The tradeoff for running is longer legs versus lower body weight. The guys I train with have shorter legs, but only weigh about 130 lbs. They comment on how fast they’d be if they had 36" inseam. I respond, “What if I lost 30 lbs!”
I place my bet on the short one!
