From Double Iron to Double Deca Iron Ultra-Triathlon - A Retrospective Data Analysis from 1985 to 2011

• Authors: Reto Lenherr , Beat Knechtle , Christoph Rüst , Thomas Rosemann , Romuald Lepers
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

Participation in ultra-endurance performance is of increasing popularity. We analyzed the historic development of the ultra-triathlon scene from 1985 to 2011 focusing on a) worldwide distribution of competition, b) participation, c) gender, and d) athlete nationality. We examined the participation trends of 3,579 athletes, involving 3,297 men (92.1%) and 300 women (7.9%), using linear regression analyses. Between 1985 and 2011, a total of 96 Double Iron ultra-triathlons (7.6km swimming, 360km cycling, and 84.4km running), 51 Triple Iron ultra-triathlons (11.6km swimming, 540km cycling, and 126.6km running), five Quadruple Iron ultra-triathlons (15.2km swimming, 720km cycling, and 168.8km running), five Quintuple Iron ultra-triathlons (19km swimming, 900km cycling, and 211km running), 11 Deca Iron ultra-triathlons (38km swimming, 1,800km cycling, and 422km running), and two Double Deca Iron ultra-triathlons (76km swimming, 3,600km cycling, and 844km running) were held. In total, 56.7% of the races were in Europe, 37.4% in North America, 5.3% in South America, and less than 1% in Asia. Europeans comprised 80% of the athletes. The number of male participants in Double (r2 = .56; P < .001) and Triple Iron ultra-triathlon (r2 = .47; P < .001) and the number of female participants in Double Iron ultra-triathlon (r2 = .66; P < .001) increased significantly. Less than 8% of the athletes total participated in an ultra-triathlon longer than a Triple Iron ultra-triathlon. Europeans won by far the most competitions in every distance. In conclusion, ultra-triathlon popularity is mainly limited to a) European and North American men and b) Double and Triple Iron ultra-triathlons. Future studies need to investigate the motivation of these ultra-endurance athletes to compete in these extreme races.

Keywords

EN

Triathlon; ultra endurance; nationality; participation; Europe

• Publisher: De Gruyter Open
• Journal: Physical Culture and Sport. Studies and Research
• Year: 2012
• Volume: 54
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 55-67

Dates

published

1 - 6 - 2012

online

21 - 6 - 2012

Contributors

author

Reto Lenherr

• University of Zurich, Switzerland

author

Beat Knechtle

author

Christoph Rüst

• University of Zurich, Switzerland

author

Thomas Rosemann

• University of Zurich, Switzerland

author

Romuald Lepers

• Gesundheitszentrum St. Gallen, Switzerland

References

• Ash, G.I., Scott, R.A., Deason, M., Dawson, T.A., Wolde, B., Bekele, Z., Teka, S., & Pitsiladis, Y.P. (2011). No association between ACE gene variation and endurance athlete status in Ethiopians. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 43, 590-597.[WoS][Crossref]
• Bernard, T., Sultana, F., Lepers, R., Hausswirth, C., & Brisswalter, J. (2010). Age-related decline in Olympic triathlon performance: effect of locomotion mode. Experimental Aging Research, 36, 64-78.[WoS][PubMed]
• Binnie, M.J., Landers, G., & Peeling, P. (2011). Effect of different warm-up procedures on subsequent swim and overall sprint distance triathlon performance. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, E-pub.[WoS]
• Gulbin, J.P., & Gaffney, P.T. (1999). Ultraendurance triathlon participation: typical race preparation of lower level triathletes. Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness, 39, 12-15.
• Herbst, L., Knechtle, B., Lopez, C.L., Andonie, J.L., Fraire, O.S., Kohler, G., Rüst, C.A., & Rosemann, T. (2011). Pacing strategy and change in body composition during a Deca Iron triathlon, Chinese Journal of Physiology, 54, 255-263.[WoS]
• Hoffman, M.D., & Fogard, K. (2012). Demographic characteristics of 161-km ultramarathon runners. Research in Sports Medicine, 20, 59-69.[WoS]
• Hoffman, M.D., Ong, J.C., & Wang, G. (2010). Historical analysis of participation in161km ultramarathons in North America. The International Journal of the History of Sport, 27, 1877-1891.[Crossref]
• Hoffman, M. D., & Wegelin, J. A., (2009). The Western States 100-Mile Endurance Run: participation and performance trends. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 41, 2191-2198.[Crossref]
• Knechtle, B., & Boutellier, U. (1994). Nutrition in long physical endurance events. Praxis (Bern 1994), 89, 2051-62.
• Knechtle, B., Christinger, N., Kohler, G., Knechtle, P., & Rosemann, T. (2009c). Swimming in ice cold water. Irish Journal of Medical Science, 178, 507-511.[Crossref][WoS]
• Knechtle, B., Duff, B., Amtmann, G., & Kohler, G. (2008a). An ultratriathlon leads to a decrease of body fat and skeletal muscle mass-the Triple Iron Triathlon Austria 2006. Research in Sports Medicine, 16, 97-110.[Crossref]
• Knechtle, B., Knechtle, P., Andonie, J.L., & Kohler, G. (2009a). Body composition, energy, and fluid turnover in a five-day multistage ultratriathlon: a case study. Research in Sports Medicine, 17, 104-120.[WoS]
• Knechtle, B., Knechtle, P., & Lepers, R. (2011b). Participation and performance trends in ultra-triathlons from 1985 to 2009. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports, 21, e82-e90.[WoS]
• Knechtle, B., Knechtle, P., & Rosemann, T. (2010b). Similarity of anthropometric measures for male ultra-triathletes and ultra-runners. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 111, 805-818.[Crossref][WoS]
• Knechtle, B., Knechtle, P., Rosemann, T., & Oliver, S. (2010a). A Triple Iron triathlon leads to a decrease in total body mass but not to dehydration. Research Quarterly for Exercise & Sport, 81, 319-327.[Crossref]
• Knechtle, B., Knechtle, P., Rüst, C.A., & Rosemann, T. (2011a). A comparison of anthropometric and training characteristics of Ironman triathletes and Triple Iron ultra-triathletes. Journal of Sports Sciences, 29, 1373-1380.[WoS][Crossref]
• Knechtle, B., Knechtle, P., Rosemann, T., & Senn, O. (2011c). Personal best time, not anthropometry or training volume, is associated with total race time in a triple iron triathlon, Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 25, 1142-50.[WoS][Crossref]
• Knechtle, B., Knechtle, P., Schulze, I., & Kohler, G. (2008b). Vitamins, minerals and race performance in ultra-endurance runners - Deutschlandlauf 2006. Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 17, 194-198.
• Knechtle, B., Schwanke, M., Knechtle, P., & Kohler, G. (2008c). Decrease in body fat during an ultra-endurance triathlon is associated with race intensity. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 42, 609-613.[Crossref][WoS]
• Knechtle, B., Vinzent, T., Kirby, S., Knechtle, P., & Rosemann, T. (2009b). The recovery phase following a Triple Iron triathlon. Journal of Human Kinetics, 21, 65-74.
• Knechtle, B., Wirth, A., Baumann, B., Knechtle, P., Rosemann, T., & Senn, O. (2010c). Differential correlations between anthropometry, training volume and performance in male and female Iron triathletes. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 24, 2785-2793.[Crossref][WoS]
• Larsen, H.B. (2003). Kenyan dominance in distance running. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology. Part A, Molecular and integrative Physiology, 136, 161-170.
• Laursen, P.B., Knez, W.L., Shing, C.M., Langill, R.H., Rhodes, E.C., & Jenkins, D.G. (2005). Relationship between laboratory-measured variables and heart rate during an ultra-endurance triathlon. Journal of Sports Sciences, 23, 1111-1120.[Crossref]
• Lepers, R. (2008). Analysis of Hawaii Ironman performances in elite triathletes from 1981 to 2007. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 40, 1828-1834.[WoS]
• Lepers, R., Knechtle, P., Knechtle, B., & Rosemann, T. (2011) Analysis of ultra-triathlon performances. Open Access Journal of Sports Medicine, 2, 131-136.[Crossref]
• Lepers, R., & Maffiuletti, N.A. (2010). Age and gender interactions in ultra-endurance performance: insight from the triathlon. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 43, 134-139.
• Lucia, A., Esteve-Lanao, J., Oliván, J., Gómez-Gallego, F., San Juan, A.F., Santiago, C., Pérez, M., Chamorro-Viña, C., & Foster, C. (2006). Physiological characteristics of the best Eritrean runners-exceptional running economy. Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism, 31, 530-540.[Crossref]
• Onywera, V. O., Scott, R. A., Boit, M.K., & Pitsiladis, Y. P. (2006). Demographic characteristics of elite Kenyan endurance runners. Journal of Sports Sciences, 24, 415-422.[Crossref]
• Pereira, W.M., Ferreira, L.A.,Rossi, L.P., Kerpers, I.I., Grecco, St.S.A., de Paula, A.R. Jr, & Oliveira, C.S. (2011). Influence of heat on fatigue and electromyographic activity of the biceps brachii muscle. Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapy, 15, 478-484.
• Rüst, C., Knechtle, B., Knechtle, P., Lepers, R., & Rosemann, T. (2012). European athletes dominate performances in Double Iron ultra-triathlons-a retrospective data analysis from 1985 to 2010. European Journal of Sport Science, DOI: 10.1080/17461391.2011.641033.[Crossref][WoS]
• Sultana, F., Brisswalter, J., Lepers, R., Hausswirth, C., & Bernard, T. (2008). Effects of age and gender on Olympic triathlon performances. Science and Sports, 23, 130-135.[WoS][Crossref]
• Weston, A.R., Mbambo, Z., & Myburgh, K.H. (2000). Running economy of African and Caucasian distance runners. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 32, 1130-1134.[Crossref]
• Whyte, G., Lumley, S., George, K., Gates, P., Sharma, S., Prasad, K., & McKenna, W.J. (2000). Physiological profile and predictors of cycling performance in ultra-endurance Triathletes. The Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness, 40, 103-109.
• Yang, N., MacArthur, D.G., Wolde, B., Onywera, V.O., Boit, M.K., Lau, S.Y., Wilson, R.H., Scott, R.A., Pitsiladis, Y. P., & North, K. (2007). The ACTN3 R577X polymorphism in East and West African athletes. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 39, 1985-1988.[WoS]
• Zaryski, C., & Smith, D.J. (2005). Training principles and issues for ultra-endurance athletes. Current Sports Medicine Reports, 4, 165-170.[Crossref]

Identifiers

DOI

10.2478/v10141-012-0013-4