“It feels strange, I have to be honest. But also funny,” says triathlete Laura Philipp. She is sitting in the morning sun of Hawaii and has already spent a few days in Kailua-Kona on the Big Island. This Saturday she wants to be at the forefront of the Ironman World Championships (6:25 p.m. CEST, sportschau.de). For the first time, the focus will only be on women in Hawaii. “It’s a different vibe, unusual but not bad,” she says. “I’m looking forward to us having our own race day, it will be special. But I’m also happy about every man who’s here.”
Last year the professional women had their own Hawaii race for the first time, but the situation was fundamentally different, and not just because it was a Thursday: the professional men were also in Hawaii and started two days later. And the field of age group athletes was divided across both race days – and not according to gender. This year marks a much-discussed and much-criticized turning point in the history of the most prestigious triathlon race. Men and women were completely separated in time and space: Sam Laidlow was crowned Ironman world champion in Nice on September 10th. In Hawaii this weekend the stage belongs to the women, next year there will be a swap. The discussions about this are still great.
Death of a myth? Fatal for the sport? Or is it an opportunity for triathlon in general, equal opportunities and especially for women? Unavoidable? Or greed for profit?
