Cycling Characteristics of Male Triathletes Qualifying for the 2022 Ironman World Championship
Today, I analyzed the metabolic testing data between late 2021 and early 2022 for male triathletes who competed & qualified for the 2022 Ironman World Championship.
As usual, a quick disclaimer: the info provided is not definitive proof of what it takes for male age groupers to qualify for the Ironman World Championship. My curiosity is more about identifying possible common traits for male amateurs performing well in their respective age groups.
I included the data of male triathletes racing and pursuing a Kona slot as I did for female athletes. Of around 30 male triathletes tested in that period, half sought a championship spot, and 60% achieved their goal. Below is a breakdown of the age group placing for those earning a sport for the championship
In terms of blood lactate accumulation (BLa) at their first inflection point (known as 1st Lactate Threshold or LT1), for those that qualified, 80% had BLa of 1.5 mmol/L at LT1 or lower, 20% had BLa between 1.6-1.8 mmol/L at LT1, and finally, none with BLa of 1.9 mmol/L or higher at LT1 earned a slot.
As mentioned with female triathletes, there is a relationship between the power & heart rate at LT1 and their durability. Why? Because all males who qualified managed to sustain 92-95% of their LT1 power on race day and still could run within their potential.
This matches my experience coaching competitive age groupers; those with more robust durability tend to race Ironman ~5% of the LT1 power/HRcan. From the data, I can't say for sure whether a lower BLa (i.e., 1.5 mmol/L) automatically equates to better durability. However, more often than not, athletes doing the proper training (volume & intensity) & racing closer to their LT1 power/HR tend to have BLa <2.0 mmol/L
In other words, the higher your BLa at LT1, the lower your durability may be; hence, those athletes either need to ride at a lower intensity to run well off the bike or risk riding near LT1 but struggle during the run.
Next is a table showing lactate accumulation at LT1 and LT2, power in watts per kilogram for each inflection point, and the delta between those.
The average power at LT1 was ~ 2.9 w/kg, with ~3.2 w/kg for the highest and ~2.7 w/kg for the lowest. This reflects the greater opportunity to qualify for the championship in 2022 by adding spots with a 2-day competition. For instance, pre-covid, to compete for AG podiums in popular categories (i.e., 40-44), watts per kilogram at LT1 was over 3.0 on average.
Regarding power at LT2, the average was 3.7 w/kg, with the lowest being ~3.3 w/kg and the highest ~4 w/kg. The delta average between the LT1 and LT2 power was ~26%, higher than what females exhibited. Something of note: a couple of the athletes that unfortunately failed to earn a spot had ~4.2> w/kg at LT2 but LT1 of <2.5 w/kg exhibiting an LT1/LT2 delta over 30%.
From those earning a slot placing in 2nd place, the average delta was ~25% or lower, while for those ranking lower, the average delta was closer to 26% or higher.
Therefore, while competitive age groupers exhibit higher w/kg at LT1 and LT2 with a narrower delta between these, in my opinion, for athletes training & racing the Ironman distance, having a primary focus on increasing markers like Functional Threshold Power (FTP) or critical power may not be ideal. Instead, the focus should be on improving their power at LT1 & their durability to sustain this over 112 miles.Â
To put it differently, Ironman triathletes may focus more on improving power at LT1 (and reducing BLa in the process) while maintaining power at LT2. And reevaluate Time in Zone distribution as LT1 improves and the LT1/LT2 delta narrows.
Regarding the best performers, three finished 2nd in their division, and all three had a BLa of 1.5 mmol/L or lower; two rode at 95% of their LT1 power, and the third rode 93% of LT1 power. In contrast, the athletes missing a qualifying spot only managed to sustain 90% of the LT1 power or less.
 In summary, for the 2022 season, some of the characteristics of male triathletes competing at the front of the 39-55 age groups when cycling were:Â
A lactate accumulation of ~<1.5 mmol/L at LT1 or lower.
A w/kg of 2.9> at LT1
A LT1/LT2 delta of ~26% or lower
Next, I'll analyze the male's running data.