Ironman Makes Changes To Kona Pro Ranking System

The World Triathlon Corporation (WTC) today announced changes to its Kona Pro Ranking system, which was put in place in September of 2010. The basics of the system, such as the number of men and women who will qualify and the need to validate at a full-distance Ironman, are still in tact. The changes come as a reaction to feedback from the pro community and focus mainly on the points that will be handed out at various races.

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The goal of the new system is to continue to reward and qualify the 50 most competitive professional men and 35 professional women for the Ironman and Ironman 70.3 World Championships.

The key adjustment is an increase in the number of points available for the Ironman World Championship–it will now be a P-8000 level event, bringing the Kona Points Ranking (KPR) into alignment with the 70.3 Points Ranking (70.3PR). Additionally, there will only be three levels of scoring for full-distance events (P-8000/ P-4000/ P-2000), with the removal of the P-1000 scoring level. The scoring levels for Ironman 70.3 (70.3PR) remain the same.

“We made these modifications based on feedback from our athletes,” says Ironman CEO Andrew Messick. “They wanted a system that rewarded athletes who finished in the top ten in World Championships (which has always been considered the benchmark of excellence in the sport), top five finishers from regional championship events and top three finishers at all other races.”