With this year’s Ironman World Championship in Kona swiftly approaching, athletes will have to navigate a maze of logistics before even stepping foot on the start line.
From flights, to accommodation, transporting race gear, and time differences, there’s not just dreams on the line, but a huge financial investment from athletes and their sponsors.
Aside from the prestige of racing the world’s most esteemed triathlon, we wanted to know just how much pros can win from placing at Kona. Will it be more than how much it costs to race Kona?
How much can athletes win in Kona?
Ghe golden athlete who manages to take the tape and title of 2022 world champion will be rewarded with a hefty $125,000. All male and female prize purses across Ironman are equal, so it’ll be the top athlete of each gender who’ll bag the biggest digits. Here’s how Kristian Blummenfelt plans to win it.
A big monetary drop occurs between the top and runner-up prizes, with the second-place finisher set to claim almost half that of the winner at a cool $65,000.
Last on the podium, and another jump down in the numbers, the third place athlete will take home $45,000.
How does the Ironman World Championship prize purse compare to the PTO’s?
For comparison, the PTO’s biggest-ever prize purse was dolled out to the top 18 PTO-ranking men and women who qualified for the recent Collin’s Cup. A whopping $1.5 million was shared among competitors, though it was split not based on results, but by the athletes’ rankings going into the race.
The top-ranked pro cashed in $90,000, second took home $80,000, and third claimed $70,000.
These figures may be slightly lower than the Ironman World Championship, but the prize jumps between rankings are much less, with 18th position still taking home $20,000.
In contrast, the PTO US Open in September did pay out based on results, with $100,000 dolled out to winners Collin Chartier and Ashleigh Gentle, $70,000 going to second place and $50,000 to third.
What is the pro prize purse at Kona?
The total pro prize purse for the 2022 Ironman World Championship is $750,000, which will be shared out between the top 15 finishers.
The first 15 men and women to finish will be eligible for a cash prize. You can see the breakdown in full below:
- 1st place $125,000
- 2nd place $65,000
- 3rd place $45,000
- 4th place $25,000
- 5th place $20,000
- 6th place $18,000
- 7th place $15,000
- 8th place $13,000
- 9th place $12,000
- 10th place $11,000
- 11th place $8,000
- 12th place $6,000
- 13th place $5,000
- 14th place $4,000
- 15th place $3,000
Find out who’ll take the glory and the prize-money by watching the Ironman World Championship live.
Image credit: Delly Carr/Getty Images for Ironman