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Before you rush out to purchase a pair of the new 55mm Adidas Adizero Prime X or Gustav Idens Kona winning Ons, make sure to check the newly published World Athletics Approved Shoe List. here
IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 has followed the lead of World Triathlon, our sports governing body, adhering to the World Athletics Shoe Regulations to road events for all of its IRONMAN and 70.3 events around the world.
The general rule being that running shoes with a stack height sole thickness of greater then 40mm are prohibited and will get you a DSQ or disqualification as well as shoes that contain more than one carbon plate (or plate rigid structure).
This updated rule was added to the 2023 competition rules on 1 January 2023, after being discussed at an executive board meeting of World Triathlon in Abu Dhabi last November. IRONMAN athletes would have received these updated rules in their inboxes earlier this year.
When Gustav Iden ran his record breaking 2:36:15 marathon at IRONMAN World Champs in Hawaii last October, he was not breaking any rules as this was not yet established. Iden is not the only athlete to be affected by this ruling, Patrick Lange and Ruth Astle will also need to relook their footwear for future races.
These super shoes are widely available on the market, so athletes preparing for IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 next month in Nelson Mandela Bay, or any other IRONMAN event worldwide, make sure that your shoes are race legal to avoid a DSQ.
"Athletes are subject to random shoe control before, during, or after any Race. For shoes race marshalls cannot identify, each piece of information (and maybe the shoeitself) will be required to be sent to the World Triathlon headquarters forverification within 7 days after the Race it was worn. In the meantime, athletes will get a ‘Result Under Review’ added to theresults footer notes. If the shoe is confirmed as legal, the note will be removed. Inany different case, the athlete will be disqualified." - IRONMAN 2023 Competition Rules
It is interesting to witness IRONMAN follow suit to the World Triathlon ruling, after their lagging last year. We look forward to seeing how this is implemented with pro's and age-groupers alike.
We doubt the new ruling will make too much of a difference in marathon/half marathon paces as shoes are always evolving to fit new requirements.
Download the list of World Athletics Approved Shoes below:
Credits: Ironman/Triathlete
