This September, Jelle Geens could become the first male athlete to win the Ironman 70.3 World Championship three times in a row. Yet, there is one goal that ranks even higher on his wishlist: winning the Ironman World Championship on Kona. That goal will have to wait at least another year, however, as Geens will not line up at Ironman Kalmar on August 15, where the final slots for the 2026 Kona edition are set to be awarded.
The decision to skip Kalmar is directly tied to his desire to complete the historic triple at the Ironman 70.3 World Championship. “I hesitated for a long time, but four weeks ago I took my name off the start list,” Geens shared on his All in Triathlon Podcast. “I basically had two options: focus on the Ironman 70.3 World Championship in Nice to try and become world champion for a third time in a row, or fully focus on the Ironman World Championship in Kona – along with the required qualification in Kalmar. Taking on both was too big a risk. If I failed to qualify in Kalmar and then had to race the 70.3 World Championship in Nice four weeks later, I wouldn’t perform well there either. That would have ruined my entire season. So, I’m parking my Kona plans for a year.”
While the plans are put on hold for now, winning Kona remains the ultimate target for Geens. “It would be cool to become the first male athlete to win the Ironman 70.3 World Championship three times in a row, but it doesn’t add that much more to my career anymore. I might rate the Olympic Games just a tiny step higher, but other than that, the Ironman World Championship on Kona is the absolute peak of our sport. That is why winning that race is my only true goal, and it does hurt a bit that I won’t be there this year.”
