T100 Announces a Torrent of 2025 Talent, But Will It Rally Revenues?

Good morning everyone,

I’m back home in Boulder after a really lovely time in Canada for the holidays. It felt like the right mix of training and gathering with family and friends. It’s hard to believe that 2025 is already here, and it’s a little scary that in just over a week I’ll be jumping back on a start line!

Ultimately I love to race, and at the end of the day I’m sure I’ll get a good indication of where my fitness is at to kick off another awesome year of swimming, biking, and running.

• I wish you the best for 2025 and I’m looking forward to sharing it with you!

In today’s edition:

• 🌶️ T100 announces torrent of talent, but will it rally revenues?

• 🍳 Why you NEED to start your day with breakfast

• 🤑 And who are 2024’s richest athletes?

Thanks for being here.

-Matt Sharpe, newsletter editor

Have a triathlete in your life who can't stop swimming, biking, or running? Fire this off to them. Forwarded from a friend? Sign-up for free.

ONE BIG THING

T100 Announces a Torrent of 2025 Talent, But Will It Rally Revenues?

What is it: The athlete roster of the 2025 T100 Triathlon World Tour is beginning to take shape. And after 16 athletes (eight men and eight women) were initially announced, eight new “hotshot” contracted athletes were recently revealed.

Sweet sixteen: In mid-December, the T100 announced the 16 athletes who would be returning to the 2025 World Tour. Among them are Taylor Knibb (USA) and Martin Van Riel (BEL); the inaugural T100 World Champions. 

• Ashleigh Gentle (AUS), Julie Derron (SUI), Kyle Smith (NZ), and Sam Long (USA) are also among the notable returnees for 2025.

Heralded hotshots: Hayden Wilde (NZ), Leo Bergere (FRA), Taylor Spivey (USA), and Morgan Pearson (USA) were all on the podium in Paris, and will all be competing on the 2025 T100 Tour. The others include:

• Vincent Luis - Olympic medalist, 2x World Champion, 2024 Bahrain 70.3 Champion

• Kate Waugh - U23 World Champion, Olympian

• Jessica Learmonth - Olympic Gold medalist

• Laura Madsen - 2024 Les Sables d’Ollone 70.3 Champion

The grateful eight: Of course, even with all these athletes announced, there are still eight contracts per gender yet to be filled. So who will be likely to be on the start line at the season opener in Singapore?

• The criteria on the T100 website isn’t totally clear. But if they do go by the PTO rankings we could see athletes like Caroline Pohle (GER), Grace Thek (AUS), Nicolas Mann (GER), and Daniel Bakkegard (DEN) signing with the series.

Tempo’s take: It’s a tsunami of short-course athletes who are heading to the T100 Tour in 2025 led by a cohort of some of the fastest athletes in history. But with an influx comes an exodus of long-course stars. The T100 isn’t going to announce who has chosen not to resign with them, but the list is long and worrisome for the swim/bike/run startup.

• Athletes like Lucy Charles-Barclay (GBR), Chelsea Sodaro (USA), Laura Phillip (GER), Sam Laidlow (FRA), and Magnus Ditlev are World Champions in long-course racing and help bring a wider awareness and relevancy to the T100’s Professional and Age Group events.

In a recent Tempo poll, over 30% of respondents said they wouldn’t engage with the T100 if their favorite athletes weren’t competing. Amid a bid to calm anxious investors by pivoting to events, is the T100 doing enough to retain the talent that its desired market will be drawn to?

• There are still plenty of athletes to name for 2025’s T100 World Tour. And we could yet see the return of many long-course stars. But with rumors of a drop in the value of 2025’s contracts, it might not be enough to keep the talent on tour, or the events in the black!

FAVORITES

🍳 Start your day right: Are you someone who jumps out the door for training or work without scarfing down even so much as a banana? Your lack of breakfast could be setting you up for a day of poor energy, unstable blood sugar, and poor performance. This article provides some insight on why a little breakfast can go a long way. [New York Times]

🚀 Fast or slow: Are you looking for a PB at your next 70.3? You might want to head to Europe? Or maybe you want more time on your course for your money the heat of Subic Bay could be for you! In any case, this list has the fastest and slowest 70.3 races. Is your favorite on it? [Triathlete]

🚴 Your saddle height: With many of us looking ahead to future races, now may be the time to dial in those often-forgotten aspects of our equipment. Refining your fit on your bike being one of them. So do you know what the right saddle height is? And how can getting it right keep you training better and racing faster? This video explains! [GTN]

🏋️ Anti-aging for you: Is the key to anti-aging found in a supplement? A serum? Or underneath a squat rack? According to research strength training can actually help reverse the aging process. But what does a Benjamin Button strength program look like? Find out here. [The Strength Clinic]

🤑 Richest athletes: With two massive long-course pro series in 2024 there were plenty of opportunities for athletes to earn the big (triathlon) bucks! So who ended up earning the most prize money this year? An athlete who had one of the best seasons we’ve ever seen! [TRI247]

REEL TIME

Is that a “3” at the front?!?!?! ⚰️💸😂

run.amateur

View more on Instagram

QUICK NEWS

Insane athlete: Remarkably, Albert Zou found the time to train for an IRONMAN after completing a quadruple bachelor’s degree at Rutgers University in Computer Science, Math, Linguistics, and Cognitive Science. How did he do it? “Consistency over intensity.” His other advice on achieving big goals are here! [USA Today]

Coventry returns: After a two-year absence the Coventry Triathlon will be making a return to the Xcel center on June 1st, 2025. [MSN]

Documentary delight: Award-winning documentary “Beyond Triathlon” spotlighting 90-year-old Jacksonville trailblazer, triathlete to be shown Jan. 12 at Flagler College. [News4Jax]

TEMPO EXCLUSIVE ARCHIVE

• Are you making the four most-common nutrition mistakes?

• An athlete’s harrowing account of the IRONMAN Ireland tragedy.

• Build it, but will they come? The crazy story of the Triterium!

LATEST EDITIONS

• The top stories of 2024, and the one swimming skill you need to nail!

• Fueling tips for your best 2025. And should you change your run form?

• Does sip size matter? And a “rigged” election with dodgy deals!