Taylor Knibb and Marten Van Riel's T100 campaigns were about as perfect as it gets
Taylor Knibb and Marten Van Riel capped the inaugural season of the T100 World Tour in thrilling fashion. Both triathletes entered the weekend atop the women’s and men’s overall standings, respectively, and won their World Championship Final races in Dubai to take home titles and major paydays.
They were the favorites to win, and they fully delivered on their lofty expectations. But their races were not without adversity.
Knibb was undefeated in three T100 starts this year, winning in San Francisco, Ibiza and Las Vegas by an average of two minutes and 35 seconds. She’s been a force in triathlon all year, with a win at Ironman 70.3 Oceanside to go with the US cycling time trial national championship and a silver medal at the Paris Olympics in the team relay.
The champs, Taylor Knibb and Marten Van Riel with the T100 Winners Trophy in Dubai!
All that success made her a marked woman in Dubai, however. Ashleigh Gentle was in second place on the overall women’s standings, and was determined to make Knibb sweat. She took the early lead on the bike with Julie Derron. And though Knibb quickly took it back — for a fourth straight T100 race, she posted the fastest bike leg — her lead of two minutes and 51 seconds heading into the run was close enough to make her feel serious pressure. Gentle has been the best runner in the field this year, according to the Professional Triathletes Organisation.
“For the ride, it took me a while to get to the front and then once I got there, it took me a while to start putting any time into the group,” Knibb said. “A few laps it felt like I was holding the gap around a minute, and finally on the last two laps of the ride, the gap started to grow. I wanted to ride harder, but I also needed to respect the heat and stick to my plan.”
Taylor Knibb laying down the fastest bike split once again.
With under eight kilometers left in the 18-kilometer run, Gentle pulled within one minute of Knibb. But Knibb kept her cool in the stifling heat, maintaining a steady pace though temperatures pushed 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Eventually, her competition wilted — after a full-gas effort, Gentle was forced to walk, and was eventually passed by Derron, who took second at 1:51 behind Knibb.
“I felt like I was under pressure the entire day and it was just one of those days that never felt good. Time moved very slowly and it felt like a super long race,” Knibb said. “But I did know that I ‘only’ needed to get second in the race to win the world title. And I didn’t want to risk blowing myself up to win the race. It was just a relief that while the gap to Ashleigh was closing quickly, I was holding my own to Julie.”
The first T100 triathlete across the line for the fourth time this year.
Knibb’s composure was perhaps the most impressive aspect of her performance. Not only did she fend off fierce competition, but she also remained calm after losing two bottles during her ride, and very nearly incurring a penalty for littering.
“I definitely felt the pressure. Based on how the race ended up playing out, I can say I weathered it well … but there were definitely moments in the race where I wasn’t,” Knibb said. “It was quite symbolic of my season and what I’ve learned working with my new coach, Dan (Lorang): stick to the plan, focus on the process (and continue to refocus yourself when necessary), listen to and trust yourself (how you’re feeling, the appropriate effort), and take things step-by-step.
Even in the blistering heat, Knibb would not be denied.
“Physically, mentally, and emotionally, the athlete and person I was a year ago probably wouldn’t have been able to execute that race on Saturday. So the race really felt like a culmination of a lot of things I’ve been working on and learning this year.”
Like Knibb, Van Riel did his best work at the end of a long, furiously hot race.
Seemingly every race the Belgian enters seems to be a thriller (see: his sprint to win in San Francisco). Sunday was no exception, with Van Riel finishing the bike in a close group of six athletes. He was the quickest onto the run out of the second transition, but soon found himself in a threeway battle with Rico Bogen and Kyle Smith. Few athletes can challenge Van Riel on the run, and as if to assert his strength, he attacked halfway through the final leg in an attempt to go clear.
Marten repping Belgium as he crosses the line in Dubai.
Bogen wouldn’t let Van Riel have it, however. He regained Van Riel’s heels, then briefly went off the front himself, putting Van Riel on the defensive. Smith was dropped for good.
Then with 2.5 kilometers to go, Van Riel finished the job. He accelerated, and Bogen didn’t have the legs in the heat to catch him, crossing the line 22 seconds behind the champion.
Van Riel had a mental advantage over his opponents because he knew that he just needed to finish Top 3 on the day to secure an overall title.
Marten outlasted his opponents in all three legs.
“I went into the race a little bit more with a defensive mindset than usual,” Van Riel said. “On the run I found myself quickly in a threeway battle, which made me sure that I was going to take the title, so from then on I could refocus and go all-in for another win as well. On the run, it was kind of a ‘survival’ battle, and I started feeling that my opponents were slowly fading and I was still growing stronger throughout the race.”
Van Riel finished his season having won three of four T100 starts. The only time he didn’t step onto the top step was a second-place finish in Las Vegas. In fact, Vegas remains the only middle-distance triathlon that Van Riel hasn’t won in his career. After struggling with injuries in 2022 and much of 2023, he turned in a career year in 2024 that also included an Olympic appearance.
Thumbs up for a killer 2024!
“I couldn’t be more happy with this result,” Van Riel said. “To take the double — the T100 grand final and the T100 world title overall — is an absolute dream. So many people have helped me throughout this journey and it finally feels like we made it! It will take time to properly sink in.”
Sam Long also had a strong race among Trek triathletes, taking 10th place to finish sixth overall in the T100 standings. He struggled on the swim, but after putting down the eighth fastest bike and third fastest run, he should feel proud of his performance. He finished his year with wins at Ironman 70.3 Pucon, Ironman 70.3 St. George, and Ironman Chattanooga, and second-place finishes at T100 races in Miami and Singapore.
The Speed Concept lived up to its name.
“I fought with everything I had. The inner strength required to surmount such big comebacks on 6 different occasions was enough to break me!” Long wrote on Instagram after the race. “This has been a tenacious year and I can gladly say I am the best version of myself I’ve ever been both as an athlete and person. I am proud of what I have done and can look back and say it is my best season in sport.”
Ben Kanute posted a strong swim, but was forced to pull out of the race afterwards. His season hasn’t unfolded how he hoped, but he still recorded strong results with second-place finishes at Ironman 70.3 Mont Tremblant and Ironman 70.3 Michigan.
One last shot of the champs.
The Trek Factory Racing Triathlon crew have just about tied up all the loose ends of a hectic 2024. We’ll learn more in the coming days and weeks about who will be participating in the few remaining big events of the year, like Ironman 70.3 World Championships in Taupō, New Zealand. In the meantime, we’ll be basking in the glory of Knibb and Van Riel’s scintillating campaigns on one of the sport’s biggest stages.
