Joe Skipper's Ironman Worlds Preview: A Junkyard Dog's Chance

Joe Skipper heads into the Ironman World Championships in Nice this weekend full of confidence after a strong season that included a win at Ironman Lake Placid. Joe notes that the Nice course will suit his strengths as a cyclist and runner.

The bike course features over 1,600 meters of climbing, including a long 15km climb early on. While the big climb may trouble some of the lighter riders, Joe sees the climbs playing to his advantage later in the race when the course flattens out on the plateau, allowing him to make up time on fatigued rivals. His experience racing tough bike courses like Wales should stand him in good stead.

Previewing the All-New Course for the 2023 Ironman World Championship in Nice

The move to Nice, France brings a hilly bike course with 10,000ft of climbing and technical descents along with a flat 4-loop run to the Ironman World Championship for the first time ever outside of Hawaii.

TrizoneDavid Deakin

Joe also believes the run course, while hilly, will suit his running strength over the marathon. He has produced some of his fastest runs off the bike on tough courses like Wales and Ironman UK in the past. His improved strength and conditioning work in recent years has helped make him more consistent at running sub-2:40 marathons off the bike.

While Joe acknowledges rivals like Magnus Ditlev have shown impressive form this year, he feels confident and ready to contend for the win. Joe says it would be a "dream come true" to win the world title in Nice. With no pace lines to sit in and an honest, challenging course, Joe's well-rounded abilities as a strong climber and runner should give him an excellent shot at victory this weekend.