Five world titles, a new world best time, and triumphs on and off the podium in 2023 mark the ninth year of the Bahrain Victorious 13. Now with 38 world titles total under its belt, this team of champion athletes is the most successful of all time, inspiring the Gulf region and beyond in the pursuit of health, wellness, and endurance sporting excellence.
Henri Schoeman struck first for world championship stripes in April at the Super League Triathlon Arena Games series, claiming the title of World Triathlon Esports Champion. He then went on to continue his comeback from injury racing both Championship Series for World Triathlon and Super League Triathlon, and ended his year with a bronze at the Ironman 70.3 Middle East Championship Bahrain.
Lauren Parker won her fourth consecutive Paratriathlon world championship in September, adding to the para cycling world title she won on debut back in August; for these feats, she was named the Australian Institute of Sport Female Para-Athlete of the Year.
Cassandre Beaugrand and Hayden Wilde swept the Super Sprint World Championship in July, blasting through qualifier and final races to snag twin world titles that counted toward their career-high World Triathlon Championship Series silver medals by year end. Both athletes along with Schoeman were also instrumental in carrying the Bahrain Victorious 13 Scorpions to a silver finish in the team competition at the Super League Triathlon Championship Series.
Wilde then won Ironman 70.3 Melbourne alongside Amelia Watkinson to score another Bahrain Victorious 13 podium double.
Daniela Ryf smashed Chrissie Wellington’s long-standing best time over a full triathlon distance, bettering the 12-year record with a time of 8:08:21 at Challenge Roth. The multiple Ironman world champion went nearly 10 minutes faster than the old record, and also nearly 14 minutes faster than her own previous best.
Kat Matthews bookended the year triumphant at the Ironman 70.3 Middle East Championship in Bahrain, after topping Ironman Texas in April and becoming Ironman 70.3 vice world champion in Lahti, Finland in August.
Jan Frodeno produced a masterclass performance at the PTO US Open in Milwaukee. In this penultimate race before his retirement at the Ironman World Championship in Nice, France, he converted a wildcard entry into a win against the world #1 athlete and a world-class field over the 100-kilometre distance.
This team of 13 athletes including Alistair Brownlee, Georgia Taylor-Brown, Vincent Luis, Holly Lawrence, and Joe Skipper wore the Bahrain Victorious 13 brand and racing red across each finish line to score 77% of finishes in the Top 10, a podium finish success rate of 59%, and a 31% win percentage across 106 race starts.
There is ever more racing on the horizon as 2024 draws near, with the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games as well as world championships and professional series up for grabs. Heading into its tenth year, the Bahrain Victorious 13 remains the epitome of endurance sport excellence and the benchmark for all others that follow.
