Women in Ironman: Share of Finishers at 165 Races
Women are 23% of Ironman 70.3 finishers and 16% of full Ironman finishers. See the share at 165 races and why it matters for slots.
By Lucas Calegari
Photo: Raniel Diaz / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)
The percentage of women in Ironman is about 23% at Ironman 70.3 and about 16% at the full distance. In my race results database, 41,675 of 179,422 finishers at 122 Ironman 70.3 races were women, and 10,961 of 66,774 finishers at 43 full Ironman races. I used the latest 2025 or 2026 edition of each race. The share swings a lot from race to race, from 7% at Ironman 70.3 Goa to 40% at Ironman 70.3 New Zealand.
Below are the ten highest and ten lowest races at each distance, how my figures sit next to the ones IRONMAN publishes, and why the share matters if you are chasing a slot. For typical finish times at both distances, see my average 70.3 finish time and average Ironman finish time posts.
Women in Ironman 70.3: share of finishers by race
The typical 70.3 race has about 22% women finishers. Of the 122 races, 76 are at 20% or above, 12 are at 30% or above and 7 are below 15%. Eight of the ten highest are in the US or Canada. The other two are in New Zealand and Western Australia. Nine of the ten lowest are in Asia or South America, and Belgrade is the exception.
| Race | Women | Women finishers | All finishers |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Zealand | 39.8% | 416 | 1,046 |
| Oregon | 38.2% | 912 | 2,389 |
| Calgary | 34.1% | 323 | 948 |
| Washington Tri-Cities | 32.5% | 627 | 1,928 |
| Musselman | 32.5% | 591 | 1,818 |
| Victoria | 32.1% | 417 | 1,299 |
| Western Australia | 31.7% | 344 | 1,084 |
| Michigan | 31.4% | 589 | 1,875 |
| Wisconsin | 30.9% | 524 | 1,694 |
| Rockford | 30.7% | 504 | 1,642 |
| Race | Women | Women finishers | All finishers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Goa | 7.2% | 74 | 1,027 |
| Goseong Korea | 13.1% | 166 | 1,267 |
| Desaru Coast | 13.8% | 53 | 384 |
| Phu Quoc | 14.0% | 101 | 723 |
| Buenos Aires | 14.1% | 146 | 1,034 |
| Puerto Varas | 14.6% | 139 | 953 |
| Pucon | 14.9% | 181 | 1,218 |
| Lapu-Lapu | 15.1% | 78 | 517 |
| Subic Bay | 15.5% | 61 | 393 |
| Belgrade | 15.8% | 178 | 1,126 |
At Ironman 70.3 New Zealand, 416 of 1,046 finishers were women. At Ironman 70.3 Goa, 74 of 1,027 were, the lowest share in my data. Ironman 70.3 Oregon has the most women of any 70.3 in absolute numbers, 912 finishers.
Women in full Ironman: share of finishers by race
Full-distance fields are more male. The typical race has about 14% women finishers. Nine of the 43 races reach 20% or more, 23 are below 15% and none reach 30%. Seven of the ten highest are in the US or Canada. Of the ten lowest, five are in Europe, four are in Asia and one is in Puerto Rico.
| Race | Women | Women finishers | All finishers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ottawa | 25.9% | 598 | 2,313 |
| Jacksonville | 24.9% | 319 | 1,283 |
| Maryland | 24.7% | 307 | 1,244 |
| Wisconsin | 23.7% | 327 | 1,377 |
| New Zealand | 22.6% | 225 | 995 |
| California | 22.3% | 579 | 2,601 |
| Chattanooga | 21.8% | 258 | 1,184 |
| Arizona | 21.1% | 356 | 1,687 |
| Western Australia | 20.4% | 231 | 1,132 |
| Sweden | 19.7% | 483 | 2,454 |
| Race | Women | Women finishers | All finishers |
|---|---|---|---|
| France | 9.2% | 133 | 1,443 |
| Malaysia | 9.4% | 57 | 609 |
| Philippines | 10.2% | 31 | 303 |
| Japan | 11.0% | 121 | 1,101 |
| Les Sables | 11.3% | 287 | 2,539 |
| Lanzarote | 11.5% | 126 | 1,100 |
| Frankfurt | 11.9% | 294 | 2,471 |
| San Juan | 12.1% | 70 | 580 |
| Gurye | 12.3% | 122 | 992 |
| Leeds | 12.5% | 139 | 1,116 |
Ironman Ottawa tops the list with 598 women among 2,313 finishers, 25.9%. That is only a few points above the 70.3 average of 23.2%.
How my numbers compare with IRONMAN's own numbers
IRONMAN's published 2025 figures say women were 22.5% of all its athletes, 17% at Ironman and 25% at Ironman 70.3 (reported by SGB Online on 17 December 2025). Mine are 16.4% and 23.2%. They are close and the gap between the two distances is similar. They are not the same measure. IRONMAN counts athletes who signed up worldwide. I count finishers in the races I hold results for, and I can't see who did not start or did not finish.
Why women's share matters for a slot
Your own time does not change with the size of the women's field. What changes is how many women are competing for a race's slots.
At a 70.3 Worlds qualifier, men and women get an equal but separate number of slots, as I explain in my 70.3 Worlds slots per race post. So a race with few women has many slots for each woman who finishes. The table uses slots per 100 women finishers from that post.
| Race | Women | Slots each | Slots per 100 women |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lapu-Lapu | 15.1% | 25 | 32.1 |
| Phu Quoc | 14.0% | 25 | 24.8 |
| Buenos Aires | 14.1% | 25 | 17.1 |
| Belgrade | 15.8% | 25 | 14.0 |
| Western Australia | 31.7% | 25 | 7.3 |
| Wisconsin | 30.9% | 30 | 5.7 |
| Musselman | 32.5% | 30 | 5.1 |
Slots per finisher are not your odds. A small field can also have a few very fast women, and a race can be far away or hard to reach.
Full Ironman and Kona slots
For a full Ironman and the Kona slots it can earn, IRONMAN sets the real men and women split on race day from the number who start. My Kona slots per race post estimates it from finishers. In my Kona performance pool cut-off post the women's pool is small, between 2 and 8 slots at the eight races I modelled.
To see how your own splits would place at a specific race, browse the race database or the rankings.
About the data
- Women and men finisher counts come from my race results database, read from the public race pages on 10 November 2026.
- For each race I used the latest edition in my database, and only 2025 or 2026 editions. Of the 165 races, 131 are 2026 editions and 34 are 2025.
- Fields under 300 finishers were dropped (three Ironman 70.3 races), and World Championship races are not included.
- The overall percentages are total women divided by total finishers. The median race is the middle race when all races are lined up by women's share.
- These are finishers, not starters. I can't see athletes who did not start or did not finish, so the share of women who registered may differ.
- I did not compare years. Too few races have two recent editions with 300 or more finishers for a fair trend.
Frequently asked questions
- What percentage of Ironman athletes are women?
- IRONMAN's published 2025 figures put women at 22.5% of all athletes, 17% at Ironman and 25% at Ironman 70.3. In my race results, women are 16.4% of full Ironman finishers and 23.2% of Ironman 70.3 finishers.
- Which Ironman 70.3 has the most women?
- In my data, Ironman 70.3 New Zealand has the highest share, 39.8%, with 416 women among 1,046 finishers in 2026. Ironman 70.3 Oregon is next at 38.2% and has the most women in absolute numbers, 912.
- Which full Ironman has the most women?
- Ironman Ottawa has the highest share in my data, 25.9% (598 of 2,313 finishers in 2026), ahead of Ironman Jacksonville at 24.9% and Ironman Maryland at 24.7%.
- Are there fewer women at full Ironman than at 70.3?
- Yes. In my data women are about 16% of full Ironman finishers and about 23% of Ironman 70.3 finishers. No full-distance race reaches 30%, while 12 of 122 70.3 races do.
Sources
See where you stand
Predict your finish and qualification odds with the race estimator, or compare courses in the race rankings.