World Triathlon today has announced four inductees for the sixth edition of the Hall of Fame. The induction took place took place at a gala dinner in Pontevedra, Spain, the city that is hosting this week the 2023 World Triathlon Championship Finals. The 2023 Award of Excellence was presented by the Women’s Committee during the same event. World Triathlon President and IOC Member Marisol Casado together with the Mayor of Pontevedra and President of the Organising Committee Mayor Miguel Anxo Fernández Lores opened the formalities in front of hundreds of distinguished guests.
Siri Lindley – World Triathlon Hall of Fame
Presented by: World Triathlon Honourary Member Bill Walker
Inducted based on their extraordinary achievement during the evolution of the sport and World Triathlon
Siri Lindley was a talented sportsperson from a very young age, it wasn’t until after she had graduated from Brown University that she first discovered the sport that she would help define: triathlon. The initial attraction soon became a love affair, and Siri moved to the USA triathlon mecca of Boulder, Colorado, to fully immerse herself in the world of swim-bike-run.
In the year 2000, six years after debuting as an Age Grouper at the 1994 World Championships, the 31-year-old had a breakthrough performance in Tiszaujvaros, Hungary where she finished second to Loretta Harrop. Just one week later, Lindley reached yet another milestone in Lausanne, Switzerland. That victory set in place a remarkable chain of results that meant within a year she was world number one, winning six consecutive World Cup races on route to becoming the 2001 World Champion. At the World Championships in Edmonton, Canada, Siri wore number 60 as she had to enter the race as a wildcard. Although she was last on the start list, Lindley captured the World Championship title with time to spare.
Even with all her success, Lindley was never one to rest on her Laurels. Lindley retained the World Cup series title in 2002, with another dominant season winning 5 golds, 1 silver and a bronze. Lindley secured her last World Cup podium in Hamburg, Germany with a silver medal, and would finish the 2002 season as world number 1. She would race just once more, retiring from competition at the top, so she could pursue her next dream – helping other athletes follow in her footsteps.
From first discovering the sport to reaching its pinnacle, and then giving others the tools to try and do the same, at every step of her journey, Siri Lindley has been an icon and an incredible ambassador for triathlon, earning her rightful place in the World Triathlon Hall of Fame.
Ivan Rana – World Triathlon Hall of Fame
Presented by Olympic medallist and 5-time World Triathlon Champion Javier Gomez Noya
Inducted based on their extraordinary achievement during the evolution of the sport and World Triathlon
The great Ivan Raña was the first male superstar of Spanish triathlon. His achievements inspired the population and paved the way for the likes of Javier Gomez and Mario Mola to help Spain become a triathlon powerhouse.
Raña won the European Championships Junior title in Funchal, followed by a bronze 2 months later at the Junior World Championships in Montreal.
Ivan’s initial taste of top-tier triathlon came while racing as a junior in 1996. The Spaniard struggled for 2 years to find his footing in the sport, but 1999 proved to be the turning point in his career.
Those formative results spurred Raña on and he showcased his talent at the elite level with a debut World Cup podium in Cancun, Mexico. This result helped propel Raña onto the historic Olympic triathlon start line at the Sydney Olympics in 2000, where he finished an exceptional 5th place.
Raña’s first World Cup win came in Ishigaki, Japan in 2001. He claimed silver at that same event one year later in what would prove to be his best year on the ITU circuit.
The highlight was in Cancun where Raña made history and became Spain’s first ever Triathlon World Champion, kick-starting the country’s love affair with the sport. Ever consistent, he followed up with two second-place finishes at the next two World Championships in 2003 and 2004.
His second-place finish at the 2004 World Championships was the only time he didn’t win in Funchal – a streak which included his junior European title and both world cups in 2002 and 2003, making this Portuguese city his most successful event on the circuit.
Ivan Raña was the complete triathlete and enjoyed a long and very enviable career. He continued to race until 2020 and rewarded his loyal fans to many highlights with his incredible talent over that span of 24 years, underlining just how central the sport was to the life of this incredible three-time Olympian and now World Triathlon Hall-of-Famer.
Kiriyo Suzuki – Michel Gignoux award
Presented by World Triathlon Sport Director Gergely Markus
Recognising individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to the sport of triathlon
Japan’s Kiriyo Suzuki was introduced to triathlon back in that momentous year of 1989, just as the sport’s governing body was formed. Numerous races and impressive results later, Kiriyo turned to officiating, seeing it as a logical path to giving back to the sport that had given her so much joy.
Having first officiated at the 1998 Ishigaki World Cup, Kiriyo has been a central part of the Technical Official programme since the sport’s Olympic debut at Sydney 2000.
At that historic event she served as the Assistant Swim Official, a position she also held four years later at Athens 2004. Since that time, Kiriyo-san’s roles have been varied, vital and always with a smile, all reasons why she is one of only two women to have been a part of every Olympic triathlon event on the IF or LOC side to date – most recently at her home Games of Tokyo 2020 – and is now being recognised in the World Triathlon Hall of Fame.
As a member of the Japanese Triathlon Union Executive Board, Kiriyo has continued to serve her sport with the kind of dedication and passion that marks out those for whom this is more than swim-bike-run – it is a way of life.
The Michel Gignoux Award
Michel Gignoux was present in Avignon in 1989 at the founding moment of the International Triathlon Union. With a background in cycling, the Frenchman was involved in the technical aspects of the sport from the early days, becoming ITU Technical Director for Europe and involved in every step of the planning for its Sydney 2000 Olympic debut. Due to be the Technical Delegate for Athens 2004, cancer tragically took Michel from us before the event, but his legacy lives on in the form of this award recognising individuals who have made significant contributions to the sport of triathlon and in the hard work and spirit shared by every World Triathlon Technical Official today.
Loreen Barnett – Lifetime Achievement Award
Presented by World Triathlon President Marisol Casado
The Lifetime Achievement Award for extraordinary, long-term contribution off the field of play and exceptional contribution to World Triathlon and its evolution
Loreen Barnett’s triathlon story spans decades and continents, from the waters of those earliest races to the meeting rooms of its administrative bodies. The Canadian was there at triathlon’s inception and helped guide it through both its toughest times and its enormous successes, shaping the philosophy of inclusion and equality that are, and forever will remain, the sport’s hallmarks.
Starting out in those swashbuckling first swim-bike-run events alongside a mix of adventurous enthusiasts and would-be world champions, Loreen went on to reach the highest echelons of the sport’s administration as Secretary General and then Vice President of triathlon’s world governing body, the then ITU. For three decades she worked with love and dedication for the betterment of triathlon, touching everybody that she has met along the way with her kindness, enthusiasm and firm determination.
‘Firsts’ come naturally to pioneers like Loreen, but without such pioneers, triathlon simply would not be where it is today. She competed in Canada’s first triathlon in 1981, she was a founding member of Triathlon Canada, she helped develop the rules and regulations for the sport’s first Olympic appearance.
Loreen became Secretary General at the XXI Congress, where Marisol Casado was also voted in as president, together underscoring the crucial role that women have played in our sport since day one. Today, she enters the World Triathlon Hall of Fame where her name will forever stand alongside some of the legends that she worked for and with, helping write the opening chapters of our great history.
The 2023 World Triathlon Women’s Committee Award of Excellence award was presented during the World Triathlon Hall of Fame to Saudi Arabia’s Jude Jamjoom for her extraordinary efforts to drive triathlon, gender balance and equality in her region. The World Triathlon Women’s Committee Chair Tomoko Wada presented the Award of Excellence to Jude Jamboom with a heartfelt speech and overview of her achievements.
The XXXVI World Triathlon Congress will take place on Thursday, 21 September followed by the World Triathlon Championship Finals, 23-24 September.
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