Ironman Copenhagen 2018: Age Group Results and Kona Qualification

Latest statistics for Ironman Copenhagen

Ironman Copenhagen was the second European Ironman race of the weekend. Copenhagen has a relatively fast course and draws a large field of athletes. It offers the standard 40 age group Kona slots. this year’s race looks to have been typical for the course – trending closely with previous years.

Distribution of Finisher Splits at Ironman Copenhagen 2018 Compared with 2013-2017

This year’s distributions are remarkably similar to the amalgamated results from the previous 5 years. It’s not often the charts so closely mirror each other. There’s likely more variation when you look up close, but overall this year was much the same as previous ones.

DNS and DNF Rates at Ironman Copenhagen
Year
Listed Athletes
Swim Finish
Swim DNS/DNF
Bike Finish
Bike DNF
Run Finish
Run DNF
Overall DNS/DNF
2013
2025
1862
8%
1826
1.9%
1776
2.7%
12.3%
2014
2893
2508
13.3%
2438
2.8%
2370
2.8%
18%
2015
2789
2395
14.1%
2363
1.3%
2258
4.4%
19%
2016
2848
2408
15.4%
2381
1.1%
2265
4.9%
20.5%
2017
2578
2546
1.2%
2509
1.5%
2406
4.1%
6.6%
2018
2379
2378
2330
2%
2246
3.6%
5.5%

The DNF numbers from this year’s race also fall in the middle ground – neither high nor low, and by wider Ironman standards unexceptional.

Median Splits by Age Group at Ironman Copenhagen 2018
Median Splits by Age Group at Ironman Copenhagen 2013-2017

As we look in more detail – at individual age group medians you see the variations. Instances where swim, run or bike are faster or slower. In general the differences are small and the direction of change varies for age groups rather than showing a clear pattern.

Top 10 Nationalities at Ironman Copenhagen
Country
Count
Percentage
Denmark
1082
40.8
United Kingdom
412
15.5
Sweden
195
7.3
Germany
119
4.5
Norway
88
3.3
Spain
65
2.4
United States
59
2.2
Ireland
57
2.1
Belgium
54
2
Japan
45
1.7
Ironman Copenhagen 2018 Predicted Kona Qualifiers by Country
Country
Percentage of Slots
Percentage of Field
Denmark
50.0
40.8
United Kingdom
12.5
15.5
United States
10.0
2.2
Norway
5.0
3.3
Germany
5.0
4.5
Finland
2.5
1.7
Switzerland
2.5
0.7
Greece
2.5
0.4
Sweden
2.5
7.3
France
2.5
1.1
Kazakhstan
2.5
0.6
Belarus
2.5
0.0

Copenhagen draws a broader field of athletes than the nearby Swedish race, with only 40% of racers coming from Denmark. About half the slots remain local with the rest spread to other nationalities.

Changes in Male Finishing Times by Position at Ironman Copenhagen
Changes in Female Finishing Times by Position at Ironman Copenhagen

Tracking times for specific positions within each age group shows how consistent Copenhagen has been over the years. If anything the most variation appears to come with age group winners. Still, these differences are mostly minor.

Ironman Copenhagen 2018 Predicted Kona Qualification Times
Age Group
Slots
Winner
Average Kona Qualifier
Final Qualifier
M18-24
2
09:01:39
09:04:05
09:06:32
M25-29
3
08:46:15
08:50:05
08:55:59
M30-34
3
08:29:08
08:38:12
08:53:12
M35-39
3
08:27:10
08:41:44
08:52:07
M40-44
4
08:47:24
08:54:25
09:00:51
M45-49
4
08:55:24
09:05:54
09:12:27
M50-54
3
09:13:20
09:28:33
09:40:40
M55-59
2
10:08:28
10:11:49
10:15:11
M60-64
1
10:30:44
10:30:44
10:30:44
M65-69
1
11:29:24
11:29:24
11:29:24
M70-74
1
13:20:05
13:20:05
13:20:05
F18-24
1
10:18:29
10:18:29
10:18:29
F25-29
1
10:09:46
10:09:46
10:09:46
F30-34
2
09:36:59
09:45:23
09:53:48
F35-39
2
09:00:00
09:24:17
09:48:35
F40-44
2
09:36:51
09:49:55
10:03:00
F45-49
1
10:09:19
10:09:19
10:09:19
F50-54
1
10:09:11
10:09:11
10:09:11
F55-59
1
12:01:38
12:01:38
12:01:38
F60-64
1
12:45:00
12:45:00
12:45:00
F65-69
1
14:25:00
14:25:00
14:25:00

Based on the start numbers I’ve estimated the slot allocation and from that the likely automatic qualification times at Ironman Copenhagen. Final numbers will vary and roll down will affect the actual qualification times. You can compare this with other races at my Kona qualification page.

Top Twenty Male Performances and Kona Qualification by Age Group at Ironman Copenhagen 2018
Top Twenty Female Performances and Kona Qualification by Age Group at Ironman Copenhagen 2018

When we look more closely at the top twenty within each age group we tend to see times that are average or better for the course. For the very front of the race it appears this was a slightly faster day. For those looking to qualifying this was actually one of the fastest years.

You can access a spreadsheet of the full results from Ironman Copenhagen 2018 on my Google Drive.

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