After ten years at the top of the triathlon world, 37-year-old Daniela Ryf from Solothurn has to capitulate to a coccyx inflammation. Where are her successors?
Daniela Ryf, Ironman legend, last May in Solothurn.
The question of retirement is an uncomfortable companion. It sneaks up and then stubbornly stays by your side. For the first time, it confronted Daniela Ryf last summer when she set a world record in Roth over the Ironman distance: 8:08:21 hours. “At that moment, I thought: ‘Now you have achieved everything you ever dreamed of in sports,'” she said in an interview with NZZ.
But then there was the Ironman World Championship in Hawaii. After that, retirement would have made sense for Ryf. But she didn’t want to say: “Goodbye, I’m off.” She decided to share her farewell with the fans, to celebrate it for a year, just like another triathlon legend, Jan Frodeno, did the previous year.
However, a strong final season did not materialize for Ryf. The coccyx inflammation that had hindered her training since Ironman South Africa in April was not expected to improve significantly. She had to cancel race after race; a week ago, she capitulated, with her coach Brett Sutton and sports doctor Patrik Noack supporting her in the decision-making process. On Monday, she announced her immediate retirement.
It’s only enough for casual jogging now
She will travel to the Ironman World Championship in September in Nice as an ambassador for sponsors; however, her time as a competitor is over. “I feel like an athlete again, but I am far from being in top form,” she said on Monday. Currently, it’s only enough for casual jogging for twenty minutes, three times a week.
So it’s all over for triathlon, after ten years at the top of this sport. Daniela Ryf had surprisingly finished her second Ironman competition, that in 2014 in Hawaii, as second. Then came four consecutive world titles in the Ironman distance (3.8 km swimming, 180 km cycling, 42 km running) between 2015 and 2018. She added a fifth title two years ago in St. George in the U.S. state of Utah. She also triumphed five times at a 70.3 World Championship.
The now 37-year-old from Solothurn was already a very good short-distance triathlete but revealed her true strength in the long format. In her prime years, Ryf toyed with her competitors, especially thanks to her strength on the bike, where she set best times everywhere. She was known for her ability to push through excessively hard training; in races, she completed the distances with almost mechanical precision.
Her physical toughness always resonated with mental strength. At the start of the Ironman Hawaii in 2018, she was stung by a jellyfish, but despite the pain, she pushed through and shattered the course record. She successfully hid from the public that she had previously broken her coccyx.
Despite a jellyfish sting, she achieved the course record: Daniela Ryf at the Ironman World Championship 2018 in Hawaii.
In the years that followed, winning became increasingly difficult for her. The COVID-19 pandemic slowed her progress, and Ryf confronted herself with new questions during the competition-free months: Who am I if I am not an athlete? Where do I want to go? She temporarily parted ways with her coach Brett Sutton, came out as bisexual, and stood publicly for free sexual orientation.
She sought her place in life, with more social contacts, more moments of enjoyment. In the months leading up to a major competition, she admitted to living “a very lonely life.”
But she still wanted a final year with strong performances as an athlete. “I want to be a winner until the end,” she said in another NZZ interview. Now it has turned out differently, the once invincible was slowed down by an injury. “It’s hard to accept that it’s over,” Ryf says in the YouTube video announcing her departure. There, a sportswoman with still toned muscles can be seen, but at the same time, she appears fragile and struggles against tears several times.
The video in which Daniela Ryf explains the reasons for her retirement.
The end of a long era of Swiss Ironman success
And what comes next? The Solothurn native has a Bachelor’s degree in nutritional sciences and several projects that combine fun and sports – for example, “Ride and Wine” or a bike safari. But first, she wants to take a break without any pressure.
After Ryf’s retirement, the Swiss Ironman scene becomes a wasteland. For decades, local athletes have belonged to the world elite in long-distance events. Among the women, there were Natascha Badmann, Karin Thürig, Caroline Steffen, and Daniela Ryf. Among the men, Olivier Bernhard, Christoph Mauch, and Ronnie Schildknecht – all of whom won multiple Ironman races and made it into the top 6 at the World Championship in Hawaii at least once. Additionally, Jan van Berkel won the Ironman Switzerland four times.
The greatest hope for new international merits now rests on Julie Derron. The Olympic silver medalist from Paris is a short-distance triathlete but also feels comfortable on half Ironman distances; she won the Ironman 70.3 in Rapperswil-Jona this early summer and has often hinted that she is also interested in the long format. As the 27-year-old has been coached by the same coach as Daniela Ryf for a long time, there is enough expertise in the environment for a career in long distances.