An ultra-triathlon covers more distance than an ITU 'long course,' or Ironman™ triathlon. The term generally refers to all triathlon events with a distance that is a multiple of the Ironman Triathlon, which consists of 2.4miles of swimming, 112miles of cycling, and a full marathon (26.2miles) of running.[1] The most common distances are the double, triple, quadruple, quintuple and deca triathlon.[2] Unlike a standard triathlon event, an ultra-triathlon event may not necessarily involve the three component disciplines of triathlon (swimming, cycling and running) in direct consecutive order, but may instead consist of multiple consecutive individual triathlons performed on consecutive days,[3] or may involve disciplines out of the usual order, such as the Enduroman that goes run-swim-bike to allow crossing of the English Channel.[4]
The first ultra-distance race was held as a double in Huntsville, Alabama (USA) in 1985, and since then the distances have been expanding.[5] While 20x and even 30x events have been held, the DECA, or 10x event, either in the 'continuous' version (swim-bike-run), or in the 'one-per-day' version is typically the longest distance that can be found on the race calendar every year.[2] In 2020 and 2022, the swissultra DECA continuous was the IUTA World Championship over that distance.[6] [7]
The IUTA (International Ultra Triathlon Association) is the official governing body of Ultra Triathlon.[8]
| Distances | Swimming | Cycling | Running | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single Ultratriathlon | 3.86km (02.4miles) | 180.25abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 42.2km (26.2miles) | |
| Double Ultratriathlon | 7.6km (04.7miles) | 360km (220miles) | 84.4km (52.4miles) | |
| Triple Ultratriathlon | 11.4km (07.1miles) | 540km (340miles) | 126.6km (78.7miles) | |
| Quadruple Ultratriathlon | 15.2km (09.4miles) | 720km (450miles) | 168.8km (104.9miles) | |
| Quintuple Ultratriathlon | 19km (12miles) | 900km (600miles) | 211km (131miles) | |
| Deca Ultratriathlon | 38km (24miles) | 1800km (1,100miles) | 422km (262miles) | |
| Deca One-Per-Day (10 days) | every day 3.8 km | every day 180 km | every day 42 km | |
| Ultraman 3 days | Day 1 - 10km (6.25mi) | Day 1 - 145km (90mi), Day 2 - 276.1km (172.5 mi) | Day 3 - 84.3km (52.7 mi) | |
| Ultra 355 3 days | Day 1 - 5km (3.1mi) | Day 1 - 120km (75 mi), Day 2 - 180km (112 mi) | Day 3 - 50km (31.25 mi) | |
| Double Deca Ultratriathlon | 76km (47miles) | 3600km (2,200miles) | 844km (524miles) | |
| Triple Deca Ultratriathlon | 114km (71miles) | 5400km (3,400miles) | 1260km (780miles) |
| Distance | Athlete | Time | Place | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single |  Kristian Blummenfelt | 7 h 21 m 12 s | 2021 Cozumel[9] | |
| Double |  Robert Karaś | 18 h 44 m 38 s | 2019 Panevėžys[10] | |
| 3x | Robert Karaś | 30 h 48 m 57 s | 2018 Lensahn[11] | |
| 4x | Søren Højbjerre | 53 h 41 m 00 s | 1993 Szekesfehervar | |
| 5x | Adrian Kostera | 67 h 45 m 51 s | 2022 Colmar | |
| 5x Day |  Rait Ratasepp | 49 h 32 m 49 s | 2022 Buchs | |
| 10x |  Kenneth Vanthuyne | 182 h 43 m 43 s | 2022 Buchs | |
| 10x Day | Rait Ratasepp | 99 h 49 m 47 s | 2024 Vinni | |
| 20x |  Vidmantas Urbonas | 437 h 21 m 40 s | 1998 Monterrey | |
| 20x Day |  Norbert Lüftenegger | 241 h 36 m 45 s | 2019 Buchs | |
| 30x | Dirk Leonhardt | 959 h 03 m 00 s | 2020 Bruchköbel[12] | |
| 30x Day |  Jozsef Rokob | 356 h 33 m 17 s | 2013 Lonato del Garda | |
| Ultraman |  Simon Cochrane | 19 h 48 m 47 s | 2023 Noosa Heads |
| Distance | Athlete | Time | Place | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single |  Anne Haug | 8 h 02 m 38 s | 2024 Roth[13] | |
| Double | | 22 h 55 m 19 s | 2024 Bad Radkersburg | |
| 3x | | 36 h 13 m 55 s | 2024 Lensahn | |
| 4x | Astrid Benöhr | 59 h 15 m 00 s | 1993 Szekesfehervar | |
| 5x | | 84 h 44 m 29 s | 2018 Buchs | |
| 5x Day | 66 h 52 m 22 s | 2018 Buchs | ||
| 10x | Christine Couldrey | 247 h 07 m 21 s | 2018 New Orleans | |
| 10x Day | Alexandra Meixner | 137 h 23 m 43 s | 2022 Buchs | |
| 20x |  Laura Knoblach | 633 h 41 m 39 s | 2019 León[14] | |
| 20x Day | Alexandra Meixner | 279 h 37 min 48 s | 2016 Buchs |