Participation and performance trends in short-, medium, and long-distance duathlon

Participation and performance trends of male and female athletes have been thoroughly analyzed in various endurance sports. Knowing these trends can help coaches and athletes prepare for competitions and may influence their training strategy and career planning. However, duathlon events—consisted of two splits of running (Run1 and Run2) interspersed by a split of cycling (Bike)—have not been thoroughly studied, unlike other endurance sports. The present study aimed to compare participation and performance trends in duathletes who competed in duathlon races hosted by World Triathlon or affiliated National Federations between 1990 and 2021. A total of 25,130 results of age group finishers who competed in run-bike-run duathlon races of varying distances were analyzed with different general linear models. Races were divided into three distances: short-distance (up to 5.5 km run, 21 km bike, 5 km run), medium-distance (5–10 km run, 30–42 km bike, 7–11 km run) and long-distance (at least 14 km run, 60 km bike, 25 km run). On average, women represented 45.6% of all finishers in short-distance, 39.6% in medium-distance and 24.9% in long-distance duathlon races. Throughout the years, men were consistently faster than women in all three race legs (Run 1, Bike, and Run 2) in all three distances across all age groups, and women could not reduce the performance gap. Concerning the age of peak performance, duathletes of the age group 30–34 finished most often in the top three in short- and medium-distance duathlons, whereas male duathletes of the age group 25–29 and female duathletes of the age group 30–34 finished most often in the top three in long-distance duathlons. Women participated less, especially in longer distances, and were constantly slower than men. Duathletes of the age group 30–34 finished most often in the top three. Future studies should analyze participation and performance trends in further subgroups (e.g., elite athletes) and pacing behaviours.