Baekkegard all in for PTO Tour after qualifying for Kona at Ironman Western Australia

After breaking Alistair Brownlee’s course record at Ironman Western Australia last month, Denmark’s Daniel Baekkegard made a clear statement to the rest of his competition for 2024 – he’s ready for some big things.

That performance, which came a week after he took the win at Challenge Canberra, was impressive enough to ensure voters named Baekkegard the Professional Triathletes Organisation (PTO) Athlete of the Month for December.

“The two race wins obviously gave me a huge confidence boost and now winning the PTO Athlete of the Month also gives me a huge amount of encouragement going into the 2024 season,” Baekkegard said in a text message from a training camp in Lanzarote. “All in all, it’s just a nice way to have the holidays off with the family and enjoy some downtown. Because I know that next year will be extremely busy with a packed calendar where I will only have World Championship caliber races all year round.”

Baekkegard was very happy with his execution of the race in Busselton, which features a flat, fast course.

“It was definitely one of the most learning-ful experiences I’ve had,” he said. “Not only in Ironman races but races in general. One thing is how things went at the race – a well executed all round race. But it was more the way I went into the race. Well prepared, but not overcooked, like I’ve done before. Having good people around me and learning how to perform well without necessarily being in top shape.”

What was with all the records at Ironman Western Australia this year?

Thanks to the win in Australia, Baekkegard can now focus on the PTO Tour in 2024, then key in on an appearance at the Ironman World Championship in Kona.

“My goal is pretty obvious, it’s the PTO Tour,” he said. “It’s a no-brainer and it’s going to be absolutely epic. By the sound of it, it’s the future in races and I can’t wait for it to start. Then, obviously, Kona is a big one for me. Qualifying in Western Australia and getting the slot early was key for me, so I could focus on the PTO calendar in the season. It’s basically a season of World Championship caliber races we’re going to have next season and that’s definitely going to help the sport grow, get more fans and to build the profiles of the athletes and so on.”

Other athletes considered for the Athlete of the Month award included Fenalla Langridge, Solveig Loveseth, Kat Matthews, Kyle Smith and Marten van Riel. Triathlon Magazine is one of the members of the media panel that votes on the award, with fans also voting via social media.