Eligibility Requirements
All team members must meet the following eligibility requirements:
The athlete plans to compete in a qualifying event for the Boston Marathon, Ironman World Championship, or Ironman 70.3 World Championship between January 1, 2024 and December 31, 2024*
Diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes
Beyond these requirements, athletes will be accepted to the team if they demonstrate in their application that they have the experience to qualify. Whether an athlete is ready to race at this level is subjective and we are inclined to admit anyone who believes that qualification is in reach for them. However, we have also provided the qualifying standards below for the Boston Marathon, Ironman World Championship, and Ironman 70.3 World Championship. We request athletes review the standards prior to applying. In general, intermediate to advanced athletes are unlikely to improve their paces by more than 10% in a single year.
*A limited number of athletes may be accepted who raced a qualifying event in fall/winter 2023
Boston Marathon: Qualification Assessment
To qualify for the Boston marathon, a runner must run a marathon at or below the qualifying time for his or her age group. The table below shows the qualifying times by age group for the 2025 Boston marathon. To qualify for 2025, a runner must have qualified in a qualifying race between September 1, 2023 and September 15, 2024. Runners wishing to qualify for the 2025 Boston marathon should target a qualifying race before mid-September 2024. The 2024 DSP Elite Team will have runners training to qualify for both the 2025 and 2026 Boston Marathon.
Men
| Age Group | Maximum Marathon Time | Average Pace (minutes per mile) |
|---|---|---|
| 18-34 | 3hrs 00min | 6:52 |
| 35-39 | 3hrs 05min | 7:04 |
| 40-44 | 3hrs 10min | 7:15 |
| 45-49 | 3hrs 20min | 7:37 |
Women or Non-Binary
| Age Group | Maximum Marathon Time | Average Pace (minutes per mile) |
|---|---|---|
| 18-34 | 3hrs 30min | 8:00 |
| 35-39 | 3hrs 35min | 8:12 |
| 40-44 | 3hrs 40min | 8:23 |
| 45-49 | 3hrs 50min | 8:46 |
Note that qualification does not guarantee being able to run in the marathon. A time below the qualification standard is required if more people apply than there are slots available.
Marathon runners who can reach the Boston qualification standard are in the top 4-9% of marathon runners (varies depending on the age group).
Ironman World Championship: Qualification Assessment
There are two Ironman World Championship races, one for women and one for men. The 2024 women’s race will be held in Nice, France and the 2024 men’s race will be held in Hawaii, USA. Every Ironman race offers a fixed number of slots for the Ironman World Championships. Those slots are allocated to each age group based on the size of the age group. (Larger groups with more people competing will have more slots.) The number of slots at different races varies greatly. At some races, athletes may have to place first or second in their age group to automatically earn a slot. At other races, the slot can can go down to 10th place.
Further complicating the qualification process, if a competitor declines a slot to register for the World Championship, the slot will “roll down” to the next place. For example, if the third place person does not claim their slot, the fourth place competitor can take it.
To determine if you are in the close to qualification, take a look at the number of slots available at different races and then look at times for previous years to see if you could feasibly place well enough to earn a slot. You can view the slots for each race here. Note that for this year only, women can qualify for the Ironman World Championship by placing in the top five at certain 70.3 races.
Qualification for men for the 2024 Ironman World Championship will be more difficult than in prior years. We will accept applications from elite men who cannot make the 2024 standards, but will likely qualify for the 2025 World Championship.
Generally women’s times under 11.5 hours, and men’s times under 10.5 hours, will be within the top 10% of the age group, depending on the elevation gain of the course.
Ironman 70.3 World Championship: Qualification Assessment
The Ironman 70.3 World Championship in 2024 will be held in Taupo, New Zealand. The qualification process is the same as the process for the Ironman World Championship. Every Ironman 70.3 race offers a fixed number of slots for the 70.3 World Championship. Those slots are allocated to each age group based on the size of the age group. (Larger groups with more people competing will have more slots.) The number of slots at different races varies greatly. At some races, athletes may have to place first or second in their age group to automatically earn a slot. At other races, the slot can go down to 10th place.
Further complicating things, if a competitor declines a slot to register for the World Championship, the slot will “roll down” to the next place. For example, if the third place person does not claim their slot, the fourth place competitor can take it.
To determine if you are in the ballpark for qualification, take a look at the number of slots available at different races and then look at times for previous years to see if you could feasibly place well enough to earn a slot. You can view the slots for each race here.
In general, total times under five hours are considered elite for both men and women at the 70.3 distance, with elite men having times closer to four hours.