Jim Thijs
Encyclopedia
Jim Thijs is a Belgian pro triathlete who may consider himself a top competitor at the Xterra circuit. At the 2010 Xterra World Championships, he finished 10th.
In 1995 Jim raced his first triathlon in Aarschot
. He had a very hard time to finish the 750m in freestyle
, the breaststroke
swimmers exited the water with him. From 1996 he started focusing on triathlon
, leaving the other sports behind him.
In 2003, 2004 and 2005 Jims main goal was doing Ironman
races. He won Ironman Malaysia and Ironman Lanzarote in the 18-24 age group. He qualified for Ironman Hawaii twice. Finishing 87th was his best result.
After 3 years of Ironman training Jim decided to stop practicing triathlon and start doing mountainbiking instead. In his first Xterra races, Jim was able to place himself amongst the best of Europe
. He evolved from a European top level racer to a world class racer, finishing 10th at the 2010 Xterra World Championships in Maui
, Hawaii
.
on mountains, hills and in rivers in stead of racing with a racing bike and running on the road. Xterra triathlon is the name of the series of offroad races around the world.
In 1995 Jim raced his first triathlon in Aarschot
Aarschot
Aarschot is a city and municipality in the province of Flemish Brabant, in Flanders, one of the three regions of Belgium. The municipality comprises the city of Aarschot proper and the towns of Gelrode, Langdorp and Rillaar. On January 1, 2006 Aarschot had a total population of 27,864...
. He had a very hard time to finish the 750m in freestyle
Freestyle swimming
Freestyle is an unregulated swimming style used in swimming competitions according to the rules of FINA. The front crawl stroke is almost universally used during a freestyle race, as this style is generally the fastest...
, the breaststroke
Breaststroke
The breaststroke is a swimming style in which the swimmer is on his or her chest and the torso does not rotate. It is the most popular recreational style due to its stability and the ability to keep the head out of the water a large portion of the time. In most swimming classes, beginners learn...
swimmers exited the water with him. From 1996 he started focusing on triathlon
Triathlon
A triathlon is a multi-sport event involving the completion of three continuous and sequential endurance events. While many variations of the sport exist, triathlon, in its most popular form, involves swimming, cycling, and running in immediate succession over various distances...
, leaving the other sports behind him.
In 2003, 2004 and 2005 Jims main goal was doing Ironman
Ironman Triathlon
An Ironman Triathlon is one of a series of long-distance triathlon races organized by the World Triathlon Corporation consisting of a swim, a bike and a marathon run, raced in that order and without a break...
races. He won Ironman Malaysia and Ironman Lanzarote in the 18-24 age group. He qualified for Ironman Hawaii twice. Finishing 87th was his best result.
After 3 years of Ironman training Jim decided to stop practicing triathlon and start doing mountainbiking instead. In his first Xterra races, Jim was able to place himself amongst the best of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. He evolved from a European top level racer to a world class racer, finishing 10th at the 2010 Xterra World Championships in Maui
Maui
The island of Maui is the second-largest of the Hawaiian Islands at and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is part of the state of Hawaii and is the largest of Maui County's four islands, bigger than Lānai, Kahoolawe, and Molokai. In 2010, Maui had a population of 144,444,...
, Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
.
Xterra
Since a couple of years, Jim chooses to mainly compete in offroad triathlon: like triathlon tere is swimming, biking and running involved but it's mountainbiking and trail runningTrail running
Trail running is a variant on running that differs markedly from road running and track running. Trail running generally takes place on hiking trails, most commonly single track trails, although fire roads are not uncommon. A distinguishing characteristic of the trails is that they are often...
on mountains, hills and in rivers in stead of racing with a racing bike and running on the road. Xterra triathlon is the name of the series of offroad races around the world.
Main results
- 2x National Juniors Duathlon Champion (1998–2000)
- 4th World Championships Junior Duathlon (2000)
- 1st Ironman Malaysia age-group 18-24 (2004)
- 4th (87th overall) Ironman Hawaii age-group 18-24 (2004)
- 1st Ironman Lanzarote age-group 18-24 (2005)
- Ironman Hawaii finisher 2005
- 3 podium results on national Elite Championships
- 13 top 10 finishes in Xterra World Cup races
- 4th Xterra European Championships (2008)
- 13th Xterra World Championships (2008)
- 5 wins in 2008
Results 2010
- 1st off-road duathlon Zolder
- 1st aquatlon Bergen op Zoom
- 2nd Charleroi triathlon
- 2nd Nato triathlon
- 3rd off-road duathlon Putte
- 6th European Championships ITU Cross Triathlon
- 8th European Championships Xterra Italy
- 8th Xterra Portugal
- 10th Xterra Czech
- 12th Belgian Championship mountainbike Elite Malmédy
- 15th Zwintriatlon Knokke (mechanical problems)
- 6th Xterra Switzerland
- 10th World Championships Xterra in Maui, Hawaii