Badmann and Moleda are 2021 IRONMAN Hall of Fame Inductees sports-masters May 7, 2021 Athlete Profiles, Featured, Sports, Triathlon 396 Multi-time IRONMAN World Champion, Natascha Badmann, and pioneer of hand cycling racing, Carlos Moleda, will be honored for their achievements and contributions to IRONMAN and the sport of triathlon this year. A ceremony is planned for race week of the 2021 Supersapiens IRONMAN World Championship, in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. Natascha Badmann In 1998, Natascha Badmann made history by becoming the first European woman to win the IRONMAN World Championship. Badmann would go on to become a six-time IRONMAN World Champion, taking additional titles in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, and 2005. A native of Basel, Switzerland, Badmann has become a legend and icon in the sport. Winning her first IRONMAN World Championship at the age of 29, she went on to become one of only four women in history to win an IRONMAN World Championship title more than three times. She was the first mother to win IRONMAN and she’s inspired many with her smile and love for the sport until today. Retiring from professional racing in 2016 at the age of 50, an astounding 20 years after her first IRONMAN World Championship event in Kona, Badmann produced unforgettable performances time and time again (including clawing back from a 10-minute deficit from Australian Michellie Jones to take her final title in 2005 by nearly two minutes). At that same race, she posted the fastest bike split in the women’s field in 2012 (5:06:07) at the age of 45. Badmann lives in Switzerland with her husband, coach and nutritionist, Toni Hasler. Through her work as a motivational speaker and business coach, she now hopes to inspire and motivate others to become their best. Carlos Moleda Carlos Moleda is a five-time IRONMAN World Champion in the handcycle division and a pioneer for the sport and handcycle racing. Born in São Paulo, Brazil, Moleda moved to the United States at the age of 18 and joined the military, becoming a U.S. Navy SEAL. A Purple Heart recipient, Moleda was injured in the line of duty and was paralyzed in 1989. After an introduction to triathlon, Moleda broke barriers becoming the first handcycle athlete to break 11 hours at the 1998 IRONMAN World Championship. From 1998 to 2000, Moleda’s rivalry and fierce competition with motocross legend David Bailey took the handcycle division at the IRONMAN World Championship in Kona to a whole new level. The epic rivalry, in addition to Carlos’ impressive 10:55 victory in 1998 changed perceptions about what an athlete could do in a handcycle. He would go on to win the handcycle division five times, achieving his first four IRONMAN World Championship titles during the peak of his career, and breaking ground yet again when he came back at the age of 53 to win his fifth in 2015. Carlos is also a seven-time national champion and also won the Buffalo Springs Triathlon (now IRONMAN 70.3 Lubbock) twice. Moleda has helped to develop rules for paratriathlon events, summited Mount Kilimanjaro and completed Race Across America in 8 days, 9 hours on a four-person handcycle relay team. Moleda now serves as a spokesman for the Challenged Athletes Foundation and uses his expertise and motivational skills to teach younger kids with disabilities how to ride handcycles. Founded in 1993, the IRONMAN Hall of Fame was created to honor individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the growth of the world’s most famous triathlon race series. Badmann and Moleda join a prestigious list of remarkable individuals honored for what they have given to the sport of triathlon and IRONMAN both inside and outside of competition.
