Professional Triathletes Organisation logo
Search athlete or raceMagnifying glass
  • Logout

Daniela Bleymehl

Visit Profile
Germany
Weight
64kg
Height
1.75m
Age
36
Born
1988
Swim
Arena
Bike
Canyon
Run
Hoka One One
Biography

Daniela Bleymehl

There can be few more memorable triathlon finishes than the battle between Daniela Bleymehl (then Sämmler) and Lucy Charles-Barclay at Challenge Roth in 2018.

Charles-Barclay had been the overwhelming favourite beforehand. She was unbeaten that year and utterly dominant in the swim, on that day coming out of the water with an advantage of eight minutes over Bieymehl.

But Dani, as she’s also known, produced the fastest bike split to halve the deficit by the start of the run. And she continued to whittle down the advantage, to the point where she moved past her rival at the final turnaround in Büchenbach.

But still, the drama wasn't over as the two were locked together for the closing kilometres heading back to Roth and just nine seconds separated them as they collapsed over the finish line after an epic duel which went the way of Bleymehl.

"You never get a 100% perfect race, but that was pretty close! My whole family was there too, so it was pretty special," she remembers.

As the only German pro on the female startlist and in front of a quarter-of-a-million fans, it was a career-defining day.

The journey to it had all started when Dani took part in her first kids' triathlon aged just 11. Growing up in Heppenheim, just south of Frankfurt, she was competitive from an early age.

"I'd done a lot of swimming from nine years old, but after that first triathlon, it became my big passion straight away."

But it wouldn't be until she was 23, in 2012, that she would take part in her first pro event - 20 months after her son Marlon was born.

Unfinished business at Kona

Daniela was part of the ERDINGER Alkoholfrei junior team and hoping to graduate to the professional squad, but things were put on hold after the birth of her first child.

So in 2012, she tried what she labels an "experiment" of seeing whether she could do triathlon as a pro.

And the answer was clearly in the affirmative as she came home third in her very first long-distance event at Challenge Barcelona and moved to the pro team, where she's been ever since.

She has notched multiple wins at full distance, five at 70.3 and also made the top 10 for the first time at the IRONMAN World Championship in Kona in 2019.

Her maiden IRONMAN victory came at Mallorca in 2015 when she won by seven minutes from Great Britain's Emma-Kate Lidbury - "It was a special day - I couldn't believe it until the last kilometre."

And that meant a first appearance at the World Championships in Kona the following year. It's fair to say that didn't go to plan though.

When asked what's the most pain she's ever been in during a race, she has no hesitation in nominating that day in Hawaii: "I walked the last hour in pain and ended up in hospital with suspected appendicitis after the race. "

But there was no way she was going to quit on her debut on the biggest stage - and she was soon back to winning form in 2017 when she dominated the first-ever edition of IRONMAN Hamburg.

She was first out of the water, easily quickest on the bike and then added a 3:08 marathon to triumph by over 15 minutes.

But even as a two-time IRONMAN winner and after a solid build-up to the race, she was still among the outsiders for Challenge Roth in 2018 as she looked to become the first home female winner since Nicole Leder in 2004.

She was eight minutes behind Charles-Barclay after the swim but stuck to the gameplan, reducing the deficit on the bike to give herself a chance, especially as he running was improving all the time.

The gap was down to 43 seconds after 30km, and the catch came at 40km before an absorbing battle all the way to the line.

It was a thrilling finale and as well as the landmark win, she also broke the German full-distance record.

Dani then capped her most successful season thus far with her fourth full-distance win at Emilia-Romagna in IRONMAN Italy, booking a 2019 slot at Kona in the process.

If 2018 was all about her long-distance wins, 2019 saw her rattle off a string of middle-distance victories - Challenge Salou, Challenge Heilbronn and Challenge Geraardsbergen - as well as an eventful third at The Championship.

Describing herself at that point as "being in the best shape of my life", the focus was then fully on the IRONMAN European Championship, Frankfurt, to see if she could add to her success at Challenge Roth 12 months earlier.

But those plans were derailed as she explains: "Mentally, it was the toughest decision of my career not to finish that race.

"It was my home race, and it was supposed to become a very big day.

"But I had suffered from a gastrointestinal infection the week before the race and felt so weak right from the start. It just didn't make sense to finish."

But the call to DNF after the bike allowed her to turn a negative experience into a positive one as she made a late decision to defend her Challenge Roth title just a week later.

In the circumstances, it was an astonishing performance back at Roth as she took third place (behind Charles-Barclay this time) in a time 26 seconds quicker than the previous year.

Her first IRONMAN-branded 70.3 victory came in Zell Am See in September which meant she headed back to Kona full of confidence. And her second visit to the Big Island was in stark contrast to her first as she cracked the top 10.

Crossing the line in ninth, she admitted she was able to make her "peace" with the event by banishing those painful 2016 memories.

Coming full circle

Performing well at Kona was all the more rewarding for Daniela as it's an event her father was due to take part in in 1988 after qualifying at Age Group level. But she was born that August - and he never made it to the Big Island.

Growing up, she says her parents were her heroes, and now she has a child of her own in Marlon: "I want my children to be proud of their mum and to be sure that they can do and become whatever they want."

Having a family gives her an added dimension alongside the sport, and she's coached herself to provide maximum flexibility with her training.

But that changed at the end of 2019, with Mario Schmidt-Wendling coming on board, and she's looking forward to racing being able to resume: "'Consistency is the key' is what he's been repeating to me in training - and I'm excited to see the results."

Show more
Current PTO World Ranking Points
41
Ironman Hamburg 2024
Bonus +5%
87.34
Ironman Vitoria-Gasteiz 2024
79.19
Ironman 70.3 Western Australia 2024
74.07
Sum / 3
80.20
Ranking History
#1#43#85#127#16920122013201420152016201720182019202020222023*20242012Overall19.91 pts#105Swim27.72 pts#120Bike36.61 pts#143Run21.40 pts#1302013Overall62.87 pts#38Swim65.55 pts#38Bike73.85 pts#59Run53.77 pts#622014Overall61.28 pts#70Swim67.94 pts#59Bike74.59 pts#79Run53.77 pts#1132015Overall61.27 pts#89Swim66.71 pts#91Bike79.10 pts#65Run48.49 pts#1652016Overall67.28 pts#70Swim59.59 pts#139Bike85.26 pts#46Run55.58 pts#1412017Overall81.75 pts#38Swim65.97 pts#106Bike101.80 pts#11Run59.62 pts#1262018Overall92.57 pts#22Swim65.97 pts#103Bike110.94 pts#4Run69.26 pts#872019Overall100.92 pts#12Swim61.15 pts#105Bike113.53 pts#3Run74.36 pts#652020Overall96.97 pts#14Swim61.15 pts#90Bike107.16 pts#6Run73.26 pts#622022Overall90.53 pts#24Swim73.43 pts#107Bike90.50 pts#19Run80.01 pts#592023Overall72.83 pts#54Swim53.14 pts#111Bike82.19 pts#25Run64.22 pts#772024Overall80.20 pts#41Swim62.76 pts#88Bike87.23 pts#20Run66.03 pts#84

* New PTO World Ranking System implemented.

Results

59 Races12
1
9
2
8
3

2024

Points: NaN
Date#TierRaceSwimBikeRunOverallSOFPts
01 Dec
8
GoldIronman 70.3 Western Australia29:472:12:441:25:064:12:35
74.07
85.79
74.07
Swim29:47
Bike2:12:44
Run1:25:06
22 Sep
18
DiamondIronman World Championships - Nice55:275:23:503:20:039:45:19
71.12
93.85
71.12
Swim55:27
Bike5:23:50
Run3:20:03
01 Sep
DNF
GoldIronman 70.3 Zell am See--:----:----:----:--
0
87.24
-
Swim--:--
Bike--:--
Run--:--
14 Jul
4
GoldIronman Vitoria-Gasteiz55:134:30:413:10:308:41:12
79.19
81.75
79.19
Swim55:13
Bike4:30:41
Run3:10:30
29 Jun
9
GoldIronman 70.3 Les Sables D'Olonne24:332:20:101:23:354:14:07
69.7
82.91
69.70
Swim24:33
Bike2:20:10
Run1:23:35
02 Jun
3
GoldIronman Hamburg56:484:20:473:03:248:28:09
83.18
84.07
83.18
Swim56:48
Bike4:20:47
Run3:03:24
21 Apr
DNF
GoldIronman South Africa56:535:02:12--:----:--
0
77.78
-
Swim56:53
Bike5:02:12
Run--:--

2023

Points: NaN
Date#TierRaceSwimBikeRunOverallSOFPts
14 Oct
33
DiamondIronman Hawaii59:434:45:083:38:039:27:42
58.5
93.35
58.50
Swim59:43
Bike4:45:08
Run3:38:03
03 Sep
1
SilverIronman 70.3 Zell am See27:432:21:271:24:214:19:18
77.74
69.85
77.74
Swim27:43
Bike2:21:27
Run1:24:21
26 Aug
5
SilverChallenge Davos28:552:23:481:29:554:25:58
54.02
60.06
54.02
Swim28:55
Bike2:23:48
Run1:29:55
06 Aug
7
GoldIronman 70.3 Tallinn28:122:13:421:26:004:11:01
72.2
85.25
72.20
Swim28:12
Bike2:13:42
Run1:26:00
02 Jul
DNF
GoldIronman Frankfurt1:02:04--:----:----:--
0
78.36
-
Swim1:02:04
Bike--:--
Run--:--
21 May
6
SilverIronman 70.3 Kraichgau28:012:23:231:25:204:20:36
68.56
84.14
68.56
Swim28:01
Bike2:23:23
Run1:25:20
06 May
DNF
DiamondPTO European Open29:532:07:56--:----:--
0
92.23
-
Swim29:53
Bike2:07:56
Run--:--

2022

Points: NaN
Date#TierRaceSwimBikeRunOverallSOFPts
25 Nov
2
SilverIronman Israel1:01:514:37:473:03:298:50:12
75.51
74.83
75.51
Swim1:01:51
Bike4:37:47
Run3:03:29
06 Oct
DNF
DiamondIronman Hawaii--:----:----:----:--
87.07
-
Swim--:--
Bike--:--
Run--:--
26 Jun
1
GoldIronman Frankfurt58:364:46:473:11:589:02:54
75.87
58.59
75.87
Swim58:36
Bike4:46:47
Run3:11:58
29 May
2
SilverIronman 70.3 Kraichgau27:302:28:171:22:404:22:34
63.83
52.36
63.83
Swim27:30
Bike2:28:17
Run1:22:40
22 May
7
GoldChallenge "The Championship" Samorin30:312:17:101:26:334:19:51
65.04
71.69
65.04
Swim30:31
Bike2:17:10
Run1:26:33
03 Apr
1
GoldIronman South Africa9:594:56:233:11:408:22:33
79.22
59.1
79.22
Swim9:59
Bike4:56:23
Run3:11:40
05 Mar
DNF
BronzeIronman 70.3 Dubai--:----:----:----:--
60.73
-
Swim--:--
Bike--:--
Run--:--

2019

Points: NaN
Date#RaceSwimBikeRunOverallAITPts
12 Oct
9
Ironman Hawaii59:064:45:083:19:329:08:30
91.7143
09:01:46
91.71
Swim59:06
Bike4:45:08
Run3:19:32
01 Sep
1
Ironman 70.3 Zell am See27:232:24:021:26:464:23:51
78.6615
04:15:40
78.66
Swim27:23
Bike2:24:02
Run1:26:46
07 Jul
3
Challenge Roth58:034:36:173:06:068:43:17
109.647
08:50:58
109.65
Swim58:03
Bike4:36:17
Run3:06:06
30 Jun
DNF
Ironman Frankfurt--:----:----:----:--
09:18:46
-
Swim--:--
Bike--:--
Run--:--
15 Jun
1
Challenge Geraardsbergen26:572:26:071:23:014:18:30
82.4875
04:11:53
82.49
Swim26:57
Bike2:26:07
Run1:23:01
02 Jun
3
Challenge "The Championship" Samorin29:182:07:161:24:424:07:17
89.5491
04:03:28
89.55
Swim29:18
Bike2:07:16
Run1:24:42
19 May
1
Challenge Heilbronn28:342:18:181:24:364:18:08
77.5301
04:09:43
77.53
Swim28:34
Bike2:18:18
Run1:24:36
07 Apr
2
Challenge Salou29:312:21:011:24:314:18:38
72.9542
04:08:33
72.95
Swim29:31
Bike2:21:01
Run1:24:31

2018

Points: NaN
Date#RaceSwimBikeRunOverallAITPts
22 Sep
1
Ironman Italy57:214:44:003:17:289:05:49
87.6424
08:55:53
87.64
Swim57:21
Bike4:44:00
Run3:17:28
29 Jul
5
Ironman Hamburg22:564:32:124:18:139:18:32
4.60597
08:08:37
4.61
Swim22:56
Bike4:32:12
Run4:18:13
01 Jul
1
Challenge Roth54:434:41:443:04:108:43:42
101.397
08:44:48
101.40
Swim54:43
Bike4:41:44
Run3:04:10
17 Jun
1
Challenge Heilbronn27:302:28:371:22:424:21:43
73.8822
04:11:51
73.88
Swim27:30
Bike2:28:37
Run1:22:42
03 Jun
2
Ironman 70.3 Kraichgau28:442:33:101:25:474:31:15
56.7275
04:14:43
56.73
Swim28:44
Bike2:33:10
Run1:25:47
29 Apr
3
Ironman 70.3 Marbella--:----:----:--4:33:29
57.5176
04:17:06
57.52
Swim--:--
Bike--:--
Run--:--

2017

Points: NaN
Date#RaceSwimBikeRunOverallAITPts
30 Sep
3
Ironman Barcelona52:254:37:563:20:118:55:11
83.5774
08:42:19
83.58
Swim52:25
Bike4:37:56
Run3:20:11
10 Sep
2
Ironman 70.3 Ruegen29:232:14:151:30:454:19:41
61.2929
04:05:26
61.29
Swim29:23
Bike2:14:15
Run1:30:45
03 Sep
2
Challenge Walchsee23:241:52:261:28:593:48:36
49.1525
03:32:24
49.15
Swim23:24
Bike1:52:26
Run1:28:59
13 Aug
1
Ironman Hamburg55:534:55:243:08:539:07:49
88.6757
08:58:40
88.68
Swim55:53
Bike4:55:24
Run3:08:53
18 Jun
1
Challenge Heilbronn--:----:----:--4:34:33
70.5018
04:22:55
70.50
Swim--:--
Bike--:--
Run--:--
21 May
4
Ironman 70.3 Austria30:422:34:131:26:234:37:11
51.401
04:18:21
51.40
Swim30:42
Bike2:34:13
Run1:26:23
22 Apr
6
Challenge Gran Canaria31:122:53:421:26:444:51:38
40.5332
04:27:45
40.53
Swim31:12
Bike2:53:42
Run1:26:44

2016

Points: NaN
Date#RaceSwimBikeRunOverallAITPts
08 Oct
36
Ironman Hawaii58:585:16:164:14:0810:34:26
0
09:10:50
-
Swim58:58
Bike5:16:16
Run4:14:08
11 Sep
2
Ironman 70.3 Ruegen28:022:22:281:30:214:25:09
44.2363
04:04:41
44.24
Swim28:02
Bike2:22:28
Run1:30:21
03 Jul
3
Ironman Frankfurt58:184:56:543:12:479:13:23
73.0083
08:51:51
73.01
Swim58:18
Bike4:56:54
Run3:12:47
18 Jun
2
Ironman 70.3 Luxembourg22:582:31:381:29:204:27:28
0
-
-
Swim22:58
Bike2:31:38
Run1:29:20
07 May
DNF
Ironman 70.3 Mallorca--:----:----:----:--
04:20:59
-
Swim--:--
Bike--:--
Run--:--

2015

Points: NaN
Date#RaceSwimBikeRunOverallAITPts
26 Sep
1
Ironman Mallorca57:295:06:283:14:449:24:48
60.6667
08:53:20
60.67
Swim57:29
Bike5:06:28
Run3:14:44
12 Jul
5
Challenge Roth53:064:55:293:18:129:09:33
68.1602
08:44:30
68.16
Swim53:06
Bike4:55:29
Run3:18:12
25 Apr
5
Challenge Fuerteventura--:----:----:--4:39:48
38.8737
04:16:18
38.87
Swim--:--
Bike--:--
Run--:--

2014

Points: NaN
Date#RaceSwimBikeRunOverallAITPts
05 Oct
DNF
Ironman Barcelona--:----:----:----:--
08:44:15
-
Swim--:--
Bike--:--
Run--:--
14 Sep
DNF
Ironman 70.3 Ruegen--:----:----:----:--
04:06:08
-
Swim--:--
Bike--:--
Run--:--
20 Jul
9
Challenge Roth55:385:01:143:37:319:37:46
47.2013
08:55:22
47.20
Swim55:38
Bike5:01:14
Run3:37:31
25 May
10
Ironman 70.3 Austria29:182:35:491:24:074:33:57
35.4509
04:09:46
35.45
Swim29:18
Bike2:35:49
Run1:24:07
26 Apr
3
Challenge Fuerteventura26:52--:----:--4:36:56
54.9845
04:19:25
54.98
Swim26:52
Bike--:--
Run--:--

2013

Points: NaN
Date#RaceSwimBikeRunOverallAITPts
18 Aug
2
Ironman Copenhagen53:024:57:423:08:149:02:51
65.6723
08:36:16
65.67
Swim53:02
Bike4:57:42
Run3:08:14
07 Jul
9
Ironman Frankfurt51:295:02:373:16:329:14:51
63.1895
08:45:49
63.19
Swim51:29
Bike5:02:37
Run3:16:32

2012

Points: NaN
Date#RaceSwimBikeRunOverallAITPts
30 Sep
3
Challenge Barcelona Full55:584:57:223:16:239:11:55
59.7383
08:40:29
59.74
Swim55:58
Bike4:57:22
Run3:16:23

2009

Points: NaN
Date#RaceSwimBikeRunOverallAITPts
14 Nov
14
Ironman 70.3 World Championship26:162:24:181:31:154:25:49
0
-
-
Swim26:16
Bike2:24:18
Run1:31:15

Ranking per Season

Overall

Year
Points
Pos
2024
80
41
2023
72
54
2022
90
24
2020
96
14
2019
100
12
2018
92
22
2017
81
38
2016
67
70
2015
61
89
2014
61
70
2013
62
38
2012
19
105

Swim

Year
Points
Pos
2024
62
88
2023
53
111
2022
73
107
2020
61
90
2019
61
105
2018
65
103
2017
65
106
2016
59
139
2015
66
91
2014
67
59
2013
65
38
2012
27
120

Bike

Year
Points
Pos
2024
87
20
2023
82
25
2022
90
19
2020
107
6
2019
113
3
2018
110
4
2017
101
11
2016
85
46
2015
79
65
2014
74
79
2013
73
59
2012
36
143

Run

Year
Points
Pos
2024
66
84
2023
64
77
2022
80
59
2020
73
62
2019
74
65
2018
69
87
2017
59
126
2016
55
141
2015
48
165
2014
53
113
2013
53
62
2012
21
130