The Guardian (Charlottetown) 31 Dec 2025 JASON SIMMONDS
Jan 4, 2026
Nancy Ripley of Stratford, P.E.I., was named the ADL Co-master’s Athlete of the Year during the 52nd annual Sport P.E.I. Awards in Charlottetown recently. Ripley excelled in Ironman events, which includes swimming, running and cycling.
Nancy Ripley began an impressive sporting career at an age when most athletes have settled into retirement, or are considering a step back.
The 71-year-old resident of Stratford, P.E.I., competed – and posted impressive results – in two full Ironman events in 2025.
As a result of a lot of hard work and dedication, Ripley was recently named co-winner of the ADL Master’s Athlete of the Year award with powerlifter John Macdonald of Charlottetown. A story on Macdonald will appear in an upcoming edition of The Guardian.
“I was very honoured because I know there’s a lot of good, seasoned athletes out there,” said Ripley, who accepted the award during the 52nd annual Sport P.E.I. Awards at Holland College’s Florence Simmons Performance Hall in Charlottetown. “It was an honour to be chosen.”
Ripley is originally from Scotland and previously lived in England and worked on a farm. The family moved to P.E.I. to own its own farm.
BEGAN COMPETING
Ripley started competing in triathlon events 12 or 13 years ago.
“I really hadn’t done much sport before then,” said Ripley. “In my younger days, I rode horses, but then we moved to Canada, and I was very busy with raising children and milking cows on the dairy farm.
“Then I went through a divorce and kind of took up running. Then added biking and then added the swimming.”
In 2025, competing in the 70 to 75 age group, Ripley won gold at a full Ironman event in Ottawa and finished seventh at the world championships in Hawaii.
In those events, Ripley swam 3.8 kilometres, biked 180 kilometres and ran 42.2 kilometres.
“There are a lot of races that are much shorter,” said Ripley, the mother of three children who praised the support of her family. “There’s a half Ironman, which is half those distances. Then we do shorter, much shorter races, that you only swim 750 metres, you bike 20K, and you run 5K.
“That’s where I started, and then I gradually went to the longer distances.”
MULTI-SPORT COMPETITIONS
Ripley said there is a lot to like about competing in multi-sport competitions.
“I find they’re a very friendly group of people that do triathlons,” said Ripley. “Because of the three different sports, it’s very hard to excel in all three.
“You may a good swimmer, but then your running might not be so good …
“Swimming is my poorest thing, but I’m a strong biker and runner. I just have to survive the swim.”
Ripley likes competing in the three disciplines.
“You don’t tire your body out running all the time,” said Ripley. “You go in the pool and have a good workout, but your joints don’t feel as if they’ve been pounding the pavement like you do if you’re training for a marathon.”
Ripley also likes the fact triathlons and Ironman events attract competitors of all ages.
“There are races for kids as young as five right up until my age and older,” said Ripley.
As for the future, Ripley is showing no signs of slowing down. She has signed up for a half-distance race in Spain in October and also plans to compete in local races as well.