SHANNON COATES

Shannon grew up in Boca Raton, Florida and started running competitively at a young age. Following in the footsteps of her marathon-running/high school state champion parents and siblings, she raced successfully as a junior and went on to run for Florida State University. Her eyes were first opened to triathlon when she volunteered at Ironman Florida in 2008; from that day forward she knew she wanted to become an Ironman. Shannon graduated from FSU with a degree in Biology with the intention to apply for Physicians Assistant school and train for long course triathlons. 

Shannon won her age group at her first Ironman in Florida in 2009 and qualified for the World Championships in Kona, Hawaii. She placed 4th in her age group at Kona in 2010 and joined the elite Timex Multisport Team. In 2012, Shannon put her plans for PA school on hold to move to Portland where she is surrounded by beautiful running trails and waterfall-lined biking routes to pursue work with athletic companies like Nike and Vasa, Inc. When she’s not chasing Cymon up enormous hills, Shannon loves to hike and fixing up her house with her fiancé.

Since 2009, Shannon has completed 15 Ironmans and qualified for Kona three times. Meeting the BATWomen breathed new life into her racing and has inspired her to try to earn her Pro card.