Is it for Me?   Can I do It?

Business Owners, CEOs, Presidents, and C-Level Executives (CXO) benefit immensely from spending time with peers.  Running a company is not only stressful, but can be lonely as well.   As the leader, there is often no one to confide with on personal issues, problems with employees, or ideas on where to take the company.

CEO Challenges offers CEOs the opportunity, outside of a business environment, to meet, mingle, and compete alongside fellow Business Owners and CEOs in your favorite sport.   Competing is all about taking risks, and pushing yourself to your limits - things that CEOs demonstrate on a daily basis, and many had experienced on the sports field 'back in the day'.  To ensure we capture the essence of competition, all our events name a winner, and awards are presented to the top CEO finishers.

But you do not have to be an uber athlete to take part.   In fact, the CEOs that seem to enjoy our events the most are the 'back of the packers', who benefit greatly from the helpful advice, continuous support, and camaraderie of the program.  While the 'big dogs' are duking it out up front, these CEOs are enjoying the experience of testing their limits, while appreciating how incredibly beneficial being fit is for themselves, their families, and their company.

We also understand how difficult it is for participants to focus on an event while also worrying about their family.   For this reason, we spend an inordinate amount of time and energy on making sure the family of each CEO Challenge participant is looked after, enjoying themselves, and in the 'right place at the right time' to see their significant other as many times as possible on race day.

If you are a Business Owner, CEO, President or C-suite Executive who will appreciate meeting industry peers that share your desire for fitness and health, then CEO Challenges is for you.   Your family will (quite often for the first time) enjoy coming with you to watch you compete, you will meet fellow CEOs that may be able to help grow your business and, over a three or four-day period, you will intimately get to know people that share your passions, values, struggles, and aspirations.

Below is a video that aired on CNBC about a CEO Challenge event we hosted at the St. Anthony's Triathlon.   See for yourself what the CEOs have to say about their experience at the event.

To see what a CEO Challenge event is like, feel free to watch this short video:

Background on the Company

CEO Challenges is the world leader in sport competitions designed specifically for CEOs, with the goal of allowing Business Owners and CEOs the opportunity to meet peers that share their sports passion, and to ultimately find the world's best CEO in several sports.

Our first event was the CEO Ironman Challenge in Lake Placid, NY in 2001, and the company was founded by Ted Kennedy in May, 2005 in Boulder, CO.    CEO Challenges has now expanded to include CEO Triathlon, Cycling, AVP, Running, Fitness, and Skiing Challenges in spectacular settings all over the World.

CEOs in their own words

“One of the great experiences of my life thanks to CEO Challenge - truly a great job and I suspect this group is not that easy to impress.”

“The CEO Challenge surpassed my expectations in so many ways, including receiving first class treatment for my friends and family and increasing the visibility of my business!  I have been lucky to develop some business from contacts made via the CEO Challenge!  Ted paves the way for an amazing experience”

“Simply put, you folks are a class act. Your hard work, compassion, light-hearted attitude and friendly spirit made for the experience of a lifetime!”

“Words truly cannot explain this awesome experience”

“The event itself was fantastic, and the organization was flawless”

 “Thanks again for your wonderful hospitality. It was a truly memorable experience. The entire event was exceptionally well run”

"Joining the CEO Challenge makes the event all the more exciting.  I get to talk to like minded CEOs and senior executives who chat about the latest super brick and LSRs they did as opposed to the latest share price and new deals.  For once, numbers mean different things - 30 means a 30km run rather than 30 cents up on the share price.   Of course, most would hope for both.  You really can't ask for better camarederie.

Teo Ser Luck , Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports - Republic of Singapore

Our CEO Competitors...

• The total revenue combined = $1.2 Trillion
• The total employees = 740,000
• The average company size = $3.6 Billion
• The average number of employees per company = 2,400
• The predominant (median) co. size = $20 Million and 67 employees
• 44% of competitors have done more than one CEO Challenge event, and many have done 5 or more!
• Company Titles - 33% are CEOs, 25% Presidents, 15% Owners, 14% C-Suite Executives, 7% Partners, and 6% Managing Directors

What does a CEO Challenge Event Include?

• An actual competition between CEOs, with a winner declared in each age group (if relevant), and overall
• Top finishers gain access to a ‘World CEO Championship’ where they have the opportunity to compete against qualifiers from other events for the title of World CEO Champion
• Exclusive ‘meet and greet’ opportunities with top Pros / Coaches / Personalities / Insiders in the Sport
• Wonderful VIP opportunities for the CEO and their guests, and one price covers all expenses
• A portion of the entry fee is donated to charity (Challenged Athletes Foundation).
• Official uniforms and apparel
• Networking receptions, dinners, business sessions and an Awards Banquet
• Biography on the CEO and their company will be posted on this web site (5,000 visitors per month), and in a published program circulated at the event
• Awards to the winning CEOs in each category
• Five-star accommodations, where available
• First-class service, incredible attention to detail, and constant care from the CEO Challenges staff

In the News

“You’re standing on a beach.  Ahead of you lies a grueling 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike race and full marathon.   It’s hot, your heart’s pumping and you’re wearing a rubber suit.  And you thought running a company was difficult.  Welcome to the world of CEO Challenges.”

• Business Management Magazine - Survival of the Fittest, February ‘08 

“Kennedy’s company, CEO Challenges, enables some of the most competitive people on earth to prove themselves outside of the business arena.”

• Forbes Small Business Magazine - The Iron Man, February ‘09

“There’s even a growing business in catering to gung-ho execs. CEO Challenges, a Boulder, Colo., firm organizes sports events for C-level managers.”

• The Wall Street Journal - Masters of All Universes, September '06

“Karbe will be among 18 high-level executives whose path to Hawaii began by signing up with CEO Challenge LLC in Boulder, Colo.”

• Business Week - And Now, the Chief Endurance Officer,  Oct '05

  “The brainchild of former Ironman North America Executive and marketing whiz Ted Kennedy, the CEO Challenge takes the form of a grueling set of qualifying races.”

• Business Management Magazine - Survival of the Fittest,  February '08

“For a group of road-hardened examples, look to the competitors in the CEO Challenge, a program for CEOs competing in Ironman triathlons…At stake: the title “World’s Fittest CEO”.

• Men’s Health,- The Aristocrat of Cardio,  Oct '05

“Running has so infiltrated the corner office, in fact, that a CEO Marathon Challenge is in the works. (It is) the brainchild of Colorado promoter Ted Kennedy, who already organizes the CEO Ironman Challenge…”

• Runner’s World- Great CEOs, Nov '05

About Ted Kennedy

Kennedy is often regarded as the world expert in CEOs that compete in endurance events, particularly Ironman.  His background includes 20 years as a sales & marketing executive with Quaker Oats and Best Foods, and six years as VP of Sales & Marketing for Ironman North America. He was one of the original four people that started Ironman North America in 1999, and was successful in bringing companies such as Janus, Kellogg’s, HSBC and Ford into the sport.