FEATURES

Luke, Rod & Keith are 2025 GMOY Nominees...

Friday, 10 October 2025 00:10

By Clyde

Triathlon is a lifelong sport. Just like how the MMH Committee shouts out our state’s young up-and-comers, we also seek to recognize our state’s more seasoned athletes. On the men’s side, the Grand Master of the Year (GMOY) category highlights 60+ year-old male athletes who are still producing great results. Here are the 3 men that Bonnie and I believe earned a GMOY nomination in 2025:  ...

Luke Harned, 72, St. Paul:
Luke, at 72 years young, races prolifically, which we love to see. This year he won the 70-74 age group title at least 6 times: Tri-ing for a Cure Sprint (WI), Turtleman Sprint, Manitou Sprint, Timberman Sprint, Green Lake Sprint, and Maple Grove Sprint.

Rod Raymond, 60, Duluth:
Rod’s year was like a well-maintained investment portfolio – diversified. He placed 8th and 2nd overall at Northwoods and Shell Lake sprint, respectively. He also raced at Timberman Olympic, placing 16th. Finally, he won his age group at 70.3 Michigan in a time of 4:47:26.

Keith Tufte, 65, Orono:
Keith, like Luke, stuck to sprint-distance racing in 2025. His resume boasted 4 age group wins, all in very solid times: Chisago Sprint, Square Lake Sprint, Turtleman Sprint, and Manitou Sprint where he also placed 3rd overall.

The MMH Committee also gave serious consideration to Jeff Gilmer. We’d also like to recognize Kenneth Downer, who likes to race out of state 70.3s, and we hope to see him race on Minnesota soil more often in 2026.

Top: Luke, Keith, Rod