Hayden Wilde’s long-awaited return to WTCS action has once again been placed on hold after the Kiwi superstar pulled out of this weekend’s race at Quiberon in France.
Wilde has yet to appear in the series this season after the opening race in Abu Dhabi was postponed due to the conflict in Iran, and his planned participation in Alghero two weeks ago was scuppered due to illness.
World Triathlon confirmed on Monday that Wilde, who has only raced in one IRONMAN 70.3 and two T100s so far in 2026, had pulled out of Saturday’s event on France’s Atlantic coast as he continues to recover from the debilitating virus that saw him unable to take part in Sardinia.
Far from 100% fit in San Francisco
One of those T100 Triathlon World Tour races did come in San Francisco, only a week after he missed Alghero, but it was clear that despite battling to a gritty podium spot, he was far from 100% fit.
Finishing behind the German pair of Rico Bogen and Lasse Nygaard Priester, he said: “It was a tough day out there, just battling all day. To be fair, full respect to Rico, I think even on a good day, it would have been damn hard to beat him today.
“It’s frustrating because I was in great form getting into the last two weekend races. It is what it is, and it’s just how you bounce back and get into it.
“I wanted to come respect the race, and I knew that if I didn’t turn up, it was going to be hard to defend the title. So honestly, I’m actually pretty happy with the podium. I wasn’t expecting too much, and it puts me in a good position here to get to the Qatar final, and I can’t complain about that.”
He would later add on Instagram that: “The goal for me now is to get healthy and prepare for the next one.”
Busy schedule expected for Wilde
That ‘next one’ was due to be Quiberon, where he was set to go up against the likes of Alex Yee (GBR), Vasco Vilaca (POR) and Miguel Hidalgo (BRA); however, those plans have now been cancelled.
The weekend in western France includes an individual sprint on Saturday and the first World Series Mixed Relay in the LA28 Olympics qualification window the following day. Another big name already confirmed to be missing the race is Australia’s reigning champion, Matt Hauser.
Wilde will now likely need to rejig his schedule for the remainder of the year, especially if he is to continue his pursuit of achieving success in both the WTCS and T100 disciplines while also building on qualification for the Los Angeles Olympics.
His dedication to competing in San Francisco gave a clear indication of the desire he has to defend his T100 title, but having missed so much of the WTCS campaign, it is possible that he will now need to add in a few more short-course events than were initially planned.
Potential race rejig on the cards
The final two men’s T100 races before December’s World Championship Final take place in the French Riviera on September 19 and in Saudi Arabia on a date to be confirmed in November, while the WTCS is next in Hamburg on July 11 before then heading to London, UK, on July 25; Weihai, China, on August 29; and Karlovy Vary, Czechia, on September 13.
If he does still hold ambitions to win the WTCS this season, then he is likely to have to compete in most, if not all, of those remaining events before the Championship Finals in Pontevedra, Spain, on September 27.
