Search
shop

IRONMAN 70.3 European Championship Tallinn 2024 results: German ace Pohle repels British star Kat Matthews for a famous victory

Kat Matthews and Solveig Lovseth beaten into second and third as German registers highly impressive victory.
Editor-In-Chief
Last updated -
Get the ultimate guide to destination racing

Caroline Pohle of Germany led from gun to tape to take a highly impressive victory at IRONMAN 70.3 European Championship Tallinn on Sunday.

Pohle came home comfortably clear of pre-race favourite – Britain’s Kat Matthews – with a quite brilliant display across all three disciplines. Norwegian Olympian Solveig Lovseth claimed the final podium spot in third.

Despite the big names in the field, Pohle was alone at the front for the entire day, barring the very early stages of the swim. She built a good advantage in the water and just gradually increased it during the bike and run for a famous success.

Caroline Pohle Kat Matthews IRONMAN 70.3 Tallinn 2024
Caroline Pohle is congratulated by Kat Matthews after winning in Tallinn (Photo – Getty Images for IRONMAN).
Advertisement

Swim – Pohle sets scorching pace

Pohle made a very impressive start to her day in Estonia, setting a scorching pace in the waters of the Baltic as she built a lead of 38 seconds heading into T1. Following her were Spain’s Marta Sanchez and Britain’s Kate Curran.

Sweden’s Lisa Norden was ninth out of the water, just over a minute back from the lead, while Matthews was just five seconds behind Norden in 12th. Next came Denmark’s Maja Stage Nielsen with Canada’s Tamara Jewett 1:21 down in 15th.

Lovseth – a winner recently at IRONMAN 70.3 Warsaw – was 2:02 away from the lead in 17th, with Dutch star Els Visser 2:45 back in 18th. Visser also lost the rear large bottle off her bike in T1, potentially causing her a headache later in the day.

Bike – Pohle punishes rivals

Pohle continued to lead the way in the early stages of the bike leg, and actually increased her advantage to 54 seconds as the field went through 20km. Behind her though, things were starting to evolve.

Second now was Denmark’s Sif Bendix Madsen, with Matthews now up to third at 1:15. Norden was 1:45 back in sixth with France’s Emilie Morier right behind her. Lovseth was up to 12th but still 2:40 away, with Jewett (down 4:15) and Visser (+5:01) both losing significant early ground.

At halfway on the bike leg Pohle continued to set the pace and had slightly increased her advantage to 1:27 over Madsen with Matthews right behind the Dane. Lovseth had now bridged up to fourth but she was still 3:06 behind the leader Pohle. The Norwegian headed a select chase group which also included Morier and Norden.

Through 66km on the bike and the big news was that Pohle’s advantage at the front was not shrinking – in fact it was growing. The German now led Matthews and Bendsen by 2:15 while Lovseth was now at 3:31. Just over 20km to go before T2 beckoned and a fascinating conclusion was already in prospect.

Madsen and Matthews were able to close the gap to Pohle slightly during the final quarter of the bike leg (which was 1 mile long per the IRONMAN broadcast team), but they were still just over two minutes back as the leaders arrived in T2. Lovseth meanwhile had closed to 2:53 with just the 21km run to come. It was game on.

Further down the field and Norden was 5:58 back in sixth while Jewett and Visser were both more than 11 minutes off the lead.

Pohle’s bike split – the fastest of the day – was timed at 2:11:50.

Advertisement

Run – Glory for Germany as Pohle brings it home

Pohle started the run looking both controlled and comfortable, and the first major split at 7km reflected that. She was holding the gap to the now second-placed Matthews at 2:10, with Lovseth now moving into the final podium spot at 2:46. With five minutes to Madsen in fourth, it looked like those three would fill the final podium barring any disasters. But who would top it?

At halfway on the run Pohle was still looking strong, and now increasing her lead over Matthews in second. The gap was now 2:51 at the front, while Lovseth was falling away in third, back to 4:16 away. Barring a Caroline blowup, it was looking like a win for Germany now.

Pohle was relentless at the front while Kat for the moment if anything was struggling by comparison. The gap at the front grew to 3:28 by the 14km mark with Lovseth 5:04 away in third.

Kat was much more fluid over the next 4km as she tried to close the gap, but was still 3:40 down with just 3km remaining and barring an absolute disaster the win looked in the bag for the impressive Pohle.

There was no stopping the brilliant Pohle as she stormed through the final stages to claim a convincing victory. She took the tape in tears after closing an epic performance with a 1:20:17 half-marathon. Matthews, as ever, stuck to the task valiantly to claim silver medal position with Lovseth completing the podium.

IRONMAN 70.3 Tallinn Results

Sunday August 25, 2024 – Tallinn, Estonia

Pro Women

  • 1. Caroline Pohle (GER) – 3:59:40 (25:10/2:11:50/1:20:17)
  • 2. Kat Matthews (GBR) – 4:02:39 (26:20/2:12:46/1:20:55)
  • 3. Solveig Lovseth (NOR) – 4:05:56 (27:12/2:12:44/1:23:23)
  • 4. Grace Thek (AUS) – 4:08:23 (25:54/2:18:55/1:20:42)
  • 5. Kate Curran (GBR) – 4:09:35 (25:49/2:18:44/1:22:28)
Graham Shaw
Written by
Graham Shaw
Graham has been involved with TRI247 & RUN247 since the summer of 2021. Since then he has provided strategic direction for all news and is passionate about the growth of triathlon as a fan sport.
Discover more
TRI247 podcast p/b Challenge Family episode 2
Go behind the scenes at Challenge Roth with the latest episode of the TRI247 podcast
Cadomotus Chronos triathlon cycling shoes
The triathlon cycling shoe that promises a 10-watt saving: Cadomotus Chronos Aero triathlon cycling shoes review
Challenge Family Roth
Five things you need to know about the Challenge Roth bike course
Challenge St. Pölten 2024 - image credit Jose Luis Hourcade / Challenge Family
Expert swim coach on the three most common swim mistakes age group triathletes make (and how to fix them!)
TRI-FIT VANGUARD tri suit review
The entry-level tri suit with a serious amount of performance for the price point – TRI-FIT VANGUARD review
latest News
ironman hamburg 2025 podium laura philipp kat matthews solveig lovseth beer
Challenge Roth 2025: Laura Philipp backed to make triathlon history by crashing through magical time barrier
Challenge Roth press conference 2025
Challenge Roth 2025: Date, start times, how to watch live and who’s racing
Georgia Taylor Brown wins supertri Toulouse 2024
British Olympic legend Georgia Taylor-Brown to make triathlon return
Gwen Jorgensen reflective World Triathlon Cup Vina del Mer 2023
‘Unbreakable’ Gwen Jorgensen ‘bruised’ after bike crash but vows to bounce back
IRONMAN CEO Scott DeRue Women For Tri 2024
IRONMAN announce new age-group qualification system for Kona and 70.3 Worlds
triathlon on your terms
Never miss out with our triathlon alerts & digest. Get a dose of adventure & inspiration with Boundless.
The 247 Group

The home of endurance sports

Share to...