IRONMAN 70.3 Western Australia results: Sanchez stars and Barnaby overtakes Lange in $200k bonus battle

Spain’s Marta Sanchez and Italian ace Gregory Barnaby claimed terrific wins at IRONMAN 70.3 Western Australia in Busselton on Sunday.

Both of the European stars took the tape on their first visit to the iconic race Down Under, and both capped excellent seasons in the process.

For Barnaby there was an added bonus – quite literally – as the victory took him ahead of IRONMAN World Champion Patrick Lange in the race for that $200k IRONMAN Pro Series bonus. The German superstar had decided after Kona to end his season there in the knowledge it could cost him that massive bonus.

Here are all the details from a superb day of racing in Western Australia.

Pro Women – Marta magnificent

Dutch star Lotte Wilms was first out of the water, less than a second ahead of Kiwi Teresa Adam, with Sanchez just over 20 seconds behind in third. The Spanish athlete quickly closed the gap, hitting the lead within the first 10km and controlling the pace from then on.

Wilms was first off the bike, with Sanchez hot on her heels, before Sanchez retook the lead early on the 21.1km run and didn’t back, extending her lead on the way to the finish line. She claimed the win by just over a minute from Sweden’s Anna Bergsten, with the Australia-based Wilms just behind in third.

“I couldn’t imagine a better race, the target was to qualify for next year’s IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Marbella, my home, so to take the win as well is something beyond words,” said Sanchez.

“It was a very good race for me, I was really focused all of the time, my mind was really into the race, I’ve been racing a lot of IRONMAN distance so this felt quite short, so I just kept that focus until the end.”

Sanchez headed to Western Australia off the back of a number of strong performances, including a sixth at the IRONMAN World Championship in Nice in September and a win at IRONMAN Calella-Barcelona last month.

“This year I don’t have words for it, I’m just really happy and I’m just trying to improve every year and let’s just see how next year goes. This race gives me a lot of confidence, I’ve been training for the last block at altitude in Kenya so this is quite a good result.

“I expected it to be quite hot but for me it was the perfect weather, the water was a bit choppy but I really enjoyed it and then the bike was really fast. I have my Mum here and this week I have been involved with the local community so I heard my name all throughout the run which was a motivation. It was incredible to arrive to the finish line and have my closest friends and family there.”

Marta Sanchez Triathlon IRONMAN 70.3 Western Australia Finish Line — Spanish triathlon star Marta Sanchez wins IRONMAN 70.3 Western Australia in Busselton in 2024 (Photo – Getty Images for IRONMAN).

Pro Men – Barnaby reels in Riddle

Barnaby came out of the water at the back of the leading group of five and stayed at the front of the field throughout the 90km bike leg, returning to transition just behind the leading pack of Robert Kallin (SWE), Kristian Høgenhaug (DEN), Nick Thompson (AUS) and Jamie Riddle (RSA).

Riddle hit the lead early on the run, with the Paris 2024 Olympic Games star opening up an almost one-minute lead before Barnaby reeled him back in and hit the front with about six kilometres remaining. Barnaby extended his lead from there to win by two minutes from Riddle, with American Marc Dubrick completing the podium.

For Barnaby the result was even more important in the context of the new IRONMAN Pro Series, with his 2,500 points moving him into the championship lead with that one race remaining in New Zealand later this month.

Barnaby finished two minutes clear of Riddle, with American Marc Dubrick rounding out the podium.

“Amazing, I can’t quite believe it, it’s my first IRONMAN triathlon win, it feels amazing,” said Barnaby.

“I knew it was going to be a really, really hard day, there were fast swimmers, I tried to stay at the front and on the bike we had Robert Kallin and Kristian Høgenhaug, two of the best IRONMAN cyclists, I knew I had to try and stay at the front.

“That was my goal for today, to stay at the front of the race but to get the win is amazing, it takes a bit of pressure off myself because I needed a really good score, I think that has probably secured my podium position in the IRONMAN Pro Series and now I can just go to Taupo to try and perform at my best like I always do and hopefully have a shot for the win.”

Barnaby has been in Australia since finishing sixth at October’s IRONMAN World Championship in Kona and next heads to the final event in the IRONMAN Pro Series, the VinFast IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Taupó, New Zealand.

“It was amazing, I’ve been here a month, the atmosphere and everything has been amazing, it’s been the best choice for myself to come over here straight after Kona and I think it’s paid off obviously, the crowds were awesome, so was the course and sun came out, it was amazing,” he said.