Kiwi superstar Hayden Wilde finally secured his first IRONMAN title after a brilliant all-round performance in Nice was just good enough to hold off an incredible challenge from Norwegian Kristian Blummenfelt.
Making his move on the bike and then powering away in the half marathon, the New Zealander earned redemption after coming so close to victory in this race two years ago when Jelle Geens pipped him in the final three kilometres.
The Belgian, who was going for a record three titles in a row here in Nice, had briefly threatened a repeat of Taupō 2024, as he made his way up through the pack with his own blistering run, but it was Blummenfelt who posed the biggest threat to his victory – despite coming off the bike in 16th place and being more than two-and-a-half minutes behind.
Entering what is now regarded as his familiar ‘beastmode’, Big Blue ran an incredible 01:05:12 in the half marathon as he pounded along the Promenade des Anglais with an incredible show of running speed and power. But it wasn’t quite good enough, as he crossed the line 18 seconds behind the winner to make it another agonising second place in a row after losing out to Geens last year.
Swim – Rider leads front group of 27 out of the water
Two distinct groups formed in the swim, with a lead pack of around 30 athletes edging out into the Baie des Anges on a still, calm morning.
Hayden Wilde looked to have been squeezed out on the start line, struggling to find a place in the front line, but he did not let that hinder him too much as he made sure he was in that front group.
With so many strong swimmers in the field, it was always going to be difficult for someone to make a breakaway, and as they packed together at the turns, there was plenty of fighting for position in what is supposed to be a non-contact sport.
The likes of Cedric Osterholt (GER), Michele Bortolamedi (ITA), Ben Faeh (SUI), Lasse Nygaard Priester (GER) and Josh Ferris (AUS) were swapping turns at the front, while South African Jamie Riddle, Sam Dickinson (GBR) and Seth Rider (USA) moved their way into the main players of the leading group.
Of the pre-race favourites, Kristian Blummenfelt (NOR) had been able to just about cling on to the leaders, which also included Jelle Geens (BEL), Marten Van Riel (BEL), Jonas Schomburg (GER), Rico Bogen (GER), Casper Stornes (NOR) and Wilde.
As they exited the water, it was Rider who took to the shore first with a time of 23:28, but he was certainly not alone, as Bortolamedi, Dickinson, Riddle, Van Riel and Schomburg led out the 27-strong lead pack.
An extremely busy T1 saw Morgan Pearson (USA) make good time and push his way into third, but it was Bortolamedi who settled into his saddle first and set off on the narrow bike course opening along the Nice seafront.
One athlete who was not part of the front pack, however, was former champion Gustav Iden (NOR), who came out of the water back in 29th with a time of 24:40 and would start the bike section at +1:17 to the leader.
With such a tricky bike course ahead, he knew he would need a fast start on the pedals if he was going to position himself into a place where he could remain in contention for even a podium finish.
Bike – Wilde makes his move as Iden sets new record
Bortolamedi set off at a decent pace on the bike as the packed front group gingerly made their way out of the coastal city on the relatively narrow road section.
With only 33 seconds separating the first 27 athletes, it was a case of jostling for position as they prepared themselves for the main event of the bike course – the 9.7km climb and subsequent 11km technical descent of the Col de Vence.
Iden started the bike leg back in 29th position but was soon making up both time and distance on the leaders; by the 23km mark, he had joined his fellow Norwegian Blummenfelt at just over a minute back as they sat in 16th and 17th.
They would start the Col de Vence climb together, but the average gradient of 6.6% – with sections that reach 12% – proved too much for Big Blue, and he dropped off the pace.
Indeed, while Iden continued to make his way through the pack and join the top ten riders, Blummenfelt stayed in 17th and dropped to more than two minutes adrift of the front runners, which, by now, also included Bogen, Nygaard Priester, Josh Ferris (AUS) and Riddle up alongside Bortolamedi.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, however, the big mover was the Kiwi ‘Falcon’ Wilde, who, despite starting the bike leg in 20th position, reached the all-important summit town of Coursegoules only 14 seconds back in sixth and was perfectly placed to attack on the descent.
Just as important as the climb, the descent offers great rewards for riders with the bravery and skill to maintain speed down the fierce 11km section – and as they made their way through the twisty terrain, it was Wilde, Bogen, Bortolamedi, Nygaard Priester and Ferris who led the way.
Still very much in contention at the 70km mark were Riddle (+00:22), Stornes (+00:45), Iden (+00:45), Geens (+00:47), and Schomburg (+00:49), closely followed by Rider and Dickinson.
Blummenfelt was back in 17th place and still at +2:00 against the leader, knowing he would need something special on the run to give him any chance of victory.
While Riddle lost valuable time and position due to a mechanical issue on his TT handlebars, Iden continued to make the most of his incredible downhill ride and was only 30 seconds back in sixth as the riders made their way back toward the Mediterranean Sea.
There was, however, a late burst of pace from Bortolamedi as he regained the lead and entered T2 ahead of the pack, with Wilde coming in just 11 seconds back, Bogen at +00:16, Nygaard Priester at +00:17 and Ferris in fifth at just +00:21.
That push from the Italian meant that Iden’s gap to the front had grown to +00:54 as he came back in sixth place with a new bike record of 2:16:43, beating the previous best of 2:17:24 set by Rudy Von Berg (USA) in 2019.
The Norwegian was followed by Dickinson (+00:58), Stornes (+00:59), Riddle (+1:00) and Schomburg (+1:02), making up the top ten.
Geens was in 12th (+01:55), and Blummenfelt entered T2 in 16th place, almost two-and-a-half minutes behind the leaders – both were going to need something very special indeed if they were to have any say on the outcome of this enthralling race.
Run – Wilde holds off incredible pace of Blummenfelt
As temperatures in the south of France started to climb, so did the drama, with a crucial half-marathon setting off with Wilde immediately catching up with and overhauling Bortolamendi.
But the New Zealander was not alone in his push to the front, as Nygaard Priester followed him step for step – and even offered some pacing advice as Wilde had dropped his watch in transition and was racing blind.
If Geens and Blummenfelt were to have any hope of making up time and challenging the front two, then they were going to need an extremely fast start – but nothing could have prepared the rest of the pack for the blistering pace the duo delivered.
Blummenfelt sprinted the first kilometre in 02:32 and continued at an average pace of 03:06 as he powered his way through the field, while Geens too opened up with a 02:48 and continued at an average of 03:10 as he too ate up the space between him and Wilde.
By the time they hit the 10km mark, Blummenfelt (+1:12) had climbed up to fifth, and Geens (+00:47) was in third, with Iden (+1:10) fourth and Stornes (+1:32) sixth.
Priester was unable to maintain Wilde’s pace and was the first to fall away, but pace was certainly not the issue for Blummenfelt and Geens as they powered their way past the German and into a podium battle which had a very familiar look to it.
Back at the start of the season, it had been Wilde, Geens and Blummenfelt in a straight shoot-out for glory at the 70.3 Geelong, and once again these three greats of triathlon were ready to battle it out in the final kilometres of the world championships.
Geens was unable to keep his pace, and no sooner had he taken Priester than he himself was passed by the imperious figure of Blummenfelt, who was still driving on, cap turned backwards, and hunting down his Kiwi target.
At Geelong, Wilde cracked and was passed by both Geens and Big Blue as the Norwegian took the tape… but the New Zealander is in much better form and physical shape at this, the business end of the season, and he dug deep to hold his rival at bay.
With only 3km remaining, Blummenfelt was 30 seconds back and closing, but he had simply left himself with way too much to do. His new course record time of 1:05:12 was remarkable, but it wasn’t quite enough as Wilde held on.
Geens, who was chasing his record third win on the bounce, came in third, with Iden fourth and Priester fifth.
IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship men’s results
(Swim: 1.9km – Bike: 90km – Run: 21.1km)
| Position | Athlete | Nationality | Swim | Bike | Run | Total time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hayden Wilde | NZL | 00:23:44 | 02:16:50 | 01:07:21 | 03:50:51 |
| 2 | Kristian Blummenfelt | NOR | 00:23:50 | 02:19:02 | 01:05:12 | 03:51:09 |
| 3 | Jelle Geens | BEL | 00:23:39 | 02:18:51 | 01:07:12 | 03:52:40 |
| 4 | Gustav Iden | NOR | 00:24:40 | 02:16:43 | 01:08:51 | 03:53:16 |
| 5 | Lasse Nygaard Priester | GER | 00:23:41 | 02:17:13 | 01:10:22 | 03:54:08 |
| 6 | Casper Stornes | NOR | 00:23:44 | 02:17:34 | 01:09:43 | 03:54:23 |
| 7 | Jamie Riddle | RSA | 00:23:32 | 02:17:50 | 01:10:11 | 03:54:44 |
| 8 | Jonas Schomburg | GER | 00:23:34 | 02:17:59 | 01:10:54 | 03:55:23 |
| 9 | Sam Dickinson | GBR | 00:23:31 | 02:17:48 | 01:11:08 | 03:55:40 |
| 10 | Michele Bortolamedi | ITA | 00:23:30 | 02:17:06 | 01:12:28 | 03:55:51 |
