Taylor Knibb has revealed the astonishing numbers behind the bike masterclass which propelled her to a fourth IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship title in Nice.

The American averaged 303 watts for around 30 minutes on the long ascent of the Col de Vence as she demolished a world-class field and reclaimed the crown in a course-record time of 4:19:24.

Knibb had emerged from the non-wetsuit swim alongside the leaders before moving clear early on the bike and turning the race into a procession.

She began the run with a lead of almost five minutes and remained untouchable despite an extraordinary 1:13:04 half marathon from Olympic silver medallist Julie Derron, who finished second. Alanis Siffert completed the podium.

Knibb reveals incredible power numbers

Asked by Mirinda Carfrae afterwards on the live broadcast for her power output on the decisive climb, Knibb replied: “303 watts – you asked me to say that!”

And to give that some context, it equates to around 5.1 W/kg which would is world class anyway in pure elite cycling terms. But coming after a 26-minute swim and a frantic opening to the bike leg makes it mind-blowing.

Knibb explainied: “The swim, everyone was kind of fighting and I never found a rhythm. Then the bike was mayhem at the start before it opened up. The climbs were great, I loved them.”

Knibb initially had company from Challenge Roth winner Siffert, but began putting significant time into the Swiss star inside the opening 20km.

Her advantage stood at 2:11 as the race reached the foot of the Col de Vence – and then grew dramatically as Knibb produced the defining effort of the day.

There was a minor complication when the person entrusted with supplying her time gaps failed to appear at the top of the climb.

“My manager was supposed to be at the top of the climb,” she revealed. “But he never made it!”

Fortunately, Knibb did receive the information she needed before beginning the long descent towards Nice.

“Ben Reszel was my saviour out there today,” she added.

“He was right there at the final little kicker before the descent. He was out there with a whiteboard giving splits.

“Ben’s not my coach – he’s friends with my coach – so thank you, Ben, because that was great to see 6:01.”

Knibb passes biggest Nice test

Knibb had openly admitted before the race that the technical descent concerned her more than the long climb.

Yet that section proved far less troublesome than she had feared and the two-time US national time trial champion arrived back in Nice with her substantial advantage intact.

“I didn’t lose as much time on the descent as I thought I would – I actually think I had a good descent and they were actually fun, I felt great coming back in and was like, ok good you didn’t over cook yourself.” said Knibb.

Knibb looked comfortable during the opening stages of the run and was still producing the second-fastest split in the field behind Derron.

But while her victory appeared assured from the outside, Knibb admitted the closing kilometres had become significantly more difficult.

“On the run I felt great – and then I did not feel great, and I was like, ooh, you gotta just like make it in safe.

“I think it just got hot, running under the hills it was actually cooler, the last 10k got really hot, the run was a slog, definitely the last 10k and I made it to the finish line this time,” she added, in reference to what happened at Kona last year.

Knibb ultimately ran 1:17:56 to win by 4:06 and lower Daniela Ryf’s previous Nice course record by three minutes and 40 seconds.

Ryf comparisons quickly dismissed

The victory moved Knibb to four IRONMAN 70.3 world titles, following her three successive triumphs in 2022, 2023 and 2024.

Only five-time champion Ryf has now won the crown more often, but Knibb immediately played down any attempt to compare their records.

Asked whether matching or surpassing the Swiss great had become a target, she replied: “Daniela also won Kona five times so not even in the same ballpark.”

It was a typically measured response, but Knibb’s performance inevitably strengthens the argument that she is already establishing herself among the greatest middle-distance athletes the sport has seen.

She has now contested six successive IRONMAN 70.3 World Championships, winning four, finishing second once and third once.

From Nice to Montreal – and then Kona

There is little time for Knibb to celebrate.

She will switch sports next weekend when she represents the United States in the individual time trial at the UCI Road World Championships in Montreal.

Knibb competed in both triathlon and cycling at the Paris Olympics and remains motivated by the prospect of again earning Olympic selection in the time trial at Los Angeles 2028.

That helps explain why the formidable bike course in Nice held particular appeal – and why her performance on the Col de Vence was so encouraging.

“Hopefully it’s a good opener for next weekend in Montreal,” she agreed.

Her immediate priority was altogether more practical.

“I just need to get my disc wheels to Montreal,” she joked. “That’s my goal now.”

After Canada, attention will switch back to triathlon and the IRONMAN World Championship in Kona four weeks later.

Knibb’s challenge in Hawaii ended in painful fashion last year when her race unravelled during the closing stages of the marathon and she was unable to reach the finish.

This commanding victory over many of her principal Kona rivals will not erase that experience, nor answer all the questions posed by the full distance.

But a front-pack swim, a devastating bike performance and a controlled 1:17 half marathon represent emphatic evidence that Knibb is approaching the biggest race of the season in formidable shape.

She added: “This one is very special and I am just very grateful. Once you feel the other side, you just have a lot more gratitude because I can tell you for New Zealand for my third, I was not a happy camper and I was not happy with my race and I think that version of Taylor would have been very p****d on this race because of the last 7-8k of the run.

“But at the end of the day, I did what I needed to do and so I need to be grateful for that and excited for what’s to come.”