Hamburg is a city steeped in triathlon folklore and it could witness history on Sunday with the first sub-eight hours time in a women’s full-distance race.

That mark was under threat for a while last year when Laura Philipp, Kat Matthews and Solveig Løvseth pushed each other all the way, with Philipp stopping the clock in 8:03:13 as torrential rain drenched everyone in the closing stages.

And similar strength in depth is on show this year as Philipp and reigning IRONMAN World Champion Løvseth both return along with a host of other big names.

And make no mistake, despite the long transitions, this is a fast course and the weather also looks set fair with the temperatures predicted to be between 13 degrees Celsius at the start to 19 degrees when the race finishes, with just the chance of light showers and possibly a gentle breeze.

No fewer than six Kona spots are up for grabs in what is the women’s IRONMAN European Championship – there is no pro men’s race, with the equivalent taking place at IRONMAN Frankfurt later this month.

Start times and how to watch live

IRONMAN Hamburg will take place on Sunday 7 June. The professional race begins at 06:15 local time (which is CEST), which corresponds to 05:15 in the UK, 00:15 on the East Coast and 21:15 on the West Coast on Saturday May 31. 

This event is the third full-distance IRONMAN triathlon in the Pro Series and the first to feature a women-only pro field.

The race will be broadcast live and nearer the time we’ll embed the YouTube stream below so you don’t need to leave this page.

Pro Women

Top of the start list in bibs #1 and #2 are the last two IRONMAN World Champions.

Laura Philipp, the 2024 winner, is a two-time victor in Hamburg – last year in that course record time and also in 2022.

She had a delayed start to this season after being in hospital because of stomach and back pain but she returned at IRONMAN 70.3 Aix-en-Provence three weeks ago and was happy enough with her third place there given the circumstances.

There’s an argument that the favourite on Sunday is actually Solveig Løvseth who has had a pretty much perfect run at full-distance ever since her third here last year, which was the fastest ever women’s IRONMAN debut.

She went on to triumph at IRONMAN Lake Placid before that famous Kona success (where Philipp was third) and in April this year she beat a star-studded field at IRONMAN Texas.

The 2023 IRONMAN World Champion Lucy Charles-Barclay had also been on the original start list but she instead made a superb return from injury recently at IRONMAN Lanzarote.

But Marjolaine Pierré (FRA) will be a threat to all and comes here in form after beating Philipp and co at 70.3 Aix-en-Provence.

Lisa Perterer (AUT) had a superb 2025, followed by a frustrating time early in 2026 but is hopefully back on track now, while Brits Holly Lawrence and India Lee are others to watch as is Denmark’s Katrine Græsbøll Christensen.

IRONMAN Hamburg course

The race starts with a one-lap 3.8km swim in the Alster which is in the heart of Hamburg at the Jungfernstieg.

It’s then a 200m run to T1 ahead of the bike course which features two fast and flat loops, especially if there’s minimal wind.

There’s then extra ground to be covered in T2 before setting out on a four-lap run course in downtown Hamburg. It leads along the western bank of the Alster and through Hamburg city centre via Gänsemarkt, Rathausmarkt and Jungfernstieg.

Prize Money: What’s on the line?

The prize purse on offer this weekend is $87,500 – with the winner collecting a $28,000 share of that total.

As part of the IRONMAN Pro Series, athletes will also earn points as they seek to become the IRONMAN Pro Series Champion and win a share of the $1.8 million bonus prize purse.

In Hamburg, the maximum possible score will be 5,000 points for 1st place, with points for all remaining professional finishers diminishing based on the time deficit to first place, at a rate of 1 point per 1 second deficit to the winner’s finishing time.

In addition to money and series points, there will be a total of six qualifying slots for the IRONMAN World Championships in Kona later this season.

The total funds will be paid ten-deep, as follows:

• 1. $28,000
• 2. $17,500
• 3. $11,000
• 4. $8,500
• 5. $6,500
• 6. $5,000
• 7. $3,500
• 8. $3,000
• 9. $2,500
• 10. $2,000

Previous winners 

• 2025: Laura Philipp (GER) 8:03:13
• 2024: Jackie Hering (USA) 8:19:14
• 2022: Laura Philipp (GER) 8:18: 20
• 2021: Laura Zimmerman (Ger) 8:54:31
• 2019: Susie Cheetham (GBR) 8:58:02
• 2018: Sarah Crowley (AUS) 8:08:21
• 2017: Daniela Bleymehl (GER) 9:07:49