This is a preview of the race – click here to read about brilliant wins for Daisy Davies and Matthew Marquardt.
The iconic IRONMAN South Africa celebrates its 21st year this weekend in Nelson Mandela Bay, Port Elizabeth with a strong field of professional athletes making the trip down to the southern tip of the continent.
It’s not part of the IRONMAN Pro Series this year and there’s no getting away from the fact that it plays second fiddle to IRONMAN Texas this weekend but there’s still plenty to look forward to.
Eight Kona slots, split equally as ever, and $150,000 in prizemoney (compared to $175K for Texas).
In our preview piece below, you can find all the information you need on start times and how to follow, plus a full rundown of the main contenders…
Start time and how to watch
The ISUZU IRONMAN African Championship takes place on Sunday 19 April, with the 3.8km swim kicking things off at Hobie Beach.
The men will start at 06:45 local time, with the women setting off five minutes later. This corresponds to 05:45BST, 06:45 CET, 00:45 on the East Coast and 21:45 on Saturday on the West Coast.
Theer isn’t live coverage this time as the cameras are in Texas but the ever-reliable IRONMAN Tracker app will keep you right up to date with pros and age groupers alike.
IRONMAN South Africa Course
Nelson Mandela Bay – named after the world famous freedom fighter and icon of peace – hosts Africa’s most renowned triathlon.
The two-lap 3.8km swim starts and ends on the picturesque Hobie Beach but the water can be very choppy so a real test straight up.
Athletes then run up the beach and up a set of stairs to pick up their bike for arguably one of the most spectacular courses on the IRONMAN world circuit.
This three-loop, 180km bike course features a combination of steady to challenging sections and some faster descent, along the beachfront section of Marine Drive, through the city and surrounding villages, with the return journey adding in sweeping views of the ocean, the rugged coastline and adjacent countryside. All of which lends itself to wind playing a part – but the forecast for Sunday is for things to be relatively calm on that front, though pretty warm.
Then the flat, four-loop 42.2km run course takes athletes along the Bay’s spectator-lined beach front on a pedestrian pathway to the IRONMAN beach bridge and up the incline of Happy Valley to start a course which takes in city and ocean views before returning to the beach section for the finish line.
You can get a flavour via the 2025 recap below.
Pro Men
Defending champion Magnus Ditlev isn’t here (nor in Texas now, having been ruled out by shingles) so wearing the #1 bib is American star Matthew Marquardt.
The ultra-busy med student has had an unconventional preparation, taking in the eight-day Absa Cape Epic mountain bike race in the Western Cape of South Africa before a rapid trip and turnaround back home.
But he’s thrived on that sort of schedule before – think of his IRONMAN Cairns win on the back of a family cruise – and the big question against him is whether he’s hit with cramp around T1, which happened at Cairns and Lake Placid, though in both cases he overcame that and went on to win.
There will be huge support again for home favourite Jamie Riddle who made his full-distance debut in this race last year when he was fifth.
He went on to secure top ten finishes at both the IRONMAN World Championship, where he helped animate the race, and the 70.3 Worlds.
Other names to look out for are 2024 winner Rasmus Svenningsson (SWE), Gregory Barnaby (ITA) and Belgium’s Pieter Heemeryck.
Pro Women
Heading the women’s professional field will be Katrine Græsbøll Christensen (DEN) who won IRONMAN Kalmar and 70.3 Krakow last year, whilst also taking third place in this race.
There’s a strong UK challenge headed by Rebecca Anderbury and Daisy Davies, with the latter claiming a hugely impressive win at Challenge Almere last year.
Also hoping to be vying for the podium will be Ann Pabinger (AUT), who took the crown at IRONMAN Chattanooga, and Aussie Penny Slater, who most recently came fourth at IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong.
Prize Money: What’s on the line?
The ISUZU IRONMAN South Africa African Championship triathlon will offer professional athletes a total prize purse of $150,000, with the male and female winner each enjoying a $25,000 pay day.
Four qualifying slots per gender will also be available for the 2026 IRONMAN World Championship in Kona.
The prize money will be allocated ten-deep, as follows:
- 1st – $25,000
- 2nd – $15,000
- 3rd – $9,000
- 4th – $7,500
- 5th – $5,500
- 6th – $4,000
- 7th – $3,000
- 8th – $2,500
- 9th – $2,000
- 10th – $ 1,500
