IRONMAN Western Australia 2025 results: Debut delight for Britain's Cameron Main as Lotte Wilms takes women's title

Britain’s Cameron Main and Aussie-based Lotte Wilms of the Netherlands took the respective titles at IRONMAN Western Australia which doubles as the Asia-Pacific Championship.

It’s been a breakthrough season for Scotland’s Main who only stepped up from short course racing to make his middle-distance pro debut at 70.3 Western Australia last year – and this was his first full IRONMAN.

He was one of eight men within 30 seconds of each other after the bike but asserted on the run to win by over four minutes from Caleb Noble (AUS) and Jumpei Furuya (JPN) with home favourite Nick Thompson in fourth in an event which had four Kona qualifying spots up for grabs for both men and women.

In the women’s race much of the spotlight beforehand was on Els Visser (NED) who had announced this would be her last race before retirement and Fenella Langridge (GBR), the 2023 winner here who was making her full-distance return after an extended time out of the sport after surgery for External Iliac Artery Endofibrosis.

But it was Wilms, third the last three times she’d raced in Busselton, who took centre stage as she led out the swim before powering clear on the bike en route to an emphatic victory by 14 minutes from Kate Curran (GBR), Anne-Sophie Pierre (FRA) and Charlotte McShane (AUS).

Pro Women – Wilms bosses the bike to set up win

Lotte Wilms, who lives on the Sunshine Coast and has called Australia home for the past 12 years, delivered a commanding performance to lead the women’s race from start to finish, breaking the tape in 8:30:50.

“I’m feeling really thankful. It’s my second [IRONMAN] win and I always wanted to have a win in Australia, so I couldn’t be more proud and happy,” said Wilms.

Behind Wilms, British athlete Kate Curran put together an impressive debut IRONMAN performance to finish second almost 14 minutes adrift in 8:44:50, with France’s Ann-Sophie Pierre running her way up through the field to claim the final podium spot in 8:46:48.

Sunshine Coast-based Dutch athlete Lotte Wilms wins the 2025 IRONMAN Western Australia Asia-Pacific Championship - Photo Korupt Vision — Lotte Wilms wins the 2025 IRONMAN Western Australia [Photo credit: Korupt Vision]

Wilms, one of the sport’s strongest swimmers, was first out of the water with Britain’s Sophia Green in tow, but it didn’t take the Dutchwoman long to build a steady lead over the 180km bike – one she would continue to extend all the way to the finish line in Busselton.

“It’s always a dream [to win gun to tape] and I think that’s how I actually can win an IRONMAN, just race from the front all day, that’s just where I’m at my best,” said Wilms.

“I had massive lead on the bike which surprised me to be honest. From 20km, I could see a six-minute lead and I couldn’t believe I was pulling away for 14 minutes. It meant I really could just pull back on the second lap, but my legs were not really going anymore, so maybe I got carried away a little bit for the first lap. But 14 minutes, it was pretty good.”

After a really tough start to the year for Wilms, this win, in a country she calls home, feels all the more special.

“I feel really proud of myself. The start of the year I had shingles, it was a really tough time also because a good friend of mine passed away as well, so I think a lot of people can relate when things happen like that. You just need time to grieve and then you just pick yourself up and go again. Lucky I have this sport, and I can just go out the door and do what I love,” she said.

“It’s great to finish the year with a win. I really needed it to just go on holiday and chill and make plans for next year,” said Wilms. “I’ve been living in Australia now for 12 years, so for me it’s just easier to race here and to have a full IRONMAN win is pretty cool.”

Fellow Dutch athlete Els Visser finished fifth in 8:52:22, calling time on an incredible professional racing career in Busselton to return to medicine.

But there was heartbreak for Langridge who was massively hampered by a bike crash on Wednesday and pulled out of the race at around the halfway stage. She wrote on Instagram: DNF IM BUSSO. Nothing felt comfortable. Or right. Or at all normal. Couldn’t shake emotions or feeling from the crash… body still hurts 😢. I gave it a go… but doesn’t make it any easier I’m heart broken 💔. Sorry everyone.”

Pro Men – Kona slot booked at first attempt

In the men’s race, Cameron Main claimed the title in his debut full-distance race, with victory completing a whirlwind 12 months for the Scotsman, who only raced his first middle distance race at the 2024 IRONMAN 70.3 Western Australia in Busselton last December.

“I am very sore, very tired, but I’m overwhelmed with emotion,” said Main. “I’m so happy. To win my first IRONMAN on debut is just honestly crazy. The whole day was very, very hard from start to finish. The guys pushed me the whole way, Caleb [Noble] was chasing me down and I cramped at 40km, I thought I wasn’t even going to make it to the finish line. To win, I honestly just can’t believe it. I didn’t even think I was going to win until about the last 500 metres because I was just cramping all over and I was so sore. I’m just buzzing.”

Britain's Cameron Main claims the IRONMAN Western Australia Asia-Pacific Championship title on his full distance debut - Photo Korupt Vision — Britain’s Cameron Main celebrates winning IRONMAN Western Australia [Photo credit: Korupt Vision]

Main celebrated at the finish line with family and friends, with his dad living in Perth and now calling Western Australia home.

“I love Busselton, it’s like a home away from home. The support was crazy, everyone was shouting my name the whole 42km in the marathon. I love this place, I love this course, it’s a beautiful part of the world. I’m so glad to do my IRONMAN 70.3 debut here and my IRONMAN as well,” he said.

“My partner, Sophia [Green, who came 11th], is also still on the course – she’s now doing her IRONMAN debut as well. For both of us to be here racing together, it’s just amazing. It’s been a difficult year for Sophia as well and not an easy year for me with a couple of injuries so to be rounding out in a good, positive way here in Busselton is just amazing.”

Main broke the tape in 7:38:26, more than four minutes ahead of Australia’s Noble, who had to fight hard in the closing stages to hold off the fast-finishing Japanese athlete Jumpei Furuya.

Though he didn’t quite lead the whole way from start to finish, Main was close to the front of the race the entire day. He exited the water first with a slender lead over a large pack of 10 athletes, including Furuya, Noble, and Ollie Turner (GBR), but the group was quickly reeled in by the bike power of West Australian Nick Thompson. Much of the group stayed together for the entire 180km, with Thompson surging ahead to a 14-second lead into T2. It didn’t take Main long to hit the front of the race on the run however, and from there he didn’t dare look back.

“Me and Ollie, my best mate, who’s also a British athlete, we wanted to really push the swim on and make it quite hard, but we didn’t actually get the gap we thought we’d have on Nick Thompson. He had a great swim and when I saw him running out of transition about a minute behind me, I thought this is going to be a hard day and he caught us very fast,” said Main.

“I actually rode about 10 watts harder than I was planning on doing. I thought, you know what, I’m probably going to blow up at some point – I just about made it to the finish line. A bit of cramp at 40km but I was just trying to work as hard as I could the whole day and do myself proud and I really managed to do that so I’m very happy.”

As the designated Asia-Pacific Championship for 2025, IRONMAN Western Australia offers four slots per gender to the 2026 IRONMAN World Championship in Kona so with his place in triathlon’s pinnacle race secured, Main can look forward to next year with much excitement.

“[To qualify for Kona] it’s actually mad, that’s crazy. My plan next year is to go full in for the IRONMAN Pro Series. I’ve not actually posted that publicly, so I suppose this is a release of that. I’m going to be really focused on the Pro Series – three IRONMANs, two IRONMAN 70.3s, and I want to be on the podium. Next year that’s my big goal. So now that I’ve qualified for the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Nice and the IRONMAN World Championship in Kona, it allows me to really focus on my goals for 2026.”