Laura Siddall, who finished in the top 10 at the IRONMAN World Championship in Hawaii in 2022, retired as a professional earlier this season.
But she was back at Kona this year, giving TRI247 viewers the inside track all week and then being part of the official IRONMAN commentary team on the live broadcast, including the dramatic closing stages.
What we saw was a race for the ages and you can check out her thoughts and reflections on a momentous day here.
Since the race ended she’s been chatting to many of those who took part to try and deconstruct exactly what played out – read on for her race analysis…
Conditions shaped the race
I’m not sure if it was a contributing factor or not, but on race morning there was rain in the air, and it was slightly cooler, dare I say almost cold.
The beginning of the bike was cloud cover too. I don’t know whether this threw people off their hydration/nutrition which came back to bite later on when the humidity hit and the temperature soared.
For the past few years, I think we have been relatively lucky with the weather conditions in Kona. For sure it’s hot, humid, windy and tough, it always is. However, compared to some of the weather on race day perhaps five to 10 years ago, it’s been relatively good. This year we did see a little of that old weather hit, and from what you could see and heard afterwards, it was one of the toughest for so many reasons.
I also heard that Ali’I Drive was the hottest it’s ever been and so much hotter than the Queen Kahahumanu Highway, which normally isn’t the case. Additionally, apparently temperatures in The Energy Lab were up in the 40 degrees Celsius range.
Sodaro the first to exit
It was no real surprise to see Lucy Charles-Barclay accelerate off the front of the pack in the swim. There was talk as to whether anyone could go with her, but she made it pretty clear early on that she is in another league in the water.
For a time it looked like she was on to break her course record, but in the end was a minute off, I think also showing the conditions in the ocean were harder than predicted and expected.
The chase pack behind Lucy were only 90 seconds back, and this group included some incredible athletes – Taylor Knibb, Holly Lawrence and Marta Sanchez the main players. The surprise in this pack too was the 2022 IRONMAN World Champion, Chelsea Sodaro. She had a career best swim, and it set her up to look like she would have an incredible day. Yet by mile 45, Sodaro was on the side of the road, her race over.
With Lucy up the road, Taylor had quickly blown up the chase pack and was solo in second. Talking to Taylor afterwards, she stated she was already monitoring her effort, as she had noticed her temperature was pretty high, and hence why we didn’t see her close the gap down straight away. She did however, close it down on the climb up to Hawi, taking Lucy completely by surprise at the turn.
Respect both ways
Behind this pair, a powerful group had formed. The fourth pack out of the water, some six minutes back, it contained some real power house bikers and racers – Hannah Berry, Jocelyn McCauley, Solveig Lovseth, Lisa Perterer, Kat Matthews, Jackie Herring, Maja Stage Nielson – and another surprise was that Laura Philipp had made this pack. Probably one of her best swims to be with these women.
However, whether it was tactics at play, or legs not being there, this pack didn’t really seem to make progress on the lead, and in fact lost significant time. There was speculation as to whether Matthews let Philipps do all the work and sat in, or whether Matthews just wasn’t feeling great. We probably won’t really know the truth, I’m sure there are elements of truth in what all the athletes say. We have to remember this is also racing and respect the tactics and cards played by athletes, if that is what they did. As well as respecting the fact that perhaps just they weren’t able to go with the high pace and power.
Out of this chase, Lovseth did make a move, but not intentionally. She rolled through to take a turn at the front, and then a short while later, motioned for the next athlete to role through and take a turn, yet found there was no one there.
Heartbreak for LCB
Probably the next development in the race, was the one minute penalty that Lucy was given for unintentional littering. Lucy had to serve this on the bike course, which allowed Taylor to get away – and Taylor knew she needed to make it count. She arrived in T2 with a 90 seconds lead over Lucy, and around six minutes on Lovseth.
On the run, as she did in 2023, Lucy closed the gap to Taylor as they headed up Palani. Lucy giving a pat on the back to Taylor as she passed. At this point it looked like déjà vu and a repeat of two years previously. But it was noticeable that Lucy wasn’t getting away from Taylor in the same way as she’d closed her down.
Then Lucy started to stumble. Slowing down to walk through aid stations, starting to weave and sway and clearly trying to cool herself down as she grabbed ice. Amazingly she looked great between aid stations and seemed to rally, yet would unravel dramatically when she got to the next aid station. This allowed Taylor back in, and they ran side by side again. Unfortunately for Lucy, as the walking got longer between the runs, it was clear she wasn’t in a good place, and stepped off the course on seeing her husband and coach on the side of the course in The Energy Lab.
So close – but so far for Taylor
It looked like it was Taylor’s day. She was looking strong and now had the lead again, with no Lucy in the race. Whilst it was only Taylor’s third IRONMAN (after 2023 Kona and 2025 Texas), what Taylor may lack in actually racing the distance, she makes up for in the work and study she does. She knows every part of the course, every gradient, the changes in temperature, all her own stats and also those of her competitors.
She is a true student of the sport, and it looked like it was going to be her race. Then at the last aid station, on the last climb up to town and the top of Palani, with just 3km to go, suddenly Taylor was in trouble. Now she was staggering, weaving and swaying and things appeared to go south quickly. After the race we found out it was tougher than it looked from earlier on and she had been fighting and working hard to stay in the game. However, now Taylor was on the ground, clearly in trouble and her race over.
Now it was Lovseth in the lead. The first thoughts through her mind, after her concern for Taylor on the ground, ‘don’t let me be the next’ having seen the two women ahead of her at the side of the road.
Kat on a tear
At the start of the run Kat Matthews and Laura Philipp had been running side by side, 14 minutes back from the lead. Interesting fact – in 2014 Mirinda Carfrae was 14 minutes and 40 seconds back and ran through to win. But whilst I felt it was possible for these two women, it would be hard and many thought not possible.
Matthews managed to run away from Philipp, and was on a tear. When Solveig took the lead, Matthews was eating up the ground and had made up significant time, sitting now in second with the gap now rapidly coming down. The drama wasn’t over as Kat was gaining, and it looked like it would come down to the wire and a sprint finish.
However Solveig did have enough, and ran down Ali’I Drive to become the 2025 IRONMAN World Champion. Matthews in the end finished just 35 seconds back in second, and Philipp rounded out the podium in third.
Solveig first appeared on the middle distance scene in 2023 when winning IRONMAN 70.3 Indian Wells on debut. In 2024 she won IRONMAN 70.3 Warsaw before finishing in 48th at the Olympic Games in Paris. She was 13th at the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Taupo.
But it’s really been 2025 when she’s made her mark. She has an interesting resume too – 1st (70.3 Jesolo), 3rd (Hamburg), 1st (Lake Placid), 3rd (70.3 Zell am See) and 1st (Kona). If Lovseth races at the 70.3 World Championships in Marbella, she may want to put another race in before that to continue the pattern – 3rd and then 1st!
Risking it for the win
That was a crazy day of racing. I don’t think I have ever witnessed anything like that in a race, let alone at the World Championships. The women really put on a show. They pushed themselves and each other to the limits. It’s stepping up to the next level.
Whilst Lucy and Taylor’s day didn’t end how they wanted, and we hope that they are okay and their teams look after them over the next few months to ensure a full healthy recovery, they showed incredible resilience, determination, drive and motivation to put it all out there and risk it for the win. It’s the World Championship and athletes go all in. I have the utmost respect for this.
There are also so many other women to mention. Hannah Berry (NZL) in fourth – an incredible performance from an athlete who’s been so consistent all year, but this was the best result of her career to date. Lisa Perterer (AUT) in fifth, another rookie at the World Championship. Like Solveig, she moved up from racing at the Olympics in 2024.
Holly Lawrence (GBR) in sixth in just her second IRONMAN, in tears crossing the line. Jocelyn McCauley (USA) in seventh, another top 10. Sara Svensk (SWE) running from 35th off the bike up to eighth, and then Leoni Konczella (GER) in ninth and Marlene de Boer (NED) in tenth.
We didn’t predict this, we couldn’t have seen this race play out how it did. But we got one of the most incredible days of racing in IRONMAN history. A testament to the women, all the women in this sport.
But as we head back(wards) to one day of racing in 2026, it’s not lost on me or many of us, that if we’d had the men racing on Saturday then the dynamics for the woman would have been different.
We could have missed so much of the drama of the race unfolding too, with having to show the conclusion of the men’s race or the men’s podium. Likewise we would have also missed so much of the men’s race in Nice, trying to cover the women. We miss out on both races. Both races suffer.
These athletes deserve to have the coverage that showcases how incredible they are.
But I’m grateful I got to witness that race. To see all the athletes battle out there, in those conditions and the emotions at the finish line. The respect I have, for the work they put in and then for what they go through on the day.
We have an incredible sport, and it’s amazing to be part of. More to come.
Are we in a triathlon boom, or hurtling towards burnout? Laura Siddall on the growth of the sport
