Hayden Wilde rounded out his T100 season in perfect style with another emphatic victory in the Grand Final in Qatar to take the overall title.
It has been a remarkable campaign for the brilliant Kiwi. He won the first race in Singapore but then suffered a horror bike crash when he was hit by a truck in Japan.
He somehow managed to return to racing less than 100 days later – and not just return but win T100 London as well as the next three races. His perfect record was ended amid lap-counting confusion in Dubai last time but normal order was restored here – and how.
Wilde had told us in the build up that it’s only really in the last few weeks that he’s felt back on top form and that was underlined here as he swam superbly before moving into the lead on the bike and then running away with it.
It was a masterclass and deservedly made him the T100 World Champion with a perfect score of 195, with the best four regular-season races counting along with an inflated points haul for Qatar. Remarkably this was a first world title after near-misses in the short-course WTCS format.
Morgan Pearson (USA) blazed his way through the field on the run to take a distant second while Marten Van Riel (BEL) pushed clear of Mika Noodt (GER) late on to round out the podium in third.
Swim – Luis and Pearson show the way
It was two 1km laps, with an Aussie exit in between, for the swim in the bay area off Lusail and like the women’s race earlier it was tougher work coming back than going out.
Pearson, the winner last time out in Dubai, looked puzzled by his walkout music but was soon in sync in the water as he and Vincent Luis (FRA) led things out up front.
Luis was fractionally ahead at the end of the first of the clockwise loops, with Pearson second and Sam Dickinson (GBR) a close-up third.
But the big news was how well Wilde was swimming – just 18 seconds back in 11th and alongside one of his rivals in Noodt. The other man with realistic hopes of overhauling Wilde was Jelle Geens (BEL) and he was eighth at +10s.
The pattern continued on the second lap – Luis out of the water first but Pearson, as he has done more than once this season, used the run to transition to power into the lead. Dickinson was still in third and Wilde had continued the good work too. He was just 40 seconds back – and a rapid transition saw him getting even closer to the front of the race.
Bike – Bogen crashes as Wilde takes charge
Starting the bike and Wilde was now up to ninth, with 36 seconds to make up as Dickinson and Pearson led the way.
Luis was third, Geens fourth at +9s, Wilhelm Hirsch (GER) fifth, Jonas Schomburg sixth, Van Riel seventh and Menno Koolhaas (NED) eighth.
Two things were noticeable early on too – the lap counter was very prominent and well positioned after the chaos of Dubai and Wilde was again charging on the first of six laps.
But it was Rico Bogen (GER) who had a narrow lead approaching the halfway point only to slide to the tarmac coming out of a corner.
Mathis Margirier (FRA), Noodt, Wilde and Van Riel all came past, with Bogen soon back on his bike meaning that he and Geens were not too far adrift.
Dickinson, Schomburg and Pearson were the chase pack in seventh to ninth at around two minutes back and the pattern continued all the way to T2, with Bogen back with the leaders but Geens dropping back.
Wilde was first into transition and first out, with Bogen at +5s, Noodt at +12s, Margirier +18s and Van Riel at +22s.
Geens was sixth at +2:14 with Pearson a further 12 seconds back in seventh but he lost a bit more time when he had to go back for something he’d dropped coming out of T2 to make sure he didn’t pick up a penalty.
Run – One-way traffic for Wilde
That move from Pearson proved a shrewd one as he would end up working his way through the field.
Up front Wilde was never really threatened – his advantage was up to 40 seconds after the second of six laps and at halfway it had double to 1:20 as Margirier, Noodt, Bogen and Van Riel were locked together.
But on the fourth loop Pearson pounced past all four of them and into second, leaving them to battle it out for the final podium spot – and some significant overall prizemoney too.
Wilde was in glorious isolation though and pretty much matching Pearson’s pace. We had a final-lap bell here and when it rang for Wilde he was 1:37 ahead of Pearson.
And when the line came it had held steady, Wilde stopping the clock in 3:06:08 after high-fiving his way to the tape.
Pearson was second at +1:15 and there was a great battle for third place, with Van Riel just getting the better of Noodt.
“It’s pretty special from starting in Singapore and then being in hospital a bit,” said Wilde afterwards.
“I’m just so happy with how everything has turned out today. I love the pressure and I love being hunted but I came here with a smile on my face and it’s a nice place to be.”
Qatar T100 results – Pro men
Friday December 12, 2025 – 2km/80km/18km
| Position | Athlete | Nationality | Gap to winner | Swim | Bike | Run | Overall time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hayden Wilde | NZL | – | 24:58 | 1:40:57 | 58:09 | 3:06:08 |
| 2 | Morgan Pearson | USA | +1:15 | 24:20 | 1:44:05 | 56:42 | 3:07:23 |
| 3 | Marten Van Riel | BEL | +2:06 | 24:25 | 1:41:41 | 59:53 | 3:08:14 |
| 4 | Mika Noodt | GER | +2:20 | 24:54 | 1:41:03 | 1:00:17 | 3:08:28 |
| 5 | Mathis Margirier | FRA | +2:42 | 24:58 | 1:40:55 | 1:00:33 | 3:08:50 |
| 6 | Rico Bogen | GER | +3:11 | 24:51 | 1:40:59 | 1:01:15 | 3:09:19 |
| 7 | Jelle Geens | BEL | +4:59 | 24:25 | 1:43:43 | 1:00:49 | 3:11:06 |
| 8 | Sam Dickinson | GBR | +5:54 | 24:21 | 1:43:56 | 1:01:41 | 3:12:02 |
| 9 | Jonas Schomburg | GER | +6:44 | 24:23 | 1:43:53 | 1:02:14 | 3:12:52 |
| 10 | Youri Keulen | NED | +6:54 | 25:38 | 1:45:55 | 59:19 | 3:13:02 |
Overall standings and prize money
| Position | Athlete | Nationality | Regular-season races* | Qatar points* | Total | Prize money |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hayden Wilde | NZL | 6 | 55 | 195 | $200,000 |
| 2 | Mika Noodt | GER | 6 | 37 | 150 | $170,000 |
| 3 | Jelle Geens | BEL | 6 | 27 | 149 | $150,000 |
| 4 | Morgan Pearson | USA | 4 | 46 | 129 | $120,000 |
| 5 | Rico Bogen | GER | 6 | 30 | 123 | $110,000 |
| 6 | Marten Van Riel | BEL | 4 | 41 | 122 | $90,000 |
| 7 | Mathis Margirier | FRA | 5 | 33 | 115 | $85,000 |
| 8 | Sam Dickinson | GBR | 4 | 24 | 106 | $80,000 |
| 9 | Youri Keulen | NED | 6 | 18 | 99 | $75,000 |
| 10 | Gregory Barnaby | ITA | 6 | 14 | 90 | $70,000 |





















