Julie Derron roared back to winning ways in the T100 as she overhauled reigning champion Kate Waugh (GBR) on the run to take the title in Vancouver.
Last year saw the Swiss star, who was runner up in the 2024 Olympics in Paris, become the first woman to beat Taylor Knibb in a T100 race when she triumphed in San Francisco and she also went on to win in Dubai.
This year she was runner-up at T100 Spain in May and followed that with victory on home roads at IRONMAN Switzerland before heading to Vancouver where she came out on top against the strongest T100 women’s field so far in 2026.
Waugh was superb on her comeback from a serious calf injury – leading the way first on the swim and then the bike but she had no answer to a charging Derron on the 18km run.
And Georgia Taylor-Brown (GBR), who beat Derron at T100 Spain, rounded out the podium in third.
Swim – Spivey shades it
There was a real statement of intent as Waugh, in her first T100 race of 2026, led pretty much from the outset in the two-lap 2km swim in the Pacific Ocean at Locarno Beach.
Lena Meißner (GER) was second, Sara Pérez Sala (ESP) third and even early on it was starting to stretch out behind.
At the Aussie exit at halfway the front three has been joined by Imogen Simmonds (SUI) and Taylor Spivey (USA), with little between them.
Taylor-Brown led the four-woman chase back just 12 seconds behind along with Bianca Bogen (GER) and New Zealand pair Nicole Van der Kaay and Hannah Berry.
Meanwhile two big names weren’t far back – home favourite Paula Findlay (CAN) in 10th and Challenge Roth winner Alanis Siffert (SUI) in 11th.
Things stayed relatively static on the second lap but this time it was Spivey who was out of the water first of the leading five, who were still closely packed.
What had changed was the gap to the chasers, now just over 40 seconds.
Bike – Waugh takes control
Early on the bike the front five quickly became a front three as Waugh, Simmonds and Pérez Sala moved clear of Meißner and Spivey.
We then had seven athletes around a minute back – Berry, Van der Kaay, Siffert, Bogen, GTB and Findlay, with Derron now joining them for the first time as she worked her way into the mix.
The next big move came from Canadian time trial champion Findlay who bridged up to Waugh and Simmonds up front, with Derron continuing her progress as she powered into fourth.
Midway through the bike and we now had four up front, all within a few seconds of each other, and the chasers just over half a minute behind.
Waugh kicked again on lap four to put a bit of time between herself and the other three in the front group but, more significantly, that surge also distanced the chasers who were suddenly more than a minute back starting the fifth and final lap.
They were led by Taylor-Brown and Siffert but Pérez Sala’s chances were dealt a big blow when she was given a one-minute drafting penalty. The other three still in contention were Berry, Bogen and Meißner but after the first 10 it was three minutes and upwards to the rest, meaning the likes of swim pacesetter Spivey were surely already out of contention.
Arriving in T2 and Waugh arrived exactly 30 seconds ahead of Simmonds and Findlay, with Derron another 15 seconds back.
Run – Derron strongest when it matters
Waugh was out of T2 just as Simmonds arrived but Derron was quickest of all through transition as she again didn’t bother with socks, meaning that she was now Waugh’s closest challenger.
There was then a further minute back top the next group – Taylor-Brown, Siffert, Berry and Bogen. Meißner was all by herself at +2:38 and then Pérez Sala was 10th at +3:22, with the others at five minutes and upwards.
Ahead of them were six 3km laps on what was a compact gravel surface and Waugh looked superb early on despite her injury layoff and limited run training.
Her lead was up a fraction to 54 seconds after the first lap with Derron now a clear second and that pair continued the good work to move clear of the rest. At halfway Waugh still led the way but only just, with Derron closing menacingly and the catch would come soon after.
The front two were now way clear of the rest – Derron leading by 16 seconds after lap four while Findlay, Simmonds and Taylor-Brown were just over two minutes adrift as they battled for the final podium spot.
Starting the last lap the gap between Derron and Waugh was now just over a minute, with Taylor-Brown a further 90 seconds back in third.
And that was how the podium positions stayed, Derron crossing the line 1:40 in front of Waugh, who seemed to be nursing an injured right arm, and 3:02 ahead of GTB, with Findlay not much further back in fourth.
All of which means Derron takes over at the top of the overall standings – full positions are below.
T100 Vancouver results 2026
Saturday 15 August, 2026 – 2km, 80km, 20km
| Position | Athlete | Swim | Bike | Run | Overall time | Gap to winner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Julie Derron (SUI) | 25:27 | 2:01:40 | 1:04:19 | 3:33:26 | – |
| 2 | Kate Waugh (GBR) | 24:01 | 2:02:14 | 1:06:45 | 3:35:06 | +1:40 |
| 3 | Georgia Taylor-Brown (GBR) | 24:42 | 2:03:18 | 1:06:08 | 3:36:27 | +3:02 |
| 4 | Paula Findlay (CAN) | 25:35 | 2:01:13 | 1:07:40 | 3:36:55 | +3:29 |
| 5 | Imogen Simmonds (SUI) | 24:07 | 2:02:28 | 1:09:03 | 3:38:10 | +4:45 |
| 6 | Bianca Bogen (GER) | 24:40 | 2:03:18 | 1:08:38 | 3:38:54 | +5:29 |
| 7 | Alanis Siffert (SUI) | 25:23 | 2:02:34 | 1:09:08 | 3:39:16 | +5:50 |
| 8 | Taylor Spivey (USA) | 23:59 | 2:07:08 | 1:06:56 | 3:40:16 | +6:50 |
| 9 | Hannah Berry (NZL) | 24:44 | 2:03:05 | 1:10:07 | 3:40:30 | +7:04 |
| 10 | Nicole Van der Kaay (NZL) | 24:39 | 2:06:33 | 1:08:41 | 3:42:04 | +8:38 |
Updated overall T100 standings
(After three women’s races – Gold Coast, Spain and Vancouver)
| Position | Athlete | Races Completed | Overall Series Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Julie Derron (SUI) | 2 | 64 |
| 2 | Imogen Simmonds (SUI) | 3 | 62 |
| 3 | Georgia Taylor-Brown (GBR) | 2 | 61 |
| 4 | Alanis Siffert (SUI) | 3 | 47 |
| 5 | Bianca Bogen (GER) | 3 | 42 |
| 6 | Taylor Spivey (USA) | 2 | 40 |
| 7 | Nicole Van der Kaay (NZL) | 3 | 39 |
| 8 | Taylor Knibb (USA) | 1 | 35 |
| 9 | Sara Pérez Sala (ESP) | 3 | 34 |
| 10 | Kate Waugh (GBR) | 1 | 29 |
