In this episode of A Fighting Chance presented by HOKA, we go behind the scenes as the IRONMAN Pro Series moves from the legendary streets of Frankfurt to the coastal beauty of Swansea.
Follow the journeys, challenges, and mindsets of the pros as they chase every second, every point, and every chance to rise up the IRONMAN Pro Series rankings.
📍 Races featured:
– Mainova IRONMAN European Championship Frankfurt
– IRONMAN 70.3 Swansea
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[Music] For our 12th stop in the Iron Man Pro Series, we have one of our newer races, Iron Man 70.3 Swansea in Wales. Now, it’s in its fourth year, so whilst it’s not been around for very long, it has had some of the greats of the sport head there and race over the past 3 years. Alistister Brownley, Cat Matthews, Emma Palant Brown, Mickey Bartlett, and Spaniard Antonio Bonito Lopez. With just two stones.3 races left in the series before the World Championships, Swansea is a great opportunity for athletes to gain valuable points and maximize the number of races that count towards that overall pro series ranking. This race will also qualify athletes for the 2026 Iron Man 7.3 World Championships in Lease, France. I’m Laura Sidol and this is a fighting chance presented by Hoker. Swansea is a city on the south coast of Wales, a 4-hour drive west of London. Wales is a country within the United Kingdom and is rich in Celtic culture, stunning landscapes, and historical sites. It has more than 600 castles. In fact, there are more castles per square mile than there are in any other country. But before we immerse ourselves in the Welsh countryside, let’s catch back on the incredible racing at the Minoa Iron Man Frankfurt, the European Championships for our professional men. This is your day to swim, to bike, to run, to become an Iron Man. You are now in the hands of the sun. Heat. [Music] Heat. Christian Blumenfeld. You’re my Nova Iron Man Frankfurt European Champion. [Music] Little bit further down on this room that I would like to win and also just there with Magnus from the beginning. It was a little bit like cat and mouse like because I wouldn’t I didn’t want to go to the front and like push the pace in that group because then I knew that he would put the hammer down later on. So I had to sort of be aware of him and sort of just wait for his attacks. Yeah, lost lost a bottle with a lot of calves. Uh so the rune course you ran with your your good mate Casper for 20k and either you dropped the hammer or he said he felt a little bit rough. How did that go? Yeah, I I would have enjoyed running a bit more with him, but with Christian Hookenhog in the front was just running quite solid and I was expecting him to actually drop off more. So, I felt that it was just time to go with like after 24 25k in order to just close that gap down and luckily it came down on that final lap. Last year you said you came here for a validation. Was that the same again this year? Yeah. Yeah, we’re just here to complete the course and uh it seems like it’s working well. So, uh, now it’s, uh, two down and one more armor to go this year with the N. And, uh, yeah, stoked to take another 5,000 points. And it puts me in a great position now for N. Yeah, I had a incredible day. Like, I knew I was in the best shape I’ve ever been in all three disciplines, but it’s always something like go out and saying it out loud and but it’s something different to go out there and and perform. I I told James beforehand that I would attack on the cobbles and I did that. Sadly, I just didn’t have Magnus with me. So, it became a solo day in the front. You see, I lost 2 minutes to Bloomfeld and yeah, I just ran out of energy and had a big crisis on the last lap. So, suddenly Storess was also coming pretty close. So, so uh it ended up being very brutal as it should be. But uh yeah, it’s it’s my favorite run course uh on the circuit. That’s for sure. Thank you. Uh yeah, the swim was easy. Uh but after uh 200 m on the bike, uh my bottle cage broke, so I need to stop. So I lost quite of time there. Uh and then I need to bridge up. So I used the first 40 minutes to close the one minute gap. Uh, and then I just felt it got easier and easier uh through the bike. On the run, I tried to run with Kristen in the start. Uh, so we ran just over 20k together. Then I had a really bad uh time at around 24k to 28. So then I went up to like 350 355 perk and I were like, “Oh, is it here? My third place is going to slip away.” But then I managed to get some carbs in and uh then I managed to increase the pace again and yeah secure the third spot. With the mine over Iron Man Frankfurt being the European Championships for the men, there was no change in the overall points for the women. Germany’s an Roman still leading the rankings 10,060 points with Cat Matthews in second 9,880 points and Jackie Herring in third 9,621 points. However, after Frankfurt, there were lots of changes, almost a completely new top 10 in the men. Christian Blumenfeld regains that top spot with another 5,000 points from Frankfurt. Cameron Worf, after ninth in Frankfurt, moves into second, but he has his full complement of races with two iron mans and three 7.3 results counting. He will now be looking to swap out races and improve his score that way. Casper Sters moves up into third. Gustaf Eden, Paul Schustster, Rudy Vonberg, Magnus Ditliff, Dominic Sija, and Yonas Hoffman all move into the top 10. So, back to Swansea. Will athletes will start with the one loop 1.2 mile Roka swim in the Prince of Wales dock. They’ll then head out onto the onelap 56 milei zoot bike course which goes through the famous mumbles and along the roads that hug the GA Peninsula coastal clifftops. Athletes will need their wits about them, riding parts of the course twice and ensuring they make the right turn to stay on track to T2. The Hoka run is two laps 13.1 mile course which takes athletes from the city center along the coastline. a flat and fast course to the finish. So, let’s take a look at our professional women and professional men who will be lining up. In the women’s race, it will be Cat’s first 70.3 of the year, having raced Iron Man Texas and Iron Man Hamburg. Cat currently sits second in the Iron Man Pro Series. Ahead of Cat in the series and series leader is Germany’s Anne Rishman, also racing in Swansea. Then one of the fastest runners in the sport currently, Germany’s Daniela Kaiser. She makes up some impressive ground on the run, but can it bring her to the podium? Britain’s Lizzie Raina is also in form and has a third and second at Iron Man 70.3 races this year. That trajectory would say that the top step is next. Hannah Devet is also one to watch. She is balancing racing with her physio studies and exams this year, but had a great win in Slovakia earlier this year. On the men’s side, the defending champion also returns, Britain’s Harry Palmer. He also seems to race well in Wales with two wins there in 2024, but there are some big names he’ll have to fight off. Denmark’s Christian Hogenhog flying high after his fantastic second place at the mine over Iron Man Frankfurt just two weeks ago, will fancy his chances. So too, Britain’s Sam Dickinson. The Olympian has two fourth places at Iron Man 70.3 races this year and will be hoping to improve pushing the pace at the front early on. Other Brits to watch, Kieran Linders, Matthew Collins, and Andrew Hawthul Turner. Horseful Turner was third at the race last year. German Paul Schustster will also be looking to add to their points for the Iron Man Pro Series. Frenchman Leon Shiovalier will be hoping he can move himself back into the Iron Man Pro Series top 10. As always, let’s check in now with Daniel Reef to get her thoughts and insights on this race. [Applause] So, let’s have a look at the race course. So, we are looking at a ocean swim. Um, most likely it’s going to be a wet suit swim around 19 to uh 20°. Um then we have a hilly bike course over the 90 kilometers. There are um about,000 m of climbing and to finish off it’s a completely flat run along the coast. Um so it’s supposed to be a fast uh run and we can look forward to some uh fast racing. Um on the women’s race we have Cat Matthews racing. So she’s definitely the favorite for this race. She had a great season so far already with the win at Armen Texas and her really strong performance at Arman Hamburg and she’s had a bit of time off after that and now um getting back to racing and also um racing on Horso will be um definitely exciting for her. I’ll see you next time as we look ahead to the Athletic Brewing Lake Placid. You can catch all the action live on Iron Man now, Outside TV, The Zone, and Blicky. [Music] [Music] Heat.