Star-Studded Men’s Professional Field Revealed for 2025 IRONMAN World Championship in Nice, France

August 28, 2025

- Three-time and reigning IRONMAN World Champion Patrick Lange (DEU) headlines world class men’s professional field that also features three additional IRONMAN World Champions Sam Laidlow (FRA), Gustav Iden (NOR), and Kristian Blummenfelt (NOR) - 2024 podium finishers Magnus Ditlev (DNK) and Rudy Von Berg (USA) return, as well as 2024 fourth place finisher and current IRONMAN Pro Series leader Léon Chevalier (FRA) - The IRONMAN World Championship triathlon will offer a maximum of 6,000 IRONMAN Pro Series points for the winner and a total event prize purse of USD $375,000

NICE, France (Aug. 28, 2025) /ENDURANCE SPORTSWIRE/ – The stage is set for a seismic showdown in Nice, France as the world’s best professional and amateur male triathletes are set to assemble for the men’s 2025 IRONMAN World Championship^® triathlon on Sunday, 14 September. The star-studded pro list includes former IRONMAN^® World Champions, past world championship podium finishers, IRONMAN Pro Series contenders, and a host of rising stars all set to toe the line on the Côte d’Azur. In all, the iconic IRONMAN World Championship triathlon will bring together nearly 60 of the world’s top professional male triathletes to compete for the coveted title of IRONMAN World Champion, 6,000 IRONMAN Pro Series points, as well as a piece of the $375,000 USD professional prize purse, with the winner taking home $125,000 USD.

The 2025 men’s start list features four former IRONMAN World Champions, including defending and three-time champion Patrick Lange (DEU), who will wear bib number one. Lange claimed his third title in Kona last year and returns to Nice – where he finished second in 2023 – aiming to further bolster his legacy. The German hasn’t reached his peak so far this year, but who would discount the man made for the biggest stages out of a fourth title?

Sam Laidlow (FRA) won his IRONMAN World Championship crown in Nice two years ago – that victory on home soil made the Frenchman the youngest ever winner of an IRONMAN World Championship triathlon. After an injury plagued start to the year, Laidlow is now finding form at the perfect time and comes into this IRONMAN World Championship race off the back of a victory at the inaugural IRONMAN Leeds triathlon last month.

The new Norwegian method has been on full display so far this season, with 2021 IRONMAN World Champion Kristian Blummenfelt (NOR) arguably the best and most consistent male athlete this year, scoring wins at the Memorial Hermann IRONMAN Texas North American Championship, Mainova IRONMAN Frankfurt European Championship, and IRONMAN^® 70.3^® Aix-en-Provence triathlons. Chasing a perfect IRONMAN Pro Series score, Blummenfelt currently sits third in the standings and a win in Nice would set him on course to become the first athlete to win both the IRONMAN World Championship and IRONMAN Pro Series titles in the same year. Nordic compatriot and 2022 IRONMAN World Champion Gustav Iden (NOR) has had a quietly successful season to date, working his way back to full form after a couple years of injury, with a strong fourth place finish at the Mainova IRONMAN Frankfurt European Championship triathlon in June, laying down an ominous marker to his competitors.

Also returning to the IRONMAN World Championship start line are last year’s podium finishers Magnus Ditlev (DNK) and Rudy Von Berg (USA). Ditlev holds the IRONMAN African Championship title after his early season win in Gqeberha, South Africa, while Von Berg has had a typically consistent season, with two podium finishes already to his name. Last year’s IRONMAN World Championship fourth place finisher Léon Chevalier also returns with everything to race for. The Frenchman will be hoping to move up to the podium places at the World Championship for the first time, while also securing major points to maintain his lead atop the IRONMAN Pro Series leaderboard.

The IRONMAN Pro Series adds another layer of intrigue to the IRONMAN World Championship, with 17 of the top 20 men in the overall standings – including nine of the top 10 – lining up in Nice. Strong challengers who currently sit within the top 10 in the IRONMAN Pro Series standings are Matthew Marquardt (USA), who secured his first and second IRONMAN triathlon victories in Cairns and Lake Placid this year; Kristian Høgenhaug (DNK), last year’s IRONMAN Pro Series third place finisher with two IRONMAN triathlon second place finishes to his name in 2025; Cameron Wurf (AUS), who finished seventh in Kona last year; and the third member of the Norwegian contingent Casper Stornes, who has picked up two podium finishes in his last two races.

Adding to the mix are two Olympians transitioning to long course triathlon post-Paris in the shape of Marten Van Riel (BEL) and Jonas Schomburg (DEU) each of whom have the ability to podium in Nice. Though currently nursing an ankle injury and a questionable status to race, Van Riel has been explosive over the middle distance over the past year and made an instant impact upon his IRONMAN triathlon debut in Cozumel, leading the majority of the bike until an unfortunate crash. Chasing IRONMAN World Championship qualification, the Belgian re-focused on the ISUZU IRONMAN South Africa African Championship in March, finishing second behind the Danish powerhouse Ditlev. German Schomburg has been equally impressive, finishing third in that race in South Africa. Sam Long (USA) is another wildcard. Winner of last year’s IRONMAN Chattanooga triathlon, the fan-favourite American boasts one of the best bike-run combinations in the sport and will race just his second IRONMAN World Championship triathlon.

Beginning with the Mediterranean Sea swim, athletes taking part in the Men’s 2025 IRONMAN World Championship triathlon in Nice will enter the water in the Baie des Anges for a 3.8km ROKA swim, following a double rectangular out and back course in the water, before embarking on one of the most iconic bike courses in all of the triathlon world. The 180km ZOOT bike course is technical and challenging but rewarding in its beauty, with athletes taking in rooftop villages on the ascent before they cruise down the “Route de Thorenc” and through the “Clues de Gréolières” on the descent, famous for its stunning feature film backdrop scenery. The flat, four lap 42.2km HOKA run course will take runners up and down the glitzy Promenade des Anglais, giving them the opportunity to soak up the Mediterranean Sea views and famous Chaises Bleues on one side, and the luxury hotels and casinos on the other, while gaining encouragement from the deep crowds lining the course. Further details of the course can be found here.

A full list of professional men’s field listed below*:

*Subject to change

A Front Row Seat to the Competition

Live race day coverage of the men’s 2025 IRONMAN World Championship triathlon will be broadcast for free across multiple platforms for global viewers including proseries.ironman.com, DAZN, and YouTube, as well as L’Équipe in France, Outside TV in the U.S. and Canada, ZDF in Germany, ESPN (within Disney+) in Latin America and the Caribbean, and iQIYI in China, among others. Live race day coverage will begin at 5:15am CEST.

Fans can also follow the @ironmantri social channels for a behind the scenes view of what it takes to have a chance at world-title glory. The ‘A Fighting Chance’ IRONMAN series will drop three new pre-race episodes featuring eight athletes, with Episode 1 on Monday, Sept. 8, Episode 2 on Wednesday, Sept. 10, and Episode 3 on Friday, Sept. 12, giving audiences a glimpse of what it takes to prepare for race day, as well as the staging behind such an iconic event. Find live race-day coverage of the 2025 IRONMAN World Championship triathlon in Nice globally via proseries.ironman.com.

The Official Pre-Race Professional Athlete Press Conference will also be livestreamed to viewers around the world for free from 11 a.m. CEST on Friday, Sept 12. Viewers can watch via proseries.ironman.com.

To submit an interest in receiving media credentials, fill in the World Championship Credentials Request form.

For more information about the 2025 IRONMAN World Championship men’s race in Nice, France please visit www.ironman.com/im-world-championship-nice. To learn more about the IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 brands and series of events, please visit www.ironman.com. Media inquiries may be directed to press@ironman.com.

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About the IRONMAN World Championship

On February 18, 1978, 15 competitors came to the shores of Waikiki, Hawai`i to take on the first-ever IRONMAN<sup>®</sup> triathlon. It was an idea hatched by John Collins, a Naval Officer stationed in Hawai`i, and his wife Judy during a swim club gathering. Collins’ proposal was a friendly test of fitness combining the three toughest endurance races on Oahu into one race: The 2.4-mile Waikiki Rough-water Swim, the 112-mile Around-Oahu Bike Race, followed by a 26.2-mile run on the Honolulu Marathon course. That first race would set the stage for what IRONMAN triathlon would become: the most-challenging single-day sporting event in the world, and a brand symbolizing the belief that “ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE^®.” Since its inception in 1978 on the Island of O`ahu and continued history in Kona on the Island of Hawai`i with recent stops in St. George, Utah and Nice, France, the IRONMAN World Championship^® triathlon has etched its name in history through historic performances, inspiring athletes, and a lifetime of memories that define the sport of triathlon today. The IRONMAN World Championship remains the most iconic single-day endurance sporting event in the world and is the culmination of 40 global IRONMAN events with over 94,000 athletes around the world striving for one of the coveted qualifying slots of any sporting event in the world. For more information, visit www.ironman.com/races/im-world-championship.

About IRONMAN Pro Series

The IRONMAN Pro Series™ is a year-long performance-based world series that showcases and rewards top professional triathletes as they vie for points and event prize money, on their way to claiming the title of IRONMAN Pro Series champion and a lion’s share of the lucrative $1.7 million USD year-end bonus prize pool. Along the way, athletes will battle for the prize money offered at each individual IRONMAN Pro Series triathlon, equating to over $2.5 million USD, as well as coveted world championship qualifying slots. Open to approximately 1,000 eligible professional triathletes worldwide, the IRONMAN Pro Series ushers in a new era of IRONMAN racing where Every Second Matters – every second behind the race winner equates to a point earned or lost. Incorporating iconic distances, challenging courses, and stunning destinations, every IRONMAN Pro Series race will be broadcast live and free to a global audience. In 2025, the IRONMAN Pro Series will be contested over 18 events and 17 race locations around the globe, including a combination of six IRONMAN^® and eight IRONMAN^® 70.3^® triathlons, as well as the IRONMAN World Championship® women’s and men’s races and IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship triathlon. An additional 40 events outside of the 2025 IRONMAN Pro Series will also offer IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 professional racing fields with world championship qualifying opportunities, and over $1.8 million USD in prize money. This creates a total professional prize purse of over $6 million USD in 2025. For more information, visit proseries.ironman.com.

About The IRONMAN Group

The IRONMAN Group is the world’s largest operator of participation sports with a portfolio of brands, events, media, partners, merchandise, and digital platforms operating in over 50 countries worldwide. A global portfolio consisting of hundreds of events includes the IRONMAN^® Triathlon Series, the IRONMAN^® 70.3^® Triathlon Series, 5150^® Triathlon Series, IRONKIDS^®, premier running events including the Rock ‘n’ Roll^® Running Series, the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon™ and City2Surf^®, the UTMB® World Series of trail running, the Epic Series™ of mountain biking including the Absa Cape Epic^®, and a collection of road cycling and other multisport races. Since the inception of the iconic IRONMAN^® brand and its first event in 1978, millions of athletes have proven that ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE^® by crossing finish lines around the world. From its beginnings as a single race among friends in Hawai’i, The IRONMAN Group has become a global sensation and collection of high-growth lifestyle brands that inspire people to unlock their potential in life. For more information, visit www.ironman.com/about/ironman-group.