Records broken and surprise wins at Ironman New Zealand season opener

The 2026 professional triathlon season kicked off in spectacular fashion at Ironman New Zealand this saturday 7 March, where Britain’s Kat Matthews and American Trevor Foley claimed decisive victories in the opening race of the pro series.

Both races delivered dramatic shifts over the marathon distance, with Matthews producing a dominant run to smash the women’s overall course record and Foley surging past hometown favourite Kyle Smith late in the men’s race to secure the win.

Matthews dominates women’s race with record performance

Matthews continues her record-breaking form from last year’s World Championships, powering away during the run leg to take the win in 8:28:55, that’s 12 minutes faster than the previous course best.

Meanwhile, New Zealand’s Hannah Berry finished second, while Dutch athlete Lotte Wilms completed the podium.

Swim

The women’s race began with Britain’s Fenella Langridge exiting Lake Taupō first after a 50:51 swim. Wilms, Rebecca Clarke and Berry were close behind, while Matthews started the bike in sixth place, just under 3min behind the lead group.

Bike

Once onto the rolling 180km bike course, Matthews quickly erased that deficit. Racing under the new 20-metre drafting rule introduced this season, she was soon re-joined by Berry and Wilms at the front. The trio rode together for much of the day and steadily built a commanding lead over defending champion Regan Hollioake and the rest of the field. Berry entered the second transition narrowly ahead, with Matthews and Wilms just seconds behind, while the next chasers came in more than five minutes down.

Run

The race turned decisively in the opening kilometres of the marathon run. Matthews surged ahead immediately, building a steady gap that grew with every lap of the flat lakeside course. By halfway, she held more than four minutes on Berry and never looked back, eventually cruising to victory after what became a comfortable closing lap (Matthews’ average run pace was 4:06min/km).

Wilms secured third, while Canada’s Tamara Jewett produced one of the day’s standout performances. Her 2:42:40 marathon shattered the women’s run course record and lifted her to fourth place (notably faster than the run splits of all but the top four men).

In a finish-line interview, Matthews, who is coached by husband Mark this season, revealed that it was all business as usual today:

“Really happy with the podium, all three of us worked together on the bike and I feel like it was really well deserved… I put the effort in in the swim and I put myself in a good position to then hit the first bit of the bike exactly as I wanted to. I was surprised personally to catch them so soon, but I know Hannah had some technical issues. There was no need to attack from there, everything went smoothly forward. I felt pretty bad actually getting onto the run, so it wasn’t like I put a real effort in for the first 10km either, you just run what your legs give you.”

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Ironman New Zealand: Women’s results

1. Kat Matthews (GBR) – 08:28:55
2. Hannah Berry (NZL) – 08:35:43
3. Lotte Wilms (NED) – 08:39:57
4. Tamara Jewett (CAN) – 08:41:20
5. Danielle Lewis (USA) – 08:49:35

Foley storms to victory after heated men’s marathon

The men’s race was defined by a late turnaround during the run as Foley overhauled race favourite Smith, who had led for much of the day in front of a home crowd.

Foley, who has eleven 70.3 podiums under his belt, crossed the line in 7:46:44, powered by a 2:35:42 marathon. France’s Pierre Le Corre finished second in his full-distance debut, while American pro Matt Hanson claimed third.

Swim

Le Corre set the early pace in the swim, but Taupō native Smith soon moved alongside him and remained prominent at the front through the opening stages. Local athletes Robert Huisman and Sam Osborne were also in the lead group.

Reigning Ironman world champion Kristian Blummenfelt exited the water within the top ten, while eventual winner Foley began the day nearly four minutes behind the leaders.

Bike

Smith asserted control during the bike leg, gradually distancing himself from his rivals. Germany’s Fred Funk emerged as his closest pursuer, showcasing strong cycling form, while Foley eventually caught the chaser pack on lap two of the bike, at around 90km.

Blummenfelt, meanwhile, surged through the field before suffering snapped aero bars, disrupting his momentum. Despite the setback, the Norwegian still reached the second transition in third place behind Smith and Funk.

Run

It was the men’s marathon that reshaped the race completely. Blummenfelt’s challenge faded early after stomach issues forced him to slow dramatically, leading him to eventually finish in sixth place with a time of 08:01:02. Meanwhile, Funk, who had begun the run in second, eventually dropped out.

Smith continued to lead for much of the run and still held more than a four-minute advantage at one stage. However, around halfway he began showing signs of hamstring trouble, and the gap rapidly shrank.

Foley made the decisive pass with roughly 15km remaining. Although Le Corre briefly threatened after moving into second, Foley responded strongly to maintain control through the closing kilometres – maxing out his run with 6min miles.

Behind them, Hanson ran through to third while New Zealand’s Jack Moody secured fourth and the final Kona qualifying position.

The victory marked Foley’s second Ironman triumph following his 2024 win at Ironman Lake Placid, reinforcing his growing reputation as a major contender over the full distance.

In a finish-line interview, Foley, who had only decided to race three weeks earlier, revealed he had a difficult season last year and was pleased to start 2026 off with a win and 5000pt advantage:

“Today was good, I had a good swim, had an ok bike. It was just ok all-round. I wasn’t feeling bad, I wasn’t feeling really great. I had a normal day… I caught Kat Matthews 3/4 miles to go, ran with her for a mile, which was pretty electric.”

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Ironman New Zealand: Men’s results

1. Trevor Foley (USA) – 07:46:44
2. Pierre Le Corre (FRA) – 07:48:26
3. Matt Hanson (USA) – 07:50:39
4. Jack Moody (NZL) – 07:51:03
5. Mike Phillips (NZL) – 07:58:09

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Lead image: Kat Matthews of Great Britain in action during IRONMAN New Zealand on March 07, 2026 in Taupo, New Zealand. (Photo by Fiona Goodall/Getty Images for IRONMAN)