“I’m really happy, really satisfied with the back-to-back wins.” GB’s Kat Matthews keeps up winning form at Ironman 70.3 Geelong

In IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong this weekend Kat Matthews (GBR) kept up her winning form to far this year as she took the victory in the women’s race.

Having asserted control early and leading for much of the day, the race saw a nail-biting finish as Matthews had to dig deep on the run to hold off a fast‑finishing Grace Thek (AUS), who thrilled home crowds with a late charge on her home course.

What happened in the women’s race

In the women’s race, Kat Matthews (GBR) once again lived up to her billing as pre-race favourite, securing yet another Experience Oman IRONMAN Pro Series race victory. Her winning time of 4:06:14 put her just 36 seconds clear of Australia’s Grace Thek – who earned her ninth IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong podium – with Tamara Jewett (CAN) rounding out the podium in 4:15:26.

“I’m really happy, really satisfied with the back-to-back wins, it’s the perfect way to kick off a year. After New Zealand two weeks ago I actually felt better than I thought I would, but this race felt harder than I had hoped it would,” said Matthews. “I think I had quite a good swim start, I really like the running in to the water, the traditional start, running, dive, dolphin dive, so I feel like I got myself in a good spot and then I felt comfortable straight away actually. I was sort of aware of what’s going on and I felt good, I felt really good in the swim, so really happy with that dynamic. I think the gap was just over a minute, maybe less than two, to Sophia, which is really good. 
 
“And then the bike I just felt really good, had really good legs. I got a bit tired, a bit lonely near the end and then on the run I really struggled. Five to 10k was a bit low, I was thinking, goodness, is this me done? But then I was able to rally, so I sort of took that confidence in the last couple of ks and I was like, yeah, I can run, it’s fine,” she said. “The fans were great, there’s actually quite a few people out on the bike course, obviously a few locals maybe, but on the run, it’s just wonderful. I’ve done some training down the far end of the course so, I just felt really happy down there, lots of people cheering. To be honest, it’s the competitors, I feel like everyone was my mate out there, cheering me on.”

What happened in the swim?

Sophia Green (GBR) drove the women’s swim from the front, committing early and earning clear water as she exited first in 23:13 to open a decisive early gap. Matthews positioned herself well from the outset, sitting near the front and exiting in fourth, 1:29 down, while Steph Clutterbuck (GBR) was second out at +43 seconds but again struggled with dizziness through transition – an ongoing struggle caused by her Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS). Behind Matthews, Grace Thek (AUS) and Milan Agnew (AUS) were closely matched at 24:48, Penny Slater (AUS) delivered a strong swim to emerge +1:39 back on the leader, and Tamara Jewett (CAN) exited the swim +2:58, keeping herself well within touch as the women headed onto the bike.

What happened on the bike?

Green set the early tempo on the bike with Matthews immediately committing to a solo chase, while a group containing Slater, Thek, Agnew, Clutterbuck and Gabrielle Lumkes (USA) hovered more than a minute back. Matthews made her move decisively at 25km, catching and passing Green as she adjusted a bottle, before the pair rode together to the turnaround, with Thek just over two minutes adrift in third and Slater sixth at 2:18 down.

From there Matthews steadily asserted control, opening a 1:33 gap by 70km and leaving the chase pack more than four minutes in arrears as the kilometres ticked down. Matthews rode into T2 first in 2:14:09, shaving three seconds off the bike course best, with Green following 2:20 later and a five‑strong chase group – Thek, Slater, Clutterbuck, Agnew and Lumkes – arriving together nearly 4:30 down as the race headed onto the run.

What happened on the run?

Matthews hit the run with a commanding buffer, holding a 3:39 lead over Thek after 6km as the Australian moved past Green into second, but the toll of winning ANZCO Foods IRONMAN New Zealand two weeks earlier began to show as the kilometres ticked by. After halfway, Matthews’ pace dipped and Thek steadily closed, cutting the deficit to under two minutes by 14km as Slater surged into third.

The gap continued to shrink to less than 1:30 by 16km, before Matthews found another gear late, rallying over the final kilometres to keep Thek at bay as the Australian began to run out of road. Matthews broke the tape in 4:06:14, just 36 seconds clear of Thek, while Jewett once again carved through the field to claim the final podium spot 9:12 back, with Slater holding strong for fourth.

Lead image: GEELONG, AUSTRALIA – MARCH 22: during the IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong on March 22, 2026 in Geelong, Australia. (Photo by Asanka Ratnayake/Getty Images)