Who would win a celebrity triathlon? Our top five includes an F1 driver, cyclist, chef, swimmer and reality TV star

Triathlon has attracted dozens of celebrities. A-listers like Jennifer Lopez and Matthew McConaughey have taken part at Malibu Triathlon while others, including Gordon Ramsay, appear to be genuine devotees of multisport. But who is the fastest down both red carpets? Short of a celeb head-to-head contest, we’ve pored over race results and used a little journalistic licence to make our best guess. So in no particular order …

1. Jenson Button

Former F1 world champion used triathlon training to stay fit for car racing and put in some impressive multisport performances. 

He might be best known in triathlon for getting disqualified for speeding at an Ironman 70.3 event in 2017, but he finished 35th overall at the 2013 Ironman 70.3 Berlin in a personal best of 4:19:52. He went quicker over the distance at the non-Iron-official 2017 Cowman Triathlon in 4:13:13. Over shorter distances, he finished fourth in his age group at the 2010 London Triathlon and recorded a speedy 1:09:50 at the Blenheim Palace Triathlon in 2011. 

He no longer competes in triathlon, but must be one of the fastest celebrity multisporters. 

2. Lance Armstrong

We’re blurring the lines between sportsman and celebrity here, but when Lance Armstrong returned to triathlon (his childhood sport) in 2011 after ‘winning’ seven Tour de France titles he was a genuine star. 

Over Ironman 70.3 in 2012, he won in Hawaii and Florida, clocking a 3:45:38 PB, came second in Panama and finished third in St Croix.

However, after being outed as a serial doping cheat in June that year he was banned for life from all sports under the World Anti-Doping Code, including triathlon. As a result he was stripped of his cycling and Ironman results. 

3. Adam Peaty

Okay, one more sportsman racing triathlon here. Olympic gold-medal winning swimmer Adam Peaty completed the London T100 in 02:34:37, a respectable effort considering he competed over minutes not hours in the pool and had done little running or cycling beforehand. 

4. Paul Ainsworth

Gordon Ramsay may be the highest profile celebrity chef in triathlon, but Paul Ainsworth is quicker. The head of the Michelin-starred Paul Ainsworth at No6 in Padstow, Cornwall, finished the 2025 Ironman 70.3 Costa Navarino in 5:29:17, more than an hour ahead of Ramsay. Ainsworth has also raced the Ironman 70.3 Zell am See-Kaprun in 2024 and 2025, and aims to step up to full distance in 2026. 

5. Spencer Matthews

If there was a prize for endurance among celebrity multisporters Spencer Matthews would have it. The former Made in Chelsea star completed seven iron-distance triathlons on seven continents in a little over three weeks in December 2025. This extraordinary feat dubbed Project Se7en constituted a Guinness World Record, as did his time for a 140.6-mile triathlon on Antarctica (28 hours 51 minutes 11 seconds). 

Inspired yourself? Read our guide to the toughest triathlons in the world.