The 2025 IRONMAN Pro Series Ready to Roar into Life as Start List Revealed for IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong Triathlon Season Opener

March 5, 2025

- IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong triathlon is set to open the second season of the IRONMAN Pro Series with a bang as nearly 60 professional triathletes will line up Down Under, competing for a total event pro prize purse of USD $50,000 and 2,500 series points - Two former IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong champions return in the women’s race – Grace Thek (AUS), and Hannah Berry (NZL) - Reigning IRONMAN 70.3 World Champion Jelle Geens (BEL) is set to ignite the men’s race and will face defending IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong champion Sam Osborne (NZL), a host of Olympians, and seasoned campaigners

GEELONG, Australia / TAMPA, Fla./ENDURANCE SPORTSWIRE/ – Excitement is building as the season opener of the 2025 IRONMAN Pro Series™ draws nearer. In just under three weeks’ time on Sunday 23 March, nearly 60 professional triathletes will line up in Geelong, a bayside city in the Australian state of Victoria, for the IRONMAN^® 70.3^® Geelong triathlon – the first race of this year’s IRONMAN Pro Series.

2024 men’s champion Sam Osborne (NZL) will return to defend his title against an exciting line up of Olympians and the 2024 IRONMAN 70.3 World Champion Jelle Geens (BEL), while former women’s champions in Geelong, Grace Thek (AUS) and Hannah Berry (NZL) will go head-to-head alongside a host of stars from the Oceania region and beyond.

The second season of the IRONMAN Pro Series in 2025 will build on the success of its inaugural year. The performance-based world series will continue to showcase and reward the world’s top professional triathletes as they vie for points and event prize money towards the title of IRONMAN Pro Series champion and their share of USD $1.7 million in year-end bonus pool payouts.

The 2025 IRONMAN Pro Series will be contested over 18 events and 17 race locations, including a combination of six IRONMAN^® and eight IRONMAN 70.3 triathlons from around the globe as well as the IRONMAN World Championship^® women’s and men’s races and IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship triathlon.

The IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong event will offer professional triathletes a total prize purse of USD $50,000 and three qualifying slots per gender to the 2025 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Marbella, Spain, on 8-9 November. As an IRONMAN 70.3 triathlon, 2,500 points are on offer to the race winners in Geelong.

The race will be broadcast live and for free across multiple platforms for viewers around the world including proseries.ironman.com, Outside TV for US and Canada viewers, DAZN, iQIYI and YouTube among others.

In the women’s field, Grace Thek is set to line up for her eighth IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong triathlon, a near hometown race that she holds close to her heart. After making her professional debut there in 2018, Thek stood on the podium for five years in a row before finally claiming victory in 2023. A further podium would follow a year later.

Berry is another former IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong winner back on the start for a shot at a second title. The Kiwi is a six-time IRONMAN 70.3 champion and had an impressive 2024 as she finished fourth in the inaugural edition of the IRONMAN Pro Series.

Regan Hollioake (AUS) will enter this race hot on the heels of her impressive ANZCO Foods IRONMAN New Zealand win last weekend – her third IRONMAN triathlon title on the bounce after securing wins at the IRONMAN Australia and IRONMAN Malaysia triathlons in 2024. Strong and consistent across all three disciplines, Hollioake is one to keep an eye on in the race for the 2025 IRONMAN Pro Series crown.

Joining Hollioake and the former champions on the start line with an eye on the title will be Australians Milan Agnew, the 2024 IRONMAN 70.3 Sunshine Coast champion, Penny Slater, who finished 10^th in the women’s IRONMAN Pro Series in 2024, and Natalie Van Coevorden, a Paris Olympian chasing her first IRONMAN 70.3 triathlon victory.

The IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong men’s field is headlined by IRONMAN 70.3 World Champion Jelle Geens. The Belgian, who recently relocated to live and train in Australia, will be a hard man to beat following his course best setting IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship victory in December.

Though his 2024 victory flew largely under the radar, reigning IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong champion Sam Osborne is a force to be reckoned with. The Kiwi, who has previously focused on off-road triathlons, backed up his March win with podium finishes at three more IRONMAN 70.3 triathlons throughout 2024 – Philippines, Maine, and Sunshine Coast.

Another exciting name on the start list is two-time Olympian Matt Hauser (AUS), who is set to make his IRONMAN 70.3 triathlon debut in Geelong. In finishing seventh in the men’s individual triathlon in Paris last year, Hauser became the highest placed Australian in the Olympic event since Athens in 2004.

Hauser will be joined on the start line by fellow Olympians Jake Birtwhistle (AUS), who has already tasted IRONMAN 70.3 victory in Tasmania in 2023 and two-time Olympian Aaron Royle (AUS). Adding to the intriguing dynamic that these short course athletes will bring to middle distance racing is New Zealand’s Tayler Reid.

From newcomers to experienced campaigners, the likes of Braden Currie (NZL), Arnaud Guilloux (FRA), and Cameron Wurf (AUS) will be hoping to lay down strong performances in Geelong to kickstart their 2025 IRONMAN Pro Series tilts. Despite not having the year he had hoped for, Currie still finished ninth overall in the 2024 men’s standings. Guilloux meanwhile began his 2024 campaign strongly, but a DNF at the IRONMAN World Championship derailed his chances of a top 10 finish in the IRONMAN Pro Series (he would still finish 15^th overall). Wurf finished 21^st overall despite only racing three Pro Series events. He will be one to keep an eye on in 2025 as he looks to dedicate his season to the series this year, rather than splitting his time between professional cycling and triathlon as he has done previously.

The bayside city of Geelong is a gem that is no longer hidden on the IRONMAN 70.3 circuit, attracting athletes from Australia and around the world to race over its fair and scenic course – renowned for mild conditions, amazing crowd support, and a laidback and easy race vibe. The course is the perfect mix of fast and challenging to both tempt and test athletes, with the 2025 event to be its 15^th running.

The IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong race starts with a 1.9km (1.2-mile) swim in the calm, protected waters of Corio Bay followed by a two-lap 90km (56-mile) bike course that takes in the countryside, the salt flats and urban landscape. It finishes with a scenic two-lap 21.1km (13.1-mile) run course which brings athletes along the spectacular waterfront before weaving along the main tourism strip of waterfront Geelong.

The 2025 IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong triathlon will welcome over 1,400 registered age-group participants alongside the professionals, looking to earn age-group qualifying slots to the 2025 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship triathlon on November 8-9 in Marbella, Spain.

Below are the professional start lists (subject to change):

For more information on the IRONMAN Pro Series visit here.

For more information on the 2025 IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong triathlon visit www.ironman.com/races/im703-geelong. 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 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 operates a global portfolio of events that includes the IRONMAN^® Triathlon Series, the IRONMAN^® 70.3^® Triathlon Series, 5150™ Triathlon Series, the Rock ‘n’ Roll^® Running Series, IRONKIDS^®, premier running events including the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon™ and City2Surf^®, UTMB^® World Series trail-running events including the Canyons Endurance Runs™ by UTMB^®, Tarawera Ultra-Trail™ by UTMB^® and Ultra-Trail Australia™ by UTMB^®, Epic Series™ mountain bike races including the Absa Cape Epic^®, road cycling events, and other multisport races. The IRONMAN Group is the largest operator of mass participation sports in the world, providing participants the benefits of endurance sports through the company’s vast offerings. Since the inception of the iconic IRONMAN^® brand and its first event in 1978, athletes have proven that ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE^® by crossing finish lines around the world. Beginning as a single race, The IRONMAN Group has grown to become a global sensation with hundreds of events across 55+ countries. For more information, visit www.ironman.com/about-ironman-group.