On Sunday 18 May, the IRONMAN® Pro Series will land in the Côte d'Azur region of southern France, with the IRONMAN® 70.3® Aix-en-Provencetriathlon. Nearly 100 professional athletes are slated to be on the start line and will be racing for a maximum of 2,500 IRONMAN Pro Series points, a share of the $50,000 USD prize purse and three slots per gender for the 2025 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship triathlon in Marbella, Spain.??
The?event can be viewed live in person and will be broadcast across multiple platforms for viewers around the world, for free, including?proseries.ironman.com, Outside TV for US and Canada viewers, DAZN and l’Équipe in France, iQIYI and YouTube among others.?
The reigning champion from last year’s edition of IRONMAN 70.3 Aix-en-Provence triathlon, Ruben Zepuntke (DEU), will be wearing the men’s bib number one. Last year, Zepuntke dominated the hilly bike course, clocking the fastest split of the day in a blistering 2:04:36, and will no doubt be looking to repeat a similar performance this year, but he will face tough competition from the newly crowned IRONMAN North American Champion, Kristian Blummenfelt (NOR). Blummenfelt will be hoping for a drama-free day after a puncture in his last IRONMAN 70.3 triathlon in Oceanside cost him nearly 15 minutes.
Fellow Norwegians and training partners, Casper Stornes and Gustav Iden, come off the back of fifth and 13th places respectively at the Memorial Hermann IRONMAN Texas North American Championship and will also provide stiff competition.
Fresh off a fifth and sixth place finish respectively at IRONMAN 70.3 Venice-Jesolo triathlon this weekend gone, Olympians Jonas Schomburg (DEU) and Pierre Le Corre (FRA) will also be hot on the chase. Le Corre, who ran the fastest run split of the day in a time of 1:06:37 will no doubt be hoping his legs recover in time for the hills of Provence.
The deep field also features South African Olympian and IRONMAN 70.3 Asia-Pacific Championship?Western Australia runner up Jamie Riddle, and IRONMAN Calella-Barcelona runner up, Wilhelm Hirsch (DEU), both of whom are expected to set a lightning-fast pace in the swim portion of the race.
Leon Chevalier (FRA) will continue his IRONMAN Pro Series campaign, after placing 12th at ISUZU IRONMAN South Africa African Championship and ninth at Memorial Hermann IRONMAN Texas North American Championship, and will no doubt be hoping the home crowds will play to his advantage.
Local interest also comes in the guise of two-time IRONMAN European Champion, Denis Chevrot, and last year’s runner-up, Simon Viain.
Marta Sanchez (ESP) will headline the all-star female professional field. Sanchez has had a strong start to the season so far after placing second at the ISUZU IRONMAN South Africa African Championship triathlon just over a month ago, and comes off a fantastic 2024 season which saw her clock up three victories, including IRONMAN 70.3 Asia-Pacific Championship Western Australia triathlon, showing that her middle-distance form is just as strong as her long-distance form.
Julie Iemmolo (FRA) will be returning home to Aix, after coming third at the event last year and comes fresh off a personal best over the distance in Venice, where she finished 14th.
She will be joined by fellow French star, Marjolaine Pierré (FRA), who came second in the age-group race back in 2019. Pierré, who came fourth at the IRONMAN World Championship® race in Nice last year, will be hoping for similar luck on French soil.
All eyes will also be on the Austrian, Lisa Perterer, who came third at the Memorial Hermann IRONMAN Texas North American Championship triathlon, her second ever IRONMAN race. Known for performing well under hot conditions, Perterer will be hoping the South of France lives up to its sunny reputation to give her that competitive edge.
British contingent including the likes of Nikki Bartlett and Lizzie Rayner are also among those to watch.
Below are the professional start lists (subject to change):?
Situated in the glamorous South of France, just 20 miles north of Marseille, the IRONMAN 70.3 Aix-en-Provence triathlon is France’s spectacular season opener.
Athletes will take on the 1.9km (1.2 miles) ROKA Swim Course in the Lac de Peyrolles. After completing one rectangular loop, athletes will then embark on the point to point ZOOT Bike Course which takes them through the magnificent scenery of Provence, and to the centre of Aix, where T2 is based. The 21.1 km (13.1 mile) HOKA run in three loops will take athletes through the heart of Aix-en-Provence, through the city's parks and around the La Rotonde fountain, before finishing on the iconic tree-lined Cours Mirabeau.
In addition to the professional field, over 2,600?registered participants?will compete at the IRONMAN 70.3 Aix-en-Provence triathlon on the same course, looking to earn age-group qualifying slots to the 2025 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship triathlon taking place on November 8-9 in Marbella, Spain.??
For more information on the IRONMAN Pro Series visit Here.???