It’s almost my favourite time of year! 

Next to Christmas and the Oscars, the IRONMAN World Championship in Kona, Hawaii, has been my favourite event since I started dabbling in triathlon back in 2009. 

Athletes who inspired me to start participating in the sport – after viewing their performances on YouTube when I randomly Googled,’How to do a triathlon’ 🙂 – included the likes of Chrissie Wellington, Mirinda Carfrae and Daniela Ryf. 

I even got to see them live when I travelled to the Big Island a couple of times to watch friends participate in the event. 

Those were honestly the best trips– running along the infamous Ali’i Drive and through the Energy Lab, riding along the Queen K and swimming in the spectacular Kailua Bay – ahh-mazing! 

Now, we’re just 2 weeks away from this year’s Women’s IRONMAN World Championship (IMWC), and it’s set to be a historic Kona showdown. 

2025 Women’s IMWC

Nearly 60 of the world’s best female triathletes will converge on Kailua-Kona, Hawai‘i, on 11 October for the 2025 IRONMAN World Championship — an all-star field chasing 6000 Pro Series points and a USD $375,000 prize purse.

Reigning champion Laura Philipp (GER) tops the start list, returning to Kona after her record-breaking 8:03:13 at IRONMAN Hamburg. Philipp arrives undefeated in 2025 and will wear the number-one bib for the first time. 

Her main rival is Kat Matthews (GBR), the current IRONMAN Pro Series leader. Matthews has three wins this season and a personal best of 8:10:34, setting up a rematch of last year’s world championship battle.

Chelsea Sodaro (USA), the 2022 Kona winner, brings proven big-race form, while Lucy Charles-Barclay (GBR) — the last woman to claim Kona before Sodaro—returns fit after an injury-interrupted 2024. Charles-Barclay signalled her readiness with victories at IRONMAN Lanzarote and 70.3 Eagleman.

The depth continues: three IRONMAN 70.3 world champions line up, including Taylor Knibb (USA), fresh off her third consecutive 70.3 crown, and new mothers-turned-contenders Holly Lawrence (GBR) and Anne Reischmann (GER). 

Rising names such as Norway’s Solveig Løvseth and Switzerland’s Julie Derron add rookie intrigue—recent history shows first-timers can win on debut.

Aussies to watch include Penny Slater, Regan Hollioake (shoutout to my past coach, Sarah Mulkearns, Director and Head Coach of Complete Per4mance Coaching – Sarah coaches Regan!) and Katie Redmond.  

And, of course, being married to a Frenchman, we’ll also be following French fave and fourth-place finisher at the 2024 IRONMAN World Championship in Nice, Marjolaine Pierré (FRA). 

Athletes will tackle Kona’s classic 2.4-mile swim in Kailua Bay, the notorious 112-mile Queen K bike with its crosswinds and lava fields, and a marathon finishing on Ali‘i Drive before thousands of spectators.

To view the event, live coverage will stream on YouTube, with the broadcast starting at 4:30 AM HST, or 12:30 AM AEST on Sunday, 12 October 2025, for those of us in Aus. 

The full list of professional women’s field

Bib First Name Last Name Country Represented

1 Laura Philipp, Germany (DEU)

2 Kat Matthews, United Kingdom (GBR)

3 Chelsea Sodaro, United States (USA)

4 Marjolaine Pierré, France (FRA)

5 Lucy Charles-Barclay, United Kingdom (GBR)

6 Taylor Knibb, United States (USA)

7 Marta Sanchez, Spain (ESP)

8 Penny Slater, Australia (AUS)

9 Lotte Wilms, Netherlands (NLD)

10 Jackie Hering, United States (USA)

11 Hannah Berry, New Zealand (NZL)

12 Anne Reischmann, Germany (DEU)

14 Regan Hollioake, Australia (AUS)

16 Solveig Løvseth, Norway (NOR)

17 India Lee, United Kingdom (GBR)

18 Julie Derron, Switzerland (CHE)

19 Katrine Græsbøll Christensen, Denmark (DNK)

20 Lisa Perterer, Austria (AUT)

21 Marlene De Boer, The Netherlands (NLD)

22 Julie Iemmolo, France (FRA)

23 Skye Moench, United States (USA)

24 Danielle Lewis, United States (USA)

25 Tamara Jewett, Canada (CAN)

26 Laura Jansen, Germany (DEU)

27 Maja Stage Nielsen, Denmark (DNK)

28 Alice Alberts, United States (USA)

29 Henrike Güber, Germany (DEU)

30 Jenny Jendryschik, Germany (DEU)

31 Rebecca Clarke, New Zealand (NZL)

32 Charlene Clavel, France (FRA)

33 Sara Svensk, Sweden (SWE) 

34 Rebecca Anderbury, United Kingdom (GBR)

35 Gabrielle Lumkes, United States (USA)

36 Holly Lawrence, United Kingdom (GBR)

38 Stephanie Clutterbuck, United Kingdom (GBR)

39 Jana Uderstadt, Germany (DEU)

41 Leonie Konczalla, Germany (DEU)

42 Haley Chura, United States (USA)

43 Jocelyn McCauley, United States (USA)

44 Diede Diederiks, The Netherlands (NLD)

45 Katie Remond, Australia (AUS)

46 Fiona Moriarty, Ireland (IRL)

47 Jodie Robertson, United States (USA)

48 Alexandra Watt-Shannon, United States (USA)

49 Jeanne Collonge, France (FRA)

50 Lottie Lucas, United Arab Emirates (ARE) 

51 ElsVisser, The Netherlands (NLD)

52 Merle Brunnée, Germany (DEU) 

53 Nina Derron, Switzerland (CHE)

54 Justine Mathieux, France (FRA)

55 Rachel Olson, United States (USA)

56 Annamarie Strehlow, United States (USA)

57 Julia Skala, Germany (DEU) 

58 Bruna Stolf, Brazil (BRA)

59 Elisabetta Curridori, Italy (ITA)

60 Katie Colville, United States (USA)

*Subject to change