In the inaugural Ironman Pro Series in 2026, Cat Matthews achieved a record victory while the men’s race went down to the wire as Trevor Foley took victory in the final third of the marathon.
Ironman New Zealand kicked off the Ironman Pro series when Kat Matthews and Trevor Foley won gold. (Photo: Triathlete)
Updated March 6, 2026 at 10:04 p.m
Ironman New Zealand has started Ironman Pro Series 26-year-old American Trevor Foley ran a marathon in 2:35 to win a tight battle, while 2025 Pro Series champion Christian Blummenfelt (NOR) struggled with major mechanical and stomach problems on the bike.
On the women’s side, reigning Pro Series champion Kat Matthews (GBR) overcame a small swimming deficit for most of the bike before riding with Kiwis Hannah Berry and Lotte Wilms (NED) and then made a statement to win the marathon by nearly seven minutes in 2:51.
The Ironman Pro Series kicked off earlier than usual this year, with more than 40 athletes gathering at the opening ceremony to score valuable points and get their season off to a strong start.
In doing so, they also had to contend with their first Ironman performance a new 20-meter projectat the beginning of February announced and appointed to apply to all Ironman races moving forward.
All eyes were on Blummenfelt and Matthews heading into Taupo, but new Pro Series entrants such as Pierre Le Corre (FRA) and Tamara Jewett (CAN) were ready to challenge their favourites.
In the men’s race, disaster struck early on Blummenfelt’s bike after he exited the water just 90 seconds into the water when his right cockpit extension came off, forcing him to hold onto it for a significant portion of the bike while only having to rest on his left tire.
The defending champion’s further misfortune from the series came when he started vomiting on the run, slowing his pace considerably and leaving him to finish sixth – albeit enough to confirm his place for Kona.
After a spectacular swim at the end of 2025 that required surgery for a fracture, Kyle Smith (NZL) was the first to set the pace on the bike, building a 3:30 lead that eventually stretched to over six minutes as Blumenfelt, Foley and Matt Hanson.
That rhythm continued early in the run as Smith extended his lead to the cheers of the home crowd, before gradually fading in the back half of the marathon. It was Smith’s first Ironman since Kona in 2022.
Foley, Matt Hanson (USA), Le Corre and Jack Moody (NZL) were the first to capitalize, all running marathon pace at just over 2:30 at this point.
Foley was the first to overtake Smith, before Hanson and Le Corre followed, all three within a minute before the 20-mile mark in the marathon. Foley managed to get off to a perfect start to the 2026 campaign, which was originally set to begin at the end of the month in Oceanside.
2026 Ironman New Zealand Men’s Results
On the women’s side, a group of four emerged from the swim led by Fenella Langridge (GBR), including a strong swim from New Zealand’s Hannah Berry, giving them a lead of more than two and a half minutes over Matthews and defending champion Regan Hollyoak (AUS).
Hollyoak lost his helmet attempt at T1 and quickly lost contact with the pack as Berry set the pace early on and at one point held off Matthews for nearly three minutes.
That margin quickly disappeared when Matthews stepped on the bike. He took the lead for more than a quarter of the ride and stayed there with Berry and Wilms – interestingly, despite the new 20m zone – until T2.
From there, the two-time Pro Series champion never looked back. Matthews recorded the second fastest marathon of the day to take the win and maximum points, while Tamara Jewett posted an outstanding split of 2:42:40, narrowly missing out on the podium behind Wilms, but earning a well-deserved world title.
2026 Ironman New Zealand Women’s Results
Matthews’ record-breaking performance was marked by a calf injury 2025 70.3 World Championship in Marbella is definitely behind her. He will look to continue that momentum at 70.3 Geelong, where more points could help set him free for the rest of the season.
Looking ahead on the men’s side, Blummenfelt may need to add another Ironman score to make up the deficit for this race, while Foley, who didn’t compete in the Pro Series last year, has a perfect start and continues the rest of his schedule – all of North America in three weeks at the Oceanside 70.3.
