{"id":426296,"date":"2025-09-15T12:54:13","date_gmt":"2025-09-15T12:54:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/426296\/"},"modified":"2025-09-15T12:54:13","modified_gmt":"2025-09-15T12:54:13","slug":"skol-norwegian-podium-sweep-as-casper-stornes-becomes-2025-ironman-world-champion-earning-his-title-on-debut-in-nice-france","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/426296\/","title":{"rendered":"Skol! Norwegian Podium Sweep as Casper Stornes becomes 2025 IRONMAN World Champion, earning his title on debut, in Nice, France"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

NICE, France<\/strong> (Sept. 14, 2025) \u2013 History was made on the C\u00f4te d\u2019Azur today, as Casper Stornes of Norway claimed his first IRONMAN World Championship title on debut at the 2025 IRONMAN World Championship in Nice, France, taking home $125,000 USD in professional prize money and 6,000 IRONMAN Pro Series points. Stornes stormed to victory, in a total time of 7:51:39, including running a blazing fast 2:29:25 IRONMAN World Championship best marathon time as he led a Norwegian sweep of the podium. Fellow countrymen and past IRONMAN World Champions, Gustav Iden and Kristian Blummenfelt, came in second and third respectively.<\/p>\n

“I knew I had a chance to win, but I also knew I had some really hard competitors to beat,\u201d said Stornes after claiming the victory. \u201cI am just over the moon. They (Iden and Blummenfelt) have pushed me to the line for so many years. They are the best mates that I can share the podium with and I\u2019m so happy. I had quite a bad transition in T2. When I caught them, they increased the pace out on the second lap. I just stuck to plan and ran a 3:30 (per km) pace and trusted it was too fast of a pace for now. I tried to relax the pace and increase it slowly. I didn\u2019t believe it until it was 3km to go and by then it was too much time to catch me.\u201d<\/p>\n

The pace was on from the get-go as two separate packs of swimmers formed, with the lead group headed up initially by Jamie Riddle (ZAF), Andreas Salvisberg (CHE), and Jonas Schomburg (DEU). 2023 IRONMAN World Champion Sam Laidlow (FRA) looked to be well positioned behind Wilhem Hirsch (DEU) in the second pack, but in a moment that shocked onlookers, Laidlow came to a complete stop momentarily losing valuable seconds and the feet of stronger swimmers. Later explaining he was suffering lower back cramps, Laidlow was able to continue but never looked comfortable in the swim. Ultimately, it was Salvisberg who was first out of the water in 45:11, shadowed by Schomburg and Riddle amongst a group of 12 athletes that featured Marten Van Riel (BEL), and Casper Stornes. Plenty of pre-race favourites swam well, with Rudy Von Berg (USA) +00:52 down on the leader, Kristian Blummenfelt (NOR) +00:56, Matthew Marquardt (USA) +00:59, and Magnus Ditlev (DNK) +1:00. Laidlow exited the water in company with fellow IRONMAN World Champions Patrick Lange (DEU) and Gustav Iden, all around two minutes off the front of the race.<\/p>\n

In typical Schomburg fashion, the IRONMAN World Championship rookie took off through T1 and was first out on the ZOOT Bike Course, but his solo lead was short-lived, with Van Riel and Riddle quickly bridging up to the German to form a lead group of three. The story of the first 90km of the bike, however, was a reinvigorated Laidlow, recovering from his back issue to ride up through the field to join a chase pack that featured the three Norwegians Blummenfelt, Iden, and Stornes, as well as Ditlev and Nick Thompson (AUS). Lange struggled to make any in roads on the bike and began to lose time to the leaders \u2013 the gap blowing out to nearly 14 minutes by the halfway mark.<\/p>\n

The front trio eventually broke up after 120km, with Van Riel putting the hammer down and pulling away on his own while Laidlow and Blummenfelt managed to gap the rest of their chase pack to swallow and then pass Riddle and Schomburg. By the 150km mark, Laidlow finally hit the front of the race for the first time, with Blummenfelt and Van Riel hot on his tail. The chasing pack of Iden, Stornes and Thompson tackled the descent strongly to reduce their deficit to just 40 seconds as the riders sped back towards town.<\/p>\n

Van Riel was the first man off the bike, just seconds ahead of Laidlow and Thompson who made a late surge to join the front group. For the third year in a row, Laidlow who seemed like he may not make it out of the swim, fought valiantly and clocked the fastest IRONMAN World Championship bike split with a time of 4:29:29. Coming in just 20 seconds behind the front three were the Norwegian trio of Blummenfelt, Iden, and Stornes, setting up a run battle for the ages. Ditlev was the seventh man to finish the bike, more than five minutes down on the leaders.<\/p>\n

The audience was in for a treat as a large pack of the top contenders exited T2 together and hit the pavement on the HOKA run course. By the first turn around 5K in, a pack of five that included Van Riel, Laidlow, Iden, Blummenfelt, and Stornes had broken away and with the group each taking pulls while the race appeared open for the taking. The Norwegians began to pull away by the halfway point, the trio running shoulder to shoulder, with Laidlow and Van Riel close behind. However, Stornes\u2019 smooth and relentless cadence started to prevail as the world championship rookie began to put some distance between himself and his fellow countrymen, with Iden chasing close behind and Blummenfelt starting to manage some cramping.<\/p>\n

Stornes would continue to extend his lead and cross the finish line first, also becoming the first athlete to clock an incredible sub-2:30 marathon in the IRONMAN World Championship enroute to his debut victory in the pinnacle event. Iden would earn second, while Blummenfelt would round out the podium completing the Norwegian sweep.<\/p>\n

Top five professional men\u2019s results:<\/p>\n

Full results for the 2025 IRONMAN World Championship triathlon can be found at www.ironman.com\/im-world-championship-nice-results.<\/p>\n

News and Notes<\/strong>
\u2022\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The all-Norwegian podium of Stornes, Iden, and Blummenfelt is the first time a country has taken all three spots since the 2016 IRONMAN World Championship when Germany\u2019s Jan Frodeno, Sebastian Kienle, and Patrick Lange took the top three spots.\u00a0
\u2022\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Casper Stornes follows in the footsteps of his Norwegian training partners (Blummenfelt and Iden) to win an IRONMAN World Championship on debut\u00a0
\u2022\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Joined by a brand-new IRONMAN World Champion in Casper Stornes, four former IRONMAN World Champions finished in the top ten, with three of those finishing in the top five (Patrick Lange in ninth, Sam Laidlow in fifth, Kristian Blummenfelt in third, and Gustav Iden in second)
\u2022\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Andreas Salvisberg (CHE) was the first athlete out of the water in 45:11, setting a new IRONMAN World Championship best swim time \u2013 eclipsing the previous best time set by a professional athlete of 46:29 by Jan Sibbersen (DEU) in Kona in 2018.
\u2022\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0For the third IRONMAN World Championship in a row, Sam Laidlow (FRA) posted the fastest bike split of the day. His time of 4:29:29 was two minutes faster than the time he posted in Nice two years ago.
\u2022\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jonas Schomberg (DEU) would turnover the fastest transition in T1 of the day in a time of 2:03
\u2022\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Stornes would break the tape, running the fastest run split of the day with an incredible 2:29:25 setting a new IRONMAN World Championship run course best, and breaking the elusive 2:30 mark at the IRONMAN World Championship.<\/p>\n

IRONMAN Pro Series Standings \u00a0<\/strong>
The IRONMAN Pro Series\u2122 is a year-long performance-based triathlon race series with professional triathletes being able to earn points at 18 select races in 17 locations globally. 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\u2122 with every second behind the race winner equating to a point earned or lost. For any athlete, only their top five event results count towards their overall Pro Series points and standing, of which a maximum of three IRONMAN results can be counted. How it works can be found here. \u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n

In the men\u2019s standings, Kristian Blummenfelt\u2019s third place finish sees him return to the top of the standings, with his 5,703 points earned, while Stornes\u2019 victory (+6,000 points) moves him up six spots into second place, and Gustav Iden, who earned 5,846 points, moves six spots up to third. Germany\u2019s Jonas Hoffmann moves up six spots into fifth, and Australia\u2019s Nick Thompson moves five spots up into eighth position in the standings.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Overall IRONMAN Pro Series Standings \u2013 Top Five Male (After 15 Events) \u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

Total IRONMAN Pro Series Points (Max Top 5 events)<\/strong>\u202f\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>\n\n

Total Eligible Races Scored<\/strong>\u202f\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>\n\n

Eligible IRONMAN Races Scored<\/strong>\u202f\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>\n\n

Eligible IRONMAN 70.3 Races Scored<\/strong>\u202f\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n\n\n

Kristian Blummenfelt (NOR)\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/td>\n\n\n\n<\/tr>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<\/tr>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<\/tr>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<\/tr>\n\n\n\n

Jonas Hoffmann (DEU)\u202f\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/td>\n\n\n\n<\/tr>\n

Full IRONMAN Pro Series standings can be found at proseries.ironman.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Overall IRONMAN Pro Series Event Prize Money\u00a0<\/strong>
In addition to the IRONMAN Pro Series\u2019 $1.7M year-end bonus prize pool, there is an event pro prize purse payout of $2,450,000, distributed across IRONMAN Pro Series events. With twelve races now complete, over one million USD has been earned by professional athletes so far \u2013 leaving just under $1.5million USD to be claimed at the remaining events. \u00a0
\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0
Top Five Male Prize Money Earned (After 1<\/strong>5 Events)\u202f\u202f\u202f\u202f\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

IRONMAN <\/strong>World Championship Prize Money\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>\n\n

Total Prize Money<\/strong>\u202f\u202f\u202f\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n\n\n

Casper Stornes (NOR)\u202f\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/td>\n\n<\/tr>\n\n\n\n

Kristian Blummenfelt (NOR)\u202f\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/td>\n\n<\/tr>\n\n\n\n\n<\/tr>\n\n\n\n

Matthew Marquardt (USA)\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/td>\n\n<\/tr>\n\n\n\n

Marten Van Riel (BEL)\u202f\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/td>\n\n<\/tr>\n

\u202f\u202f<\/p>\n

Next IRONMAN Pro Series Events Coming Up\u00a0<\/strong>
Next up, Kailua-Kona, Hawai`i will host the women\u2019s 2025 IRONMAN World Championship, and with 6,000 IRONMAN Pro Series points and a share of another $375,000 up for grabs, fans of the sport can expect another incredible day of racing with potential for a similar standings shake up.<\/p>\n

For more information about the 2025 IRONMAN World Championship in Nice, France, please visit www.ironman.com\/races\/im-world-championship-nice<\/a>. For more information on the IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 brands and global event series, visit www.ironman.com<\/a>. Media inquiries may be directed to [email\u00a0protected]<\/a>.<\/p>\n

###<\/p>\n

About the IRONMAN World Championship<\/strong>
On February 18, 1978, 15 competitors came to the shores of Waikiki, Hawai`i to take on the first-ever IRONMAN\u00ae triathlon. It was an idea hatched by John Collins, a Naval Officer stationed in Hawai`i, and his wife Judy during a swim club gathering. Collins’ proposal was a friendly test of fitness combining the three toughest endurance races on Oahu into one race: The 2.4-mile Waikiki Rough-water Swim, the 112-mile Around-Oahu Bike Race, followed by a 26.2-mile run on the Honolulu Marathon course. That first race would set the stage for what IRONMAN triathlon would become: the most-challenging single-day sporting event in the world, and a brand symbolizing the belief that “ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE\u00ae.\u201d Since its inception in 1978 on the Island of O`ahu and continued history in Kona on the Island of Hawai`i with recent stops in St. George, Utah and Nice, France, the IRONMAN World Championship\u00ae triathlon has etched its name in history through historic performances, inspiring athletes, and a lifetime of memories that define the sport of triathlon today. The IRONMAN World Championship remains the most iconic single-day endurance sporting event in the world and is the culmination of 40 global IRONMAN events with over 94,000 athletes around the world striving for one of the coveted qualifying slots of any sporting event in the world. For more information, visit www.ironman.com\/races\/im-world-championship<\/a>.<\/p>\n

About IRONMAN Pro Series<\/strong>
The IRONMAN Pro Series\u2122 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\u2019s share of the lucrative $1.7 million USD year-end bonus prize pool. \u00a0Along 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 \u2013 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\u00ae and eight IRONMAN\u00ae 70.3\u00ae triathlons, as well as the IRONMAN World Championship\u00ae women\u2019s and men\u2019s 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<\/a>.<\/p>\n

About The IRONMAN Group<\/strong>
The IRONMAN Group is the world\u2019s largest operator of participation sports with a portfolio of brands, events, media, partners, merchandise, and digital platforms operating in over 50 countries worldwide. A global portfolio consisting of hundreds of events includes the IRONMAN\u00ae Triathlon Series, the IRONMAN\u00ae 70.3\u00ae Triathlon Series, 5150\u00ae Triathlon Series, IRONKIDS\u00ae, premier running events including the Rock \u2018n\u2019 Roll\u00ae Running Series, the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon\u2122 and City2Surf\u00ae, the UTMB\u00ae World Series of trail running, the Epic Series\u2122 of mountain biking including the Absa Cape Epic\u00ae, and a collection of road cycling and other multisport races. Since the inception of the iconic IRONMAN\u00ae brand and its first event in 1978, millions of athletes have proven that ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE\u00ae by crossing finish lines around the world. From its beginnings as a single race among friends in Hawai\u2019i, The IRONMAN Group has become a global sensation and collection of high-growth lifestyle brands that inspire people to unlock their potential in life. For more information, visit www.ironman.com\/about\/ironman-group<\/a>.
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