Today, at 5.15pm NZ time, Kiwi professional triathlete Hannah Berry from Tauranga will take on the best in the world at the 2024 VinFast IRONMAN World Championship in Nice, France. 

This year, Nice is hosting the dedicated women’s IRONMAN World Championship race day for the first time, while male triathletes will line up in Kailua-Kona, Hawai`i on October 26. 

The most iconic endurance event in the world will bring together close to 50 of the world’s top professional female triathletes to compete for the coveted title of IRONMAN World Champion and a piece of the $375,000 USD professional prize purse, with the winner taking home $125,000 USD.  

The IRONMAN Pro Series adds another exciting layer to race day, with 6,000 points on offer to the winner.

The IRONMAN Pro Series is a year-long performance-based world series that sees professional triathletes earn points at 20 select races in 19 locations globally to vie for the title of IRONMAN Pro Series Champion and a share of the lucrative $1.7 million USD year-end bonus prize pool. 

Berry, from Tauranga, will line up for her second IRONMAN World Championship a year on from her impressive debut in Kona last October where she finished 11th and has been training on the course in Nice for the past few weeks.

“It’s a really happening place here in Nice, we’re actually staying a little bit out of town which has been nice because it’s pretty busy in here,” said Berry.

“The place is beautiful, the course is unbelievable, it’s so beautiful along the top and it’s been really nice to be training here because it’s such a beautiful course to be riding on.

"I’ve really enjoyed my time here, the training has been good, it’s been nice to get out here early and see the course again, I did do a little recce last year, it’s going to be a big race on Sunday.”

After a strong season to date highlighted by victory at the Cairns Airport IRONMAN Asia-Pacific Championship Cairns in June, Berry will be hoping she can break into the top 10 at this year’s IRONMAN World Championship and continue her quest for the 2024 IRONMAN Pro Series title. 

“I don’t like to put a position so much on this, I just really want to have a good, consistent, day out there, it’s going to be a challenge because of the course, it’s going to be really tricky to get it right, so it’s going to be a really interesting race day,” said Berry.

“I just want to race smart basically, if I was to put a positioning on it I would say just a better result than last year, last year I got 11th in Kona, I’m also number 11 so it’s that beat your number type of thing.

“I’m looking forward to the descent on the bike, getting to that top, it’s obviously a big climb up there and I do really like descending and I just want to go down the descent relaxed, obviously trying to go fast but also enjoying it because I think for me when I enjoy the descent it just flows, so I’m looking forward to trying to feel that,” she said.

New Zealand professional triathlete Hannah Berry claimed the 2024 Cairns Airport IRONMAN Asia Pacific Championship Cairns title in June. Photo: Korupt Vision.

Berry is looking forward to the challenge of racing in a World Championship on a course that will test the best in the sport.

“It’s a course like no other, I can’t even put that bike course into words, it’s stunning, I think you’ve got to come and do this course, it’s going to be super rewarding on race day to make it to the finish line because it’s just such a hard, challenging and spectacular course out there, I think this is a true test physically and mentally,” said Berry.

As a nod to the immense triathlon history that exists in the European birthplace of long-distance triathlon that is Nice, France, the IRONMAN World Championship race will be centred around the “Promenade des Anglais”, Nice’s most famous walkway. 

Beginning with the Mediterranean Sea swim, athletes will enter and exit the water from the Promenade des Anglais, before embarking on one of the most iconic bike courses in all of the triathlon world. Technical and challenging but rewarding in its beauty, it features up to 2,400m of elevation.

The flat four lap run course will take runners up and down the Promenade des Anglais. Adorned with palm trees and noisy spectators, athletes will enjoy a true hero’s welcome home as they run down the magic red carpet to finish their IRONMAN World Championship journey.   

The women’s professional race at the 2024 VinFast IRONMAN World Championship begins at 7.15am CET (5.15pm NZT) on Sunday September 22.

Live race day coverage will be broadcast for free across multiple platforms for global viewers including proseries.ironman.com, Outside TV in the U.S. and Canada, DAZN, L’Équipe in France, and YouTube, among others. 

For more information about the 2024 VinFast IRONMAN World Championship events, please visit www.ironman.com/im-world-championship.   

About the IRONMAN World Championship 

Since its inception in 1978 on the Island of O`ahu, the IRONMAN World Championship triathlon has etched its name in history through stellar performances, inspirational participants and emotional memories.

In 1981, the race moved from the tranquil shores of Waikīkī to the barren lava fields of Kona on the Island of Hawai`i. The most iconic one-day sporting event in the world is the culmination of 40 global IRONMAN events with over 94,000 athletes around the world striving for one of the coveted qualifying slots.

The 2021 edition of the event took place in St. George, Utah in May 2022, becoming the first location to host the event outside of Hawai`i since its origins in 1978. After a two-year hiatus from Hawai`i due to COVID, the race returned to Kailua-Kona in 2022 and for the first time took place as a two-day event.

The 2023 VinFast IRONMAN World Championship race continued with the two-day format but with two different host locations and dates (Nice, France in September and Kailua-Kona, Hawai`i in October), to allow for a dedicated world championship race for women and dedicated world championship race for men.

The cumulative event hosted over 4,000 athletes embarking on a 140.6-mile journey that presents the ultimate test of body, mind, and spirit to earn the title of IRONMAN World Champion.

In 2024, the women will rotate to Nice, France while the men return to Kailua-Kona, Hawai`i for their respective world championship host locations. For more information, visit www.ironman.com/im-world-championship.  

About IRONMAN Pro Series 

The IRONMAN Pro Series is a year-long performance-based world series that will see professional triathletes earn points at 20 select races in 19 locations globally to vie for the title of IRONMAN Pro Series Champion and a share of the lucrative USD $1.7 million year-end bonus prize pool.

Athletes will also continue to battle for each individual event’s prize money equating to over USD $2.5 million and coveted world championship qualifying slots.

The IRONMAN Pro Series will consist of six full-distance IRONMAN triathlons and 10 half-distance IRONMAN 70.3 triathlons in addition to the split location women’s and men’s VinFast IRONMAN World Championship triathlons and two-day women’s and men’s VinFast IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship triathlons.

Open to approximately 1,000 eligible professional triathletes worldwide, the IRONMAN Pro Series will usher in a new era of IRONMAN racing where Every Second Matters with every second behind the race winner equating 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.

An additional 18 events throughout 2024 will also offer IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 professional racing and world championship qualifying opportunities, as well as over USD $1.6 million in prize money to create a total 2024 professional prize purse of nearly USD $6 million. 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, World Triathlon Championship Series, 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.

Catering to the full athlete experience, the company portfolio also includes FulGaz virtual cycling, the most realistic indoor riding experience connected fitness application aimed at preparing athletes for real-world events.

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. The IRONMAN Group is owned by Advance, a private, family-owned business, and Orkila Capital, a growth equity firm focused on building great brands. For more information, visit www.ironman.com/about-ironman-group.