Wonderful pro field prepares for Ironman South Africa, Magnus Ditlev and Marta Sanches biggest stars

Ironman South Africa

In just over two weeks’ time on Sunday 30 March, 70 of the world’s top professional triathletes will converge in Nelson Mandela Bay for the very first Ironman Pro Series race on the African continent. The Ironman South Africa African Championship will offer professional athletes a total prize purse of USD $175,000, with the male and female winner each enjoying a USD $28,000 pay day as well as 5,000 IM Pro Series points. 

Celebrating its 20th anniversary, Ironman South Africa event will be the first full distance IM triathlon of the 2025 Pro Series and doubles up as the Ironman African Championship race, meaning athletes will also have a regional title to race for. Five qualifying slots per gender will also be available for the 2025 IM World Championship triathlon in Nice (men’s race) and Kona (women’s race).   

As the reigning champion of Ironman South Africa women’s professional race, Marta Sanchez (ESP) will be wearing bib number one. Sanchez enjoyed her maiden IM triathlon victory at the 2024 edition of the race, where she clocked an impressive time of 9:15:36. Setting the scene for a phenomenal race season, Sanchez went on to scoop up victories at the IM Calella-Barcelona and IM 70.3 Asia-Pacific Championship Western Australia triathlons, as well as an impressive sixth place finish at the Ironman World Championship triathlon in Nice. Sanchez will no doubt be hoping her South African season opener will yet again set her up for great success in 2025.  

Also starting their season in South Africa will be Maja Stage Nielsen (DNK), whose strong and consistent racing in 2024 saw her finish fifth in last year’s Ironman Pro Series, with her best performance coming at the IM Hamburg European Championship race where she came second. Els Visser (NLD), who came seventh in the IM Pro Series last year, will also be hoping an early season victory will put her in the mix for an even higher finish this year.  

Locals will pin their hopes on Magda Nieuwoudt (ZAF), who will be lining up for her home race for the fourth time and hoping to improve on her previous best result of third place back in 2022. Nieuwoudt also has two IM 70.3 podiums under her belt at the IM 70.3 Mossel Bay triathlons in 2023 and 2022.  

Other female professional triathletes slated to race include Ruth Astle (GBR), Anne Reischmann (DEU), Anna Bergsten (SWE) who is competing in her first IM triathlon, Katrine Græsbøll Christensen (DNK), and more. 

In the Ironman South Africa African Championship men’s race, last year’s winner Rasmus Svenningson (SWE) will return to defend his title. The Swede’s excellent bike form saw him clock a head-turning 4:14:35 bike split, resulting in a finish time of 8:03:11.  

Perhaps the biggest threat for the 2025 men’s title however will be Ironman World Championship runner-up and Danish powerhouse Magnus Ditlev. Ditlev has made no secret of the fact that his main goal for the year is to win the IM World Championship triathlon and Ditlev has also decided to throw himself all in on the Ironman Pro Series in 2025. With lofty ambitions for the year set, the Dane will be looking for an early season confidence booster in South Africa.  

2023 Ironman African Champion and last year’s IM World Championship fourth place finisher Leon Chevalier (FRA) will also pose a significant threat in the men’s race. With the undulating bike course suiting Chevalier’s strengths, expect the Frenchman to play a big part in the dynamics of the race.  

Middle-distance specialist Marten Van Riel (BEL) will try his luck again over the full distance after an unfortunate crash on the bike while leading the Ironman Cozumel triathlon back in November resulted in a seventh place finish. In just his second IM triathlon attempt, Van Riel will be desperate to earn one of the five slots available in South Africa to secure his place on the 2025 Ironman World Championship start line in Nice, France.  

Hoping that his home advantage will reign superior over experience will be local Olympian Jamie Riddle. Riddle, who started out at the Ironkids South Africa event, will now be making his IM triathlon debut in the same city. At just 24 years of age, Riddle already has an Olympic Games on his list of bragging rights, as well as a World Triathlon African Championship title. He raced his first two Ironman 70.3 triathlons in Australia last year, posting a DNF in Melbourne before quickly putting his lack of experience at the distance to bed at the IM 70.3 Western Australia triathlon, finishing second against a strong international field.  All eyes will be on the young South African in Nelson Mandela Bay as he looks to make his mark on the full distance, and hoping a successful debut race in his hometown will once again land him on the podium. 

Also on the hunt for a victory on home soil will be Bradley Weiss (ZAF). Weiss finished seventh in the IM Pro Series last year and has raced the Ironman South Africa African Championship triathlon three times before, with his best position being second in 2022 and 2023.  

Another athlete hoping to get his 2025 IM Pro Series campaign off to a flyer is Matt Hanson (USA), who led the 2024 series for most of the year before eventually fading to finish in fifth following the Ironman and Ironman 70.3 World Championship triathlons.  

Other notable starters include Mathias Lyngsø Petersen (DEN) who finished eighth in the IM Pro Series last year, and 2024 IM Asia-Pacific Champion Matt Burton (AUS), amongst others.  

Below are the professional start lists (subject to change):

FEMALE PRO LIST  
Bib Number  First Name  Last Name  Country Represented
F1 Marta Sanchez ESP
F3 Maja Stage Nielsen DNK 
F4 Els Visser NLD 
F5 Anne Reischmann DEU 
F6 Anna Bergsten SWE 
F7 Katrine Græsbøll Christensen DNK 
F8 Magda Nieuwoudt ZAF 
F9 Jana Uderstadt DEU 
F10 Henrike Güber DEU 
F11 Charlène Clavel FRA
F12 Ruth Astle GBR 
F13 Laura Jansen DEU
F14 Svenja Thoes DEU
F15 Nikita Paskiewiez FRA
F16 Johanna Ahrens DEU 
F17 Laura Kessler CHE
F18 Tina Christmann DEU
F19 Olivia Dietzel USA 
F20 Laura Addie GBR 
F21 Chloe Lane AUS 
F22 Jamie Besse CHE
MALE PRO LIST  
Bib Number  First Name  Last Name  Country Represented  
M1 Rasmus Svenningsson SWE
M2 Magnus Ditlev DNK 
M3 Marten Van Riel BEL
M4 Leon Chevalier FRA 
M5 Bradley Weiss ZAF 
M6 Matthew Hanson USA 
M7 Stenn Goetstouwers BEL
M8 Cameron Wurf AUS
M9 Mike Phillips NZL 
M10 Mathias Lyngsø Petersen DNK
M11 Jamie Riddle ZAF 
M12 James Teagle GBR 
M13 Jonas Hoffmann DEU 
M15 Mattia Ceccarelli ITA
M17 Matt Burton AUS
M18 Joshua Lewis GGY
M19 Michael Weiss AUT 
M20 Pamphiel Pareyn BEL 
M21 Florian Angert DEU
M22 Nicholas Chase USA
M23 Jon Breivold NOR 
M24 Cody Beals CAN 
M25 Paulin Philippe FRA
M26 Erwan Jacobi FRA
M27 Maurice Clavel DEU
M28 Vincent Clavel FRA 
M29 Timo Schaffeld DEU
M30 Julien Hagen FRA 
M31 Denis Chevrot FRA 
M32 Matthew Collins GBR 
M33 Sven Wies DEU 
M34 Pello Osoro ESP 
M35 Cameron MacNair ZAF 
M36 Andrew Horsfall-Turner GBR 
M37 William Mennesson FRA
M38 Milosz Sowinski POL
M39 Jonas Schomburg DEU
M40 Niek Heldoorn NLD
M41 Juan Ignacio Villarruel Curra ESP
M42 Georg Enzenberger AUT
M43 Kit Walker GBR 
M44 Mikel Txopitea PSE
M45 Lukas Schnödewind DEU
M46 Keegan Cooke ZAF 
M47 Per Van Vlerken DEU 
M48 Michael Hesse ZAF 
M49 Thomas McManners FIN
M50 Michiel Stockman BEL

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