It was the second time since 2019 that the city in western Spain hosted the Triathlon World Multisport Championships, which include the Long-Distance Aquabike World Championships. The field was noticeably smaller than six years ago – I discussed the reasons in my race preview – but we still enjoyed an eventful race day. Although several aspects could be refined for future editions, let’s start with the good news: no finish-line drama this time. In my preview I had questioned the new finish location, yet in reality the right-hand bend after the line was little more than a gentle curve, easily taken at full speed.
Even so, many athletes rated the finish-line experience poorly in their reviews. I suspect the criticism was less about the line itself than about what came afterward. Athletes racked their bikes immediately after finishing and could jog or walk down the chute, and – unlike at many past events – Aquabike finishers were called out by the announcer. The disappointment likely stemmed from the sparse post-race refreshments: a few energy bars and some water. Many local sprint races provide more.
Hydration was also an issue on course. In the intense heat the bike-course aid stations quickly ran out of isotonic drinks and bike-bottles of water, leaving only standard water bottles. Those without a refillable system had to stop and top up manually.
Another challenge on the bike leg was the sheer number of speed bumps in Pontevedra. An official told us there were 25 within a three-kilometre stretch – hardly something organisers can change, yet hardly ideal for racing. Especially if you crash because your handlebar brakes over one of those speed bumps, like it happened to an athlete I talked to. Fortunately, he got away with no major injuries but obviously had to DNF.
To round out the list of gripes I should also mention unclear communication which for example lead to some aquabike athletes missing the medal ceremony, others running in circles before raceday to find the announced Q&A session or me failing to pick up media accreditation which I signed up for before the race.
That said, not everything was negative. The atmosphere in the city was superb, the volunteers were fantastic, the swim in the Río Lérez was calm, and the current mattered far less than I’d assumed. Aside from the drinks shortage, the bike course ran smoothly.
The Men’s Race
No surprises in the water: American Kieran DOLAN led the Aquabike field, covering the 3 km swim in 43:11. The gap to the main favourites was smaller than expected, though. Spain’s Cesar PEREIRA DEL PINO exited just 82 seconds later after an excellent swim. Another three minutes passed before Ukraine’s Igor FRANKO started the run to T1, closely shadowed by Spain’s Jose Ignacio DOMINGUEZ MARTINEZ, impressive in his Aquabike debut. Last year’s European champion Tommy NIELSEN followed 90 seconds back, with Ricardo REY MARTINEZ and Thijmen POLMAN only seconds behind. As usual, Aquabike.World No. 1 Frank ERK emerged with a deficit, but was eager to close the 10 minute gap to the leader on the bike.
Kieran not only swam fastest but blazed through T1, adding another minute to his advantage over César. By the end of the first of three bike laps, however, the gaps at the front had shrunk dramatically. Igor FRANKO had taken the lead, Thijmen POLMAN trailed by only 24 seconds after clocking the fastest opening lap, and half a minute later came a trio of Kieran DOLAN, Tommy NIELSEN and Cesar PEREIRA DEL PINO. Tommy proved the strongest cyclist of that group, and by the end of lap two the battle for overall victory was down to three: Igor still ahead, 15 seconds clear of Thijmen and 37 of Tommy.
On the course’s main climb Igor and Tommy dropped the Dutchman, setting up a duel for the overall win. They were still together after the hilly section, hinting at a sprint finish, but with 10 km to go Tommy began cramping in the heat. Ukraine’s Igor FRANKO powered on to claim the Long-Distance Aquabike overall victory. Tommy NIELSEN crossed a minute later for second. With a strong final lap Cesar PEREIRA DEL PINO closed in, yet Thijmen POLMAN hung on for third place by about 40 seconds.
Ricardo REY MARTINEZ finished fifth after a robust last lap, just a minute adrift. Jose Ignacio DOMINGUEZ MARTINEZ came next, pushing Frank ERK to seventh after the German’s mechanical earlier on. Spain’s Jose Luis SANTOME COLLAZO and France’s Paul VANOTTI followed, while fast-swimming Kieran DOLAN clung to a top-ten place by mere seconds.
The Women’s Race
Team GB athletes led the swim. Hayley DAVIS covered 3 km in 47:50, opening a 91-second gap to pre-race favourite Amy PRITCHARD. Thirty seconds later Poland’s Monika JADCZAK exited third, with Sione JONGSTRA right behind. Germany’s Kai SACHTLEBER also impressed, leaving the water about 80 seconds after the Dutchwoman. Reigning world champion Katrín PÁLSDÓTTIR trailed by almost nine minutes but was poised to claw time back on the bike.
Sione JONGSTRA blitzed T1, overtaking Monika and Amy to start the bike in second behind Hayley. Sadly, Amy PRITCHARD withdrew soon after: her injured shoulder, aggravated by the swim, forced a DNF early on lap one.
Sione caught Hayley on the day’s first climb and quickly built a solid lead. By the end of lap one Hayley remained second but over four minutes down, with Kai SACHTLEBER another three-and-a-half minutes back. Only one rider gained time on the leader: New Zealand’s Amanda WOODD produced a blistering bike, though after losing over nine minutes in the water and four more in T1, the podium still looked distant.
Katrín PÁLSDÓTTIR ceded another minute on lap one but held strong on lap two, moving into second. Even so, the gap to Sione was still nearly eight minutes. Hayley clung to third while another Brit, Grace ROBINSON, charged forward from 10th out of the water. Meanwhile Amanda WOODD and Andrea DOBIŠOVÁ also crept into podium contention.
Although Katrín set the fastest split on laps two and three, Sione JONGSTRA cruised to a comfortable win, more than six minutes clear of the Icelander. The final podium spot stayed in British hands: Grace ROBINSON overtook Hayley and held off Amanda WOODD by about a minute. Hayley DAVIS settled for fifth, just ahead of Andrea DOBIŠOVÁ.
Australia’s Geraldine BLOMFIELD-BROWN arrived five minutes later after a strong ride. In her Aquabike debut Tamara ZELTNER finished next, five minutes clear of fellow rookie Anaïs TARDIEU of France. Kai SACHTLEBER slipped to 10th on the bike but maintained her remarkable record: six top-ten finishes in six international championship races.
Besides the winners and top performers of the race, there have been some other remarkable performances and achievements in Pontevedra. Guernsey Athlete Andrea Nightingale was second in her age group, claiming the 7th medal in an aquabike world championship race, equalling the record of Amy Pritchard (who is holding one more gold medal though). In the men’s race Frank Erk and Blair Saunders not only won their age groups, but both of them also their 6th medal in world championships, now being only one short of Robert Smartt, the record holder in this category.
And a special shout out has to go out to the two oldest finishers of the race. Claudio PANICHI and Jean-Pierre LARRUE were the only finishers in the 75-79 age group – both finishing at exactly the same time. I don’t know the story behind that – if they had an all-out sprint finish or crossed the finish line hand in hand. Either way, with a finish time of 06:20:48 they finished in 172nd and 173rd place overall, beating a sizable cohort of younger athletes. Chapeau!
| Rank | Country |  |  |  |
| 1. | United Kingdom | 5 | 5 | 4 |
| 2. | Spain | 4 | 5 | 6 |
| 3. | United States of America | 3 | 2 | 3 |
| 4. | France | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| 5. | Germany | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| 6. | Netherlands | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| 7. | New Zealand | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 8. | Denmark | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 9. | Iceland | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 10. | Canada | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 11. | Ukraine | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 12. | Poland | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 13. | Austria | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 14. | Australia | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 15. | Slovakia | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 16. | Italy | 0 | 1 | 0 |
With all the logistical obstacles leading to a smaller number of athletes from all over the world travelling to Pontevedra, it’s not a huge surprise that for the first time Spain managed to win the most medals in aquabike world championships. However, Team GB took home one more gold medal and is therefore leading the medal table. Believe it or not, but this is only the second time that Great Britain has done so in an aquabike world championship after Pontevedra 2019. Twelve of their fourteen medals were won by female athletes, while in the “Open Category” – what is now the official term in World Triathlon events – Spain had clearly the strongest team. No less than 14 out of the 35 medals that were handed out in the award ceremony, did not leave the country.
Outlook: 2026 World Championships, Abu Dhabi
Next year the World Triathlon Multisport Championships will be held in November on Hudayriyat Island in Abu Dhabi. For those athletes in Europe and North America who decide to compete in the Emirate it’s going to be a pretty long racing season. But it should pay off. If you look at the currently announced bike course it might look like a flat course through a desert island. Though this is not supposed to be the final course. There are some big constructions going on on the island. And if everything gets ready in time the bike course – or at least parts of it – will be absolutely spectacular. And not as flat as it looks right now. I’ll keep you updated as soon as we have some official news out. Watch this space.