IRONMAN 70.3 Zell am See 2026: last stop before the World Championships
Guillem Montiel, our Spanish hope
The IRONMAN 70.3 Zell am See-Kaprun 2026 will take place on Sunday, August 30th as the last regular event of the Pro Series before the World Championships in Nice and Kona.
Laura Philipp and Jelle Geens head a start list that also includes Trevor Foley, Fabian Kraft and the Spaniard Guillem Montiel , who arrives in Austria after stringing together two podium finishes during the month of July.
The race will be the final regular stop of the 2026 IRONMAN Pro Series and will award a maximum of 2.500 points to the winner and $50.000 in prize money among the professionals.
The IRONMAN Pro Series is the franchise's professional circuit that scores the results obtained during the season in IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 events.
Laura Philipp returns to competition just 15 days after Kalmar
One of the main focuses will be on Laura Philipp . The German will pin on a race number again just 15 days after her victory at IRONMAN Kalmar 2026 , where she triumphed with a time of 8:13:37 and set a new course record.
Philipp's first part of the season was hampered by health issues, but her recent results have propelled her back to the top of the Pro Series. Before winning in Sweden, she had finished second at IRONMAN Hamburg and third at IRONMAN 70.3 Aix-en-Provence.
The 2024 IRONMAN World Champion currently sits sixth in the Pro Series with 12.163 points . Her score of 2.241 points in Aix-en-Provence offers the most room for improvement, so Zell am See could allow her to climb the rankings ahead of the two world championships.
Among her main rivals will be Lisa Peterer , second in this same event in 2025. Also competing will be Marta Lagownik, India Lee, Daniela Kleiser, Rebecca Anderbury and Nikki Bartlett.
Jelle Geens is preparing in Austria for his assault on a third 70.3 World Championship title.
In the men's category, Jelle Geens will use Zell am See as his final competitive test before the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Nice, whose men's race will take place on September 13.
The Belgian arrives as a two-time IRONMAN 70.3 world champion after winning the titles in 2024 and 2025. In Marbella, he retained the crown after beating Kristian Blummenfelt by just three seconds.
Zell am See is also a familiar setting for Geens. In 2024 he finished second, behind Mika Noodt, in one of his first major appearances in middle-distance running.
This time he will face Fabian Kraft , winner of the 2025 edition, and Lasse Nygaard Priester , who recently beat Kraft at IRONMAN 70.3 Sweden.
Trevor Foley can change the Pro Series lead
The presence of Trevor Foley adds another point of interest. The American is currently second in the men's IRONMAN Pro Series standings, and a victory in Austria would put him in the lead before the final two races of the championship.
Foley already knows what it's like to win this season in both long and middle distances. He opened the year with a victory at IRONMAN New Zealand and subsequently triumphed at IRONMAN 70.3 Pennsylvania Happy Valley.
The men's list also includes names such as Kieran Lindars, Pierre Le Corre, Gregor Payet, Cameron Wurf, Jan Stratmann and Valdemar Solok.
Guillem Montiel, the only Spaniard in the professional field
Spain will have Guillem Montiel , who appears with the number M15 and arrives in Austria after stringing together two important podium finishes during the month of July.
The Catalan athlete finished third in the IRONMAN 70.3 Vitoria-Gasteiz with a time of 3:40:11, after remaining among the top finishers for much of the race.
A week later he climbed back onto the podium, winning the silver medal at the European Middle Distance Championship in Banyoles , only behind Mikel Arrasate.
The level of the Zell am See start list now represents a new international test for Montiel against several of the most outstanding middle-distance specialists.
Schedule and where to watch IRONMAN 70.3 Zell am See 2026
| Opening hours | Event |
|---|---|
| 10:30 | Expected start of official coverage |
| 11:00 | Male career path |
| 11:05 | Career path for women |
| 11:10 | Start of age groups |
All times are Spanish Peninsular Time . IRONMAN plans to begin coverage at 10:30 CEST, half an hour before the men's professional start.
In Spain, the IRONMAN Pro Series can be followed via RTVE Play . IRONMAN also offers international coverage through its digital platforms and YouTube.
The course maintains the usual distances for a 70.3: a 1,9-kilometer swim in Lake Zell, a 90-kilometer bike ride, and a 21,1-kilometer run . The cycling route includes several uphill sections in the Austrian Alps before a half marathon along the lake.
Zell am See will thus close the regular phase of the 2026 IRONMAN Pro Series. Afterwards will come the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Nice , with the women's race on September 12 and the men's on the 13th, and the IRONMAN World Championship in Kona on October 10 , where the circuit standings will be finalized.
This content has been created with the support of AI tools and reviewed by the Triathlon News editorial team.
