Kristian Høgenhaug, and Hanne de Vet win The Championship Samorin 2025

The cold and rain made the 2025 edition of The Championship, held this Sunday in Samorin (Slovakia).

With an overcast Danube Canal, the flagship event of Challenge Family offered a show full of emotion, epic and memorable farewells.

Very tough conditions from the start

The day began with tough conditions that forced the professional swimming segment to be shortened. The starting gun for the men's pros was fired at 8:30 a.m., followed five minutes later by the women's.

Høgenhaug sets the pace from the bike to the finish line

In the men's event, the young German Hannes Butters He surprised everyone by leading the swimming with 7:53, ahead of the local idol Richard Varga, who was experiencing his last professional race at home. The chasing group, which was very large, included names such as Kristian Høgenhaug, Frederik funk, Bogdan Kovalenko o Will draper.

Danish Høgenhaug He launched his offensive in the cycling race, first catching Butters and then opening up a gap to reach T2 with a lead of more than two minutes. Despite the wind and muddy terrain, he managed the run well, maintaining his advantage until the end.

With a final time of 3:23:53, Kristian Høgenhaug was crowned champion of The Championship 2025.

Behind, there was an agonizing end: the Estonian Henry Rappo was second in 3:25:52, followed by just a second by the British Kieran Lindars already three more for Will draper, fourth in 3:25:56. The German Finn Grobe closed the Top 5.

Emotional farewell for Richard Varga

One of the most emotional moments of the day was the farewell to Richard Varga, who crossed the finish line hugging his children and receiving a standing ovation from the Slovak public.

The legendary swimmer ended an exemplary professional career with tears and smiles in his native Samorin.

Men's Top 10 – The Championship Samorin 2025

Hanne de Vet wins at Samorin and achieves the biggest victory of her career

The Belgian Hanne de Vet conquered this Sunday The Championship 2025 en Samorin, on a day marked by rain, wind and cold.

The swimming segment, shortened by low temperatures, started at 8:35 a.m. with three Spanish women competing: Sara Pérez Sala, Zaira Lorenzo y carolina laurentiu.

The spur Perez Hall She was the fastest in the water, with a quick start that put her in the lead, followed closely by the British Daisy Davis and Italian Elisabetta Curridori.

Despite his good start, the race went wrong for Sara Perez after a fall in the transition that caused him to lose all his nutrition. From then on, he began to progressively lose time and eventually gave up.

The cycling segment was highly contested in the first kilometers between Daisy Davis, Hanne de Vet, Anastacia Nielsen y Chloe Sparrow, who rode together for a good part of the route.

When passing through the 65 kilometer, Davies y of Vet They distanced themselves from the other two, arriving at T2 with more than two minutes of advantage over Nielsen y SparrowThe conditions were very tough, with strong winds and wet asphalt, and the two leaders demonstrated solidity and good management.

Already in the final half marathon, the Belgian Hanne de Vet It grew as the kilometers went by.

At the midpoint of the course he managed to overtake Davies and didn't relinquish the lead until the finish line. His steady pace allowed him to extend his advantage lap after lap, crossing the finish line in 3:48:56, signing the best race of his professional career.

The British Daisy Davis crossed the finish line in 3:50:09, completing an excellent performance that establishes her as one of the new figures in European middle distance.

The podium was closed by the Danish Anastacia Nielsen, third with 3:53:46, who held his position despite the final push of Curridori, who came back from ninth position behind the bike.

The Top 5 was completed by the company itself. Curridori and the switzerland alani siffert, one of the favorites, who improved somewhat throughout the day. The Spanish Zaira Lorenzo She finished in 14th place, being the only one of our representatives to cross the finish line.

Women's Qualifiers – The Championship Samorin 2025