Kyle Smith takes the T100 podium one day after being hit by a bus
Kyle Smith finished third in the 2026 French Riviera T100 , just 24 seconds behind Hayden Wilde, a day after being hit by a bus following his training session.
The New Zealander started the race on Saturday, September 19th in Saint-Raphaël-Fréjus after a very different Friday than expected. As he explained after the race, a bus hit him while he was returning from training, and Smith fell off his bike.
The triathlete said he spent about four hours receiving treatment from the physiotherapist and that on Saturday he woke up with severe neck pain and some dizziness. Despite this, he decided to compete and ended up being in contention for the win until the final kilometers.
The T100 Triathlon World Tour races are held over 100 kilometers: 2 km swimming, 80 km cycling and 18 km running.
From a fall on Friday to fighting for victory
The result is even more significant because of how the race unfolded. Smith stayed among the leaders and even shared the decisive kilometers of the run with Hayden Wilde and Jelle Geens.
Wilde broke away in the final part of the race and took the victory in 3:06:24. Geens recovered ground and overtook Smith during the last kilometer to finish second in 3:06:43.
Kyle Smith crossed the finish line third in 3:06:48, just 24 seconds behind Wilde , with a run split of 58:35. You can also read the full report of the 2026 French Riviera T100 on TN.
Two difficult years for Kyle Smith
Friday's accident is the latest setback in a difficult period for the New Zealand triathlete. At the end of 2025, he suffered a broken collarbone and was subsequently diagnosed with celiac disease , in addition to experiencing significant gastrointestinal problems this season.
Smith explained after stepping onto the podium that just four months earlier he had been in the hospital for those digestive problems and that he even wondered if he could return to the level necessary to continue competing among the best.
The New Zealander admitted that during that period he lost much of his confidence in his abilities. He highlighted the support of Hayden Wilde and Jan and Emma Frodeno in his recovery.
Training with Hayden Wilde, part of his return
Smith has also found a new training dynamic in Andorra. There he began working alongside Hayden Wilde, a friend and rival since their youth in New Zealand.
The two met again, this time battling for a T100 victory. Wilde explained after the race that training together had helped Smith regain confidence after a difficult few years.
For Smith, the third place also marks his first T100 podium finish since July 28, 2024. On that day, he finished second to Sam Laidlow in the 2024 London T100 , after having also finished second a few weeks earlier in San Francisco.
The result in Saint-Raphaël thus returns Kyle Smith to the circuit podium after more than two years and comes after several months marked by health problems and doubts about his continuity at the highest level.
This content has been created with the support of AI tools and reviewed by the Triathlon News editorial team.
