Top Female Pro Triathletes Set to Light up 70.3 Geelong as IRONMAN Pro Series Kicks Off

The 2025 IRONMAN Pro Series roars into life this Sunday 23 March at IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong, with a host of the top female professional athletes from across the region and further abroad set to go head-to-head for the title.

New Zealand’s Hannah Berry is the top seeded female in the field and returns to a race she’s had success at in the past, having stood on the top step of the podium at IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong in 2020.

“I’m feeling great, I’ve had a great first block of training for 2025, focusing on the half distance,” said Berry. “I’ve seen some good progress in training across the last six to seven weeks so I hope I can show that on Sunday. 

“It’ll be a really strong race on Sunday. There’s a good mix of athletes racing, including some moving up from the shorter distance racing who will no doubt bring some speed and who I haven’t raced before,” she said. “Along with a few athletes I’ve raced plenty of times before who I know are hard to try and beat, so I expect some interesting and challenging racing for sure.” 

Berry is looking forward to showcasing the event to the triathlon world, with the IRONMAN Pro Series live broadcast taking the race to fans around the globe.

“It’s great that we get to kick the IRONMAN Pro Series off down under,” said Berry. “Geelong will be a great race to show to the rest of world, the course is a really fun one to race and is beautiful, especially the run course along the waterfront. I’m sure it will encourage more athletes to come and race here in the future.” 

Grace Thek is no stranger to racing IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong, having lined up at the event every year since 2018, and has remarkably finished on the podium each time, including a win in 2023.

“Seven conservative years, seven podiums,” said Thek. “For me, Geelong is the place where it all started with my first pro race and first IRONMAN 70.3 back in 2018. There is a sense of nostalgia but also me not wanting to break the streak. I love racing in Australia, and being from Melbourne, this is the closest IRONMAN 70.3 to home. Given I’m on the road for so much of the year, it is special to race in front of family and friends, and alongside the local tri community. The Geelong community is always so welcoming, and it makes for a great weekend away. 

“I love that Geelong is the race opener for the IRONMAN Pro Series and we can highlight this great race in Australia. It was exciting to be part of six Pro Series races last year and I love that these races bring great competition” she said.

Thek has been putting in the hours training at home over the summer, having last raced at the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in New Zealand in December, where she finished 10^th.

“Historically, I’ve raced quite early in the year and haven’t had much of an offseason, but this year it has been nice to have a solid three months of focused training to start 2025. I have put in some good work and hope that shows on race day,” said Thek. “As with every year, it’s early days and being my first race of the year, it always a little bit of an unknown. I feel confident that I can mix it with the best and use my experience and local support to my advantage.” 

Milan Agnew will be out to continue her impressive start to her IRONMAN 70.3 racing career on Sunday, having won on debut at IRONMAN 70.3 Sunshine Coast last September.

“The Sunshine Coast was a great confidence boost for me. It’s nice to go into the off season with a positive result, it helped keep me motivated,” said Agnew. “At the same time, I’ve noticed that this can often bring increased self-pressure, which I’m actively working on. I’m just reminding myself that this is just the beginning of what I hope to be a long enjoyable year.”

The 25-year-old has recently made the switch from short course racing to focus on longer distances and is looking forward to taking on a strong field of professional females this weekend.

“You can never be sure what to expect, especially since it’s the first race of the season for many of us, I just focus on myself and what I can control,” she said. “I’m certain it’s going to be a challenging day though, given the strong group of women racing on Sunday. 

“This is my first IRONMAN Pro Series race, and also my first time in Geelong, so I’m really excited about it all. I enjoy visiting new places, and I’m sure the atmosphere over the weekend will be incredible,” said Agnew.

Agnew won’t be the only former short-course athlete in the field, with Australian Paris 2024 Olympic Games representative Natalie Van Coevorden, fellow Aussie Charlotte McShane and Great Britain’s Jodie Stimpson all taking on the 1.9km swim, 90km ride and 21.1km run.

Penny Slater is another to keep a close eye on this weekend, with the Canberra-based athlete the top Australian at last year’s IRONMAN World Championship in France, while Regan Hollioake will be back in action after claiming victory at the ANZCO Foods IRONMAN New Zealand at the start of the month.

IRONMAN is continuing the IRONMAN Pro Series in 2025, building on the success of its inaugural year. The performance-based world series will continue to showcase and reward the world’s top professional triathletes as they vie for points and event prize money towards the title of IRONMAN Pro Series champion and their share of $1.7 million USD in year-end bonus pool payouts.   

The 2025 IRONMAN Pro Series will be contested over 18 events and 17 race locations, including a combination of six IRONMAN and eight IRONMAN 70.3 triathlons from around the globe as well as the IRONMAN World Championship women’s and men’s races and IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship triathlon.  

The 2025 schedule sees seven new race venues added to the calendar, including IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong, followed by the first IRONMAN Pro Series race in South Africa with the ISUZU IRONMAN South Africa African Championship race. In addition to the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Marbella, there are three other IRONMAN 70.3 triathlons in Europe added to the schedule with the IRONMAN 70.3 Venice-Jesolo and IRONMAN 70.3 Aix-en-Provence races, both taking place in May, and the IRONMAN 70.3 Swansea triathlon, the first IRONMAN Pro Series race to take place on UK soil, happening in July. The series will also take a new stop in Maryland with the IRONMAN 70.3 Eagleman triathlon in June.  

For more information on IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong visit: https://www.ironman.com/im703-geelong 

IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong – Female Professional Start List