The Southern California coastline provided a stunning setting for the 2026 Athletic Brewing IRONMAN® 70.3® Oceanside and the third race in the 2026 Experience Oman IRONMAN Pro Series™ on Saturday, March 28. The event delivered a spectacular showdown on the Southern California coast with Norway’s Kristian Blummenfelt once again proving unstoppable. Less than a week after his victory at IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong, the reigning IRONMAN Pro Series champion produced another dominant performance to claim the win in 3:40:08, driven by a blistering 1:07:01 run split. The women’s race was defined by another commanding performance from three-time IRONMAN 70.3 World Champion Taylor Knibb (USA) earning her third victory in Oceanside.
“It’s a fun race, but I have to remind myself it’s a little bumpy,” said Knibb following her victory. “I told my coach my ambitious plan, that I wanted to set my best 60-minute and 90-minute bike power. This is a great course you can do it on, because it really flows. I wanted to average 3:40 per k on the run, which I was doing for the first 16K, but not the last part. My wheel kind of went off. Sometimes you have to go out and try.”
“I really had to work for it today. I felt super good on the run, but still had two minutes to Jonas and Sam Long,” said Blummenfelt. “I didn’t really see where Sam Long came from. I thought he was behind me on the bike. When I realized I had to close two minutes on him, I thought, this could be quite tight. I think I passed him with two and half K to go, so, super stoked to win back-to-back.”
After exiting the water within reach of front pack, Blummenfelt methodically worked his way through the field before unleashing a decisive 1:07 run to secure the win in a time of 3:40:08. The race began with American Marc Dubrick setting the early pace in the swim, followed closely by Germany’s Jonas Schomburg, who would remain a major factor throughout the day. On the bike, American Sam Long produced one of the standout performances of the event, storming from 33rd out of the water to the front and smashing the long-standing bike course best with a 2:02:04 split, set by Lionel Sanders back in 2015.
Long and Schomburg entered T2 together with a two-minute buffer, however, Blummenfelt’s trademark run strength proved insurmountable as he surged past both in the final miles to break the tape. Schomburg held on for a well-earned second place, while fellow Norwegian and reigning IRONMAN World Champion Casper Stornes delivered a measured and consistent performance to claim the third spot on the podium.
The women’s race was defined by another commanding performance from Taylor Knibb (USA), cementing her dominance across the bike and the run to claim the early season result and her third victory in Oceanside. After emerging from the water in the lead pack behind Brazil’s Vittoria Lopes, Knibb immediately asserted control on the bike, shattering her own course record with a 2:15:27 split and building a nearly five-minute cushion heading into T2. Behind her, reigning IRONMAN World Champion Solveig Løvseth (NOR) mounted an impressive charge, climbing from nearly three minutes down after the swim to secure second place with a strong late race push on the run.
France’s Audrey Merle delivered a breakthrough performance in her transition to middle-distance racing, riding and running her way into a well-earned third place. Despite early pressure from a select front swim group that included Lopes, Kirsten Kasper, and Marta Sanchez, Knibb’s unmatched bike power once again proved decisive, allowing her to control the race from the front and open her 2026 North American campaign with a statement win.
Top Five Male Professional Results – Athletic Brewing IRONMAN 70.3 Oceanside
| Place |
Name (Country) |
Swim |
Bike |
Run |
Total Time |
Pro Series Points (unofficial) |
Event Prize Money |
| 1 |
Kristian Blummenfelt (NOR) |
22:49 |
2:05:41 |
1:07:01 |
3:40:08 |
2,500 |
$7,500 |
| 2 |
Jonas Schomburg (DEU) |
22:26 |
2:04:12 |
1:09:38 |
3:40:32 |
2,476 |
$5,000 |
| 3 |
Casper Stornes (NOR) |
22:37 |
2:05:39 |
1:08:35 |
3:41:58 |
2,390 |
$3,750 |
| 4 |
Sam Long (USA) |
24:25 |
2:02:04 |
1:11:25 |
3:42:09 |
24:25 |
$3,000 |
| 5 |
Jason West (USA) |
22:43 |
2:07:14 |
1:08:36 |
3:43:17 |
22:43 |
$2,000 |
Top Five Female Professional Results – Athletic Brewing IRONMAN 70.3 Oceanside
| Place |
Name (Country) |
Swim |
Bike |
Run |
Total Time |
Pro Series Points (unofficial) |
Event Prize Money |
| 1 |
Taylor Knibb (USA) |
23:29 |
2:15:27 |
1:17:28 |
4:01:39 |
2,500 |
$7,500 |
| 2 |
Solveig Løvseth (NOR) |
26:13 |
2:17:12 |
1:14:49 |
4:03:34 |
2,385 |
$5,000 |
| 3 |
Audrey Merle (FRA) |
24:43 |
2:21:03 |
1:19:21 |
4:10:33 |
1,966 |
$3,750 |
| 4 |
Grace Thek (AUS) |
27:05 |
2:23:54 |
1:18:52 |
4:15:22 |
1,677 |
$3,000 |
| 5 |
Jackie Hering (USA) |
26:16 |
2:24:56 |
1:18:54 |
4:15:42 |
1,657 |
$2,000 |
News and Notes
- Blummenfelt’s victory in Oceanside marks his second consecutive Experience Oman IRONMAN Pro Series win in just six days, following his dominant performance at IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong. The reigning IRONMAN Pro Series champion now moves firmly into early contention for the 2026 title
- Taylor Knibb’s win extends her perfect record in Oceanside and sets a new bike course best with a soaring 2:15:27, underscoring her status as one of the sport’s most formidable all-around athletes.
- American Sam Long delivered one of the standout performances of the day, smashing the men’s bike course best by nearly three minutes with a 2:02:04 split.
- Marc Dubrick (USA) led the men out of the water to set the fastest swim time of the day with a 22:24, while Vittoria Lopez (BRA) was the quickest female out of the water with a time of 23:23
- For the second straight year, Kristian Blummenfelt (NOR) was the fastest runner of the day, clocking a 1:07:01 in Oceanside.
- Solveig Løvseth (NOR) charged through the field late in the women’s race, clocking a 1:14:49 en route to her second-place finish.
Full results for the 2026 Athletic Brewing IRONMAN 70.3 Oceanside triathlon can be found at www.ironman.com/races/im703-oceanside/results. For additional event information, please visit www.ironman.com/races/im703-oceanside.
IRONMAN Pro Series Standings
The Experience Oman IRONMAN Pro Series is a year-long performance-based triathlon race series with professional triathletes being able to earn points at 16 races globally. Open to approximately 1,000 eligible professional triathletes worldwide, the Experience Oman IRONMAN Pro Series ushers in a new era of IRONMAN racing where Every Second Matters with every second behind the race winner equating to a point earned or lost. For any athlete, only their top five event results count towards their overall Pro Series points and standing, of which a maximum of three IRONMAN results can be counted. How it works can be found here.???
Blummenfelt and Knibb both walked away with the maximum Experience Oman IRONMAN Pro Series points available for an IRONMAN 70.3 of 2,500. This weekend’s results mean Blummenfelt remains atop of the Series and Knibb moves into 11th place in the overall IRONMAN Pro Series standings. Athletes finishing behind the race winner saw their points diminish with every second that ticked off behind the race winner.
Overall IRONMAN Pro Series Standings – Top Five Male (After Three Events)
| Rank???? |
Name (Country) |
Total IRONMAN Pro Series Points (Max Top 5 events) |
Total Eligible Races Scored |
Eligible IRONMAN Races Scored |
Eligible IRONMAN 70.3 Races Scored |
| 1 |
Kristian Blummenfelt (NOR) |
9,142 |
3 |
1 |
2 |
| 2 |
Trevor Foley (USA) |
5,000 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
| 3 |
Pierre Le Corre (FRA) |
4,898 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
| 4 |
Jack Sosinski (AUS) |
4,864 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
| 5 |
Matt Hanson (USA) |
4,765 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
?
Overall IRONMAN Pro Series Standings – Top Five Female (After Three Events)???
| Rank???? |
Name (Country)? |
Total IRONMAN Pro Series Points (Max Top 5 events) |
Total Eligible Races Scored |
Eligible IRONMAN Races Scored |
Eligible IRONMAN 70.3 Races Scored |
| 1 |
Kat Matthews (GBR) |
7,500 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
| 2 |
Tamara Jewett (USA) |
6,203 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
| 3 |
Danielle Lewis (USA) |
5,080 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
| 4 |
Gabrielle Lumkes (USA) |
4,592 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
| 5 |
Hannah Berry (NZL) |
4,592 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
?
Full IRONMAN Pro Series standings can be found at proseries.ironman.com.
Overall IRONMAN Pro Series Event Prize Money
In addition to the Experience Oman IRONMAN Pro Series’ $1.7 million year-end bonus prize pool, there is an event pro prize purse payout of $2.4 million USD, distributed across Experience Oman IRONMAN Pro Series events. With three races now complete, a total of $225,000 USD has been earned by professional athletes so far – leaving nearly $1.9 million USD to be claimed at the remaining events.
Top Five Male Prize Money Earned (After Three Events)
| Rank |
Name (Country) |
IRONMAN 70.3 Oceanside Prize Money |
Total Prize Money |
| 1 |
Kristian Blummenfelt (NOR) |
$7,500 |
$19,000.00 |
| 2 |
Trevor Foley (USA) |
|
$18,000.00 |
| 3 |
Pierre Le Corre (FRA) |
|
$11,500.00 |
| 4 |
Matt Hanson (USA) |
|
$9,000.00 |
| 5 |
Jack Moody (NZL) |
|
$6,000.00 |
Top Five Female Prize Money Earned (After Three Events)
| Rank |
Name (Country) |
IRONMAN 70.3 Oceanside Prize Money |
Total Prize Money |
| 1 |
Kat Matthews (GBR) |
|
$25,500.00 |
| 2 |
Hannah Berry (NZL) |
|
$11,500.00 |
| 3 |
Tamara Jewett (USA) |
|
$9,750.00 |
| 4 |
Lotte Wilms (NLD) |
|
$9,000.00 |
| 5 |
Grace Thek (AUS) |
$3,000 |
$8,000.00 |
Next Events Coming Up
With the third race of the IRONMAN Pro Series calendar complete, next up is the highly anticipated Memorial Hermann IRONMAN Texas North American Championship triathlon returning to The Woodlands, Texas on Sunday, April 18.
A free replay of the Athletic Brewing IRONMAN 70.3 Oceanside is available to international audiences via www.ironman.com/proseries or IRONMAN’s YouTube Page, and on Outside+ for those watching from the United States and Canada.
For more information on the IRONMAN Pro Series, visit www.ironman.com/proseries.