More than 50 of the region’s top professional triathletes will go head-to-head this Sunday for the 2025 IRONMAN 70.3 Sunshine Coast titles.
As well as bragging rights, the athletes are battling it out for a share of the $25,000 USD pro prize purse and two qualifying slots per gender to the 2026 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Nice, France.
Can Anyone Beat Salthouse to the Women’s Title?
The IRONMAN 70.3 Sunshine women’s race is highlighted by 18-time IRONMAN 70.3 champion Ellie Salthouse (AUS), who will wear the number one bib?
The Queenslander has won Australian IRONMAN 70.3 races in Geelong, Melbourne, Tasmania, but is set to make her IRONMAN 70.3 Sunshine Coast debut this weekend.
“This race has been on my list for a long time but I’m usually overseas at this time of year, so I’m so glad I can be a part this year,” said Salthouse. “I raced the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Mooloolaba in 2016, along with the World Cup on multiple occasions, and it’s the closest chance I get to a home race. I’m most excited for the surf swim, that beautiful run along the coast, and having my family on the sidelines.
“There’s nothing quite like the Aussie support you receive on the course at a home event. From the spectators to the other competitors, there’s never a shortage of someone screaming my name, which really spurs me on and pushes me to find that extra percent,” she said. “My family and friends are able to watch in person too, which is a real treat, so I have to make sure I put on a special show.”
Though she would love to take the win this weekend, Salthouse’s primary goal is finishing in the top two to secure qualification for the 2026 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Nice. She has twice finished in the top 10 at the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship, including seventh in Taupō last year.
“Qualifying for Nice is my biggest goal this weekend. If I can earn my spot now, it means I can plan my season better next year knowing that I have already qualified,” she said. “The IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship is always a target race each year, and I can’t wait to hopefully head back to Nice after last racing there in 2019.”
Sunshine Coast based Dutch athlete Lotte Wilms is no stranger to the Mooloolaba race, having won back-to-back IRONMAN 70.3 Sunshine Coast titles in 2021 and 2022.
“I love this race, and it brings back all good memories. It was just sad that it appears not to fit in my schedule the last years, so I’m happy to return this year,” said Wilms. “I love the crowd in the Sunshine Coast and the team plus volunteers of IRONMAN Oceania are always lovely and great – it feels like family.”
Like Salthouse, Wilms will be hoping for a positive race this weekend as she prepares for the full distance IRONMAN World Championship in Kona, Hawai`i next month.
“This race fits very well before Kona. I’ve just come off a six-weeks training block and it is very nice to mix that up with a race to reset and pick up training after this race,” she said.
Fifteen women will line up in Mooloolaba this weekend for IRONMAN 70.3 Sunshine Coast. Alongside Salthouse and Wilms as podium contenders are Sunshine Coast-based Kiwi Amelia Watkinson, recent winner of IRONMAN 70.3 Lapu Lapu, and Australian duo Penny Slater and Chloe Hartnett.
Multiple IRONMAN 70.3 Champions Highlight Men’s Race
In the men’s race, defending champion Ben Hamilton (NZL) will return to Mooloolaba in the hopes of securing back-to-back victories.
“Winning last year at IRONMAN 70.3 Sunshine Coast was really special,” said Hamilton. “My season had been up and down until then, so that win was a much-needed confidence boost heading into the IRONMAN World Championship in Kona last year. For this weekend, it’s a great reminder that I know how to race and execute when it counts.
“I don’t feel any added pressure at the moment, but we’ll see how things feel closer to race day. Racing with the number one on my bib is a confidence boost – a reminder that I’ve done it before and can do it again,” he said.
With the men’s start list 36 athletes deep and featuring a number of IRONMAN 70.3 champions – including former IRONMAN 70.3 Sunshine Coast winners Nicholas Free (AUS) and Braden Currie (NZL), as well as Jake Birtwhistle (AUS), Sam Osborne (NZL), Josh Ferris (AUS), and Jarrod Osborne (AUS) – Hamilton says he’s expecting a high-quality and close race this weekend.
“I’m keeping an eye on Jake Birtwhistle and Josh Ferris. Jake and I have had some close battles over the past year – he edged me out by one spot in both Busselton and St. George. Josh has won his last couple of races and has a strong swim, so I expect him to be out front pushing the pace early. Jarrod and Sam Osborne have also shown they’ve got serious run speed, so anything’s possible,” said Hamilton.
Birtwhistle had his sole IRONMAN 70.3 victory to date on home turf in Tasmania two years ago. Since then, the Tokyo 2020 Olympian has raced five IRONMAN 70.3 triathlons, finishing on the podium in Melbourne and Geelong.
The Launceston athlete will race IRONMAN 70.3 Sunshine Coast for the first time this weekend but is no stranger to racing in Mooloolaba over the years.
“I’ve raced a lot here over my short course career so I’m pretty familiar with the area and some of the course. However, I imagine that the hill on the run will feel like a pretty different challenge after three hours of racing already, so we’ll see how that goes, but I’m looking forward to it,” said Birtwhistle.
“I’ve travelled all over the world racing triathlons so it’s always nice to get the chance to perform in big races a little closer to home. Racing in Australia always makes for a special opportunity for me and with some family and friends supporting on the sidelines as well as others racing, it’s sure to be a special race,” he said.
Birtwhistle had a strong start to 2025, earning a podium at IRONMAN 70.3 Geelong followed by fifth and sixth place finishes at highly competitive races in the United States. After spending the past few months building towards the second half of the season, Birtwhistle is hoping for a confidence boosting performance this weekend on the Sunshine Coast in preparation for the 2025 Precision Hydration IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Marbella, Spain in November.
“I’m feeling good coming into Sunshine Coast,” he said. “As always when lining up to race, I’ll be doing my best to end on the top step of the podium, but there’s a lot of different ways we can judge it as a success. It has been a pretty long winter of training at home in Tassie; I haven’t raced since mid-June so it will be a great indicator to see exactly where shape is at and what still needs a bit of work ahead of the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in November.”
