We Noticed: Supertri Heads Back to Jersey, IRONMAN News from France and LA Paralympic Update

Athletes compete at IRONMAN 70.3 Tours Metropole – Loire Valley Photo: IRONMAN

They sure love triathlon in France.

Nice, this year’s site of the IRONMAN World Championship for the men, has long been associated with a big name long-distance tri (hopefully I’m not the only one who remembers the good ol’ days of the Nice International Triathlon), for years the country has offered up a prestigious and competitive Grand Prix club circuit and the country went nuts over the triathlon at the Olympics last year. They also appear to really like their IRONMAN events – in addition to the worlds in Nice in September there are no fewer than six IRONMAN races held in the country. (Add to that all the bucket-list races like the Alpe d’Huez and Gerardmer, too.)

After last weekend’s inaugural IRONMAN 70.3 Tours Metropole – Loire Valley, IRONMAN announced that the event would be held as a full-distance race next year, and the full distance race in Les Sables d’Olonne – Vendee will return to being a 70.3 race.

As opposed to the climb-fest that athletes can enjoy at the full-distance race in Nice, this year’s IRONMAN race in Les Sables and next year’s race in Metropole – Loire Valley will be flat and fast.

Here’s how the 2026 schedule of races in France looks – at this point all the dates are not confirmed:

• IRONMAN 70.3 Aix-en-Provence – May 17, 2026 

• IRONMAN Tours Metropole – Loire Valley – June 14, 2026
• IRONMAN France / IRONMAN 70.3 Nice – End of June

• IRONMAN 70.3 Les Sables d’Olonne – Vendée – Week after Nice

• IRONMAN 70.3 Vichy – End of August

In addition to all those events, Nice will once again host the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship on Sept. 12, 2026. That means there will be seven IRONMAN events in the country next year.

Supertri Returns to Its Roots

It can’t be easy to get the sport’s best short-course athletes organized these days with so many playing with the occasional long-distance effort either at a T100 or 70.3 race, let alone the World Triathlon schedule that has everyone heading down under for the Grand Final in October. The crew at Supertri are getting it done, though, and have announced another event in this year’s Supertri League series. The series heads back to the site of the first venue to host a Supertri race in 2017, Jersey. This year’s race will be the fifth on the small island that’s 14 miles off the coast of France.

“Jersey has always been one of the most iconic stops on the Supertri League calendar, and a place we have always considered to be our spiritual home,” said Supertri CEO Michael D’Hulst. “The racing is world-class, the backdrop is stunning, and the community is truly invested. It really is a very special place not only for Supertri but for triathlon in general, where people recognize the effort you put in and repay that with incredible support. We’re thrilled to return in 2025 and to continue working in partnership with the Government of Jersey to promote healthier, more active lifestyles while showcasing the island on a global stage.”

Here’s the list of Supertri League events announced for 2025 so far:

• Toronto – July 26
• Chicago – August 23
• Jersey – September 21
• Toulouse – October 5

Para Triathlon Heads to Venice Beach for 2028 Games

It’s hardly a surprise that the Los Angeles Paralympics will host the triathlon events at Venice Beach, the same venue being used for the Olympics in 2028. The “news” from World Triathlon’s announcement, though, is that there will be 12 medal events at the Games with a total of 120 para athletes competing. Medals will be handed out in six categories: PTWC, PTVI, PTS2, PTS3, PTS4 and PTS5.

“World Triathlon is delighted that we have one more medal event than in the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games,” said Antonio F. Arimany, World Triathlon President. “This announcement marks a significant step forward for Para triathlon and reflects our dedication to creating a truly inclusive and equitable sport. We are incredibly excited to see all Para triathlon classes represented on the Paralympic stage in LA, and we are confident that the event will inspire audiences worldwide.”

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