More than 26 minutes for the last 1000 meters – the drama surrounding the Ironman leader

She entered the race as the defending champion. In 2025, Solveig Lövseth confidently won the Ironman - and in this year's edition of the toughest triathlon in the world, the Norwegian was also in the race in Hawaii for a long time. Until she collapsed, exhausted, around 1000 meters from the finish.

Plagued by struggles in her legs, she staggered along the track and fell several times. She even had to receive short-term medical care on the legendary Ali'i Drive. But giving up was out of the question for the world champion, who led the field by a minute and a half.

While her competitors passed her in the third discipline - the marathon over 42.195 kilometers - and fought for victory, the Norwegian pulled herself together. However, it took her an incredible 26 minutes to cover the last 1000 meters. She eventually crossed the finish line in eighth place to the cheers of fans who recognized the 27-year-old's energetic performance.

The winner was last year's runner-up Taylor Knibb from the USA, silver went to the German Laura Philipp, and the Swiss Julie Derron secured bronze. In addition to the $65,000 for second place in Hawaii, Philipp also received $200,000 for winning the Ironman Pro Series. “That made her really strong,” praised her trainer and husband Philipp Seipp. Philipp's competitor Lövseth had to lick her wounds.

There was a duplicity of events: a year ago the Norwegian had benefited from a phase of weakness by Knibb, who had been leading for a long time, and took victory. Now she had to experience firsthand how exhausting the last few meters of an Ironman can be. She finished the race after 9:02:09 hours – around 25 minutes behind Knibb.

“The crazy thing is that the finish is more fun this year than last year,” said Lövseth as she spoke directly into a camera during the last few meters of the race. Then she could smile again