This weekend the Noosa Triathlon will celebrate its 40th anniversary, with Noosa Heads on the Sunshine Coast hosting one of the most iconic triathlon races on the calendar.
Leading the fields will be Kiwi Hayden Wilde on the men’s side and home favourite Ashleigh Gentle on the women’s side, with the latter gunning for an incredible tenth title in Noosa.
In our preview piece below, you can find all the details you need on start times, how to watch live and a preview of the professional men and women’s races on Sunday.
Start time and how to watch live
The racing takes place in Queensland on Sunday November 5. In Noosa, the men will start first at 06:15 local time. This corresponds to 20:15 on Saturday November 4 in the UK, 21:15 in Central Europe and 12:15 on the West Coast.
For the women’s race, the action will kick off two minutes later at 06:17 local time. This corresponds to 20:17 on Saturday November 4 in the UK, 21:17 in Central Europe and 12:17 on the West Coast.
If you can’t be in Noosa this weekend to witness all the action of the 40th Garmin Noosa Triathlon, both Super Saturday and the main event on Sunday will be broadcast live and free! Head to the Noosa Tri Facebook page or tune in on YouTube via the IRONMAN Oceania page to watch the action.
Elite Men
In the men’s race, Kiwi Wilde looks to end his season with some middle distance success, with the short course star also down to race at IRONMAN 70.3 Melbourne this month during his time in Australia.
Leading the home favourites, Matthew Hauser, who has already secured his slot at the Paris Olympics next year, will be backed by many to take the race to Wilde and is joined by course record holder Charlie Quin and former winner Jake Birtwhistle as the home side tries to keep the title on the Gold Coast.
From further afield, South Africans Henri Schoeman and Jamie Riddle make the long trip out to Noosa, and are the only two male pros besides Wilde from outside of Australia. Excellent swimmers, both could team up with home favourite Hauser to isolate Wilde early on and make the break.
Elite Women
In the women’s race, look no further than nine time winner Gentle for the heavy favourite, as the PTO Tour Asian Open winner chases a ninth successive crown and awe inspiring tenth win of her career at the legendary event.
Britain’s Fenella Langridge, after a subpar performance at the IRONMAN World Championship, will be looking for a small amount of vengeance with a good race in Noosa. 30th on the Big Island of Hawaii, the Brit will look to finish her year with a stab at the podium at the very least.
Racing from the short course scene, Australians Natalie Van Coevorden, Charlotte McShane and Jaz Hedgeland will all be hoping to make an impact, as will Belgian Hanne De Vet, another short course athlete racing in Queensland after a mixed season in 2023.
Finally, Sarah Crowley, more accustomed to racing over the full distance on home soil, will add another element to the race as she takes the start line. Lotte Wilms, this year’s IRONMAN Austria winner, is also down to race.
Previous Winners at Noosa
With a Noosa Triathlon Walk of Fame unveiled to celebrate the event’s 30-year anniversary, thanks to a joint initiative between Noosa Council and The IRONMAN Group Oceania, the Noosa race winners and event patrons are remembered years after their successes.
Previous winners include former World Champion Miles Stewart, Olympic champion Emma Snowsill and current PTO World #2 Gentle. Gentle, who has won eight consecutive titles since 2014, has a total of nine wins.
What are the Noosa Triathlon Course Records?
These are the golden numbers to look out for on Saturday:
- Men: Charlie Quin (AUS) – 1:43:12
- Women: Emma Carney (AUS) – 1:54:22
Noosa Triathlon Previous Winners – Last 10 Races
- 2022 – Charlie Quin (AUS) | Ashleigh Gentle (AUS)
- 2021 – Luke Willian (AUS) | Ashleigh Gentle (AUS)
- 2019 – Jacob Birtwhistle (AUS) | Ashleigh Gentle (AUS)
- 2018 – Aaron Royle (AUS) | Ashleigh Gentle (AUS)
- 2017 – Jacob Birtwhistle (AUS) | Ashleigh Gentle (AUS)
- 2016 – Dan Wilson (AUS) | Ashleigh Gentle (AUS)
- 2015 – Joe Malloy (USA) | Ashleigh Gentle (AUS)
- 2014 – Aaron Royle (AUS) | Ashleigh Gentle (AUS)
- 2013 – Aaron Royle (AUS) | Emma Moffatt (AUS)
- 2012 – Peter Kerr (AUS) | Ashleigh Gentle (AUS)
Prize Money: What’s on the line?
The prize purse on offer this weekend is A$75,000 – with the winner collecting a A$15,600 share of that total.
The total funds will be paid ten-deep, as follows:
- A$15,600
- A$9,100
- A$5,200
- A$1,930
- A$1,270
- A$1,140
- A$1,010
- A$880
- A$750
- A$620