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Kona 2026

If you are looking for the 2025 Nice and Kona qualifiers, check out this page.

After three years of racing in split locations, starting in 2026 Ironman will move back to have the Ironman World Championships in Kona on a single day. The 2026 race will be held on Saturday, Oct 10.

(Note: You can sort the tables below by clicking on the column header

Females Qualified for Kona

# Name Nation Race Date Slot Type
1 Sodaro, Chelsea USA IM World Championships 2022-10-06 Champion (NV)
2 Charles-Barclay, Lucy GBR IM World Championships 2023-10-14 Champion (NV)
3 Hofmann, Franzi GER IM Wales 2025-09-21 Race
4 Wild, Rosie GBR IM Wales 2025-09-21 Race
5 Fauteux, Danielle CAN IM Chattanooga 2025-09-28 Race
6 Pabinger, Anna AUT IM Chattanooga 2025-09-28 Race
7 Loevseth, Solveig NOR IM World Championships 2025-10-10 Champion

Males Qualified for Kona

# Name Nation Race Date Slot Type
1 Blummenfelt, Kristian NOR IM World Championships 2022-05-07 Champion (NV)
2 Iden, Gustav NOR IM World Championships 2022-10-06 Champion (NV)
3 Laidlow, Sam FRA IM World Champs Nice 2023-09-10 Champion (NV)
4 Arnold, Leonard GER IM Switzerland 2025-08-24 Race
5 Bjerkeset, Marius NOR IM Switzerland 2025-08-24 Race
6 Stornes, Casper NOR IM World Champs Nice 2025-09-14 Champion
7 Svenningsson, Rasmus SWE IM Chattanooga 2025-09-28 Race
8 Wurf, Cameron AUS IM Chattanooga 2025-09-28 Race

Athletes who Declined Their Slot

# Name Nation Race Date Slot Type
1 Robertson, Jodie USA IM Chattanooga 2025-09-28 Race

Explanation of Slot Types

Here are some more details on the different slot types:

  • Race
    This is the “normal” way of qualifying by winning or finishing close to the front in an Ironman race (depending on the number of slots at a race), including rolldown if an already qualified athlete would receive a slot. There is no validation requirement for this type of slot.
  • Champion
    Both men’s and women’s 2025 Champions receive a slot for the next year. They do not have to validate this slot. Earlier winners (from 2021 to 2024) also get slots but those still have to be validated by “racing competitively and being an official finisher” in at least one Pro Ironman race (but not the World Championship, i.e. Nice or Kona).
  • Wild Card
    For special circumstances, Ironman gives out wild cards for Kona (used in the past for special circumstances such as Olympic Gold Medal winners or athletes who suffered an accident an earlier World Championship races).
  • Deferred
    For some situations (e.g. an athlete who qualified but is pregnant), Ironman allows an athlete to transfer a slot from one year to another.
  • Will Not Start
    Athletes who have received a slot but have indicated that they won’t race Kona. Reasons could be different plans or injuries. According to the rules by Ironman, these slots won’t be reassigned to another athlete. The names will also be crossed out.
  • Declined
    Athletes who declined a slot they earned in one of the qualifying races. It’s unlikely but if they get another in another race, they might still accept that “second” slot.

There used to be other ways to qualify, but they have been removed from the system used since 2025:

  • Kona Podium
    Second- and third-place finishers in Kona used to receive a slot for next year’s Kona race (with validation)
  • 70.3 Champion
    In previous years, there were slots for the winners for the 70.3 Championships for next year’s race (with validation)

Upcoming Qualifying Races

The following table shows the current Pro schedule and the number of Kona 2026 qualifying slots. (Races in red are part of the Ironman Pro Series – not applicable to the 2025 qualifying races.) Ironman has announced qualifying races until the end of 2025, races in 2026 are still to be added.

Date Race Prize Purse MPRO WPRO
16-Nov-25 IM Arizona $ 100.000 3 3
23-Nov-25 IM Cozumel $ 100.000 4 4
7-Dec-25 IM Western Australia $ 100.000 4 4
Open Slots For races already announced   11 12
Already Assigned Previous races and Champions   8 7
2026 Races Estimated slots for 2026 races   ca. 35-40 ca. 35-40
2026 Slots Estimate of total number of slots   ca. 50-55 ca. 50-55
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