Updated on July 5, 2026 at 01:38 PM
The world’s most supported triathlon dubbed the ‘Home of Triathlon’ delivered one of the most dramatic races in recent years, with both Sam Laidlow (FRA) and Siifert (SUI) delivering career-defining performances at Roth.
Laidlaw extended his win last year by going nearly nine minutes faster, thanks to a ferocious swim and a bike that allowed him to hold off a blistering 2:29 marathoner from Norway’s Kristian Blumenfelt and still win by more than five minutes, setting the record. The fastest full-distance triathlon time in the world At 7:21:04.
Perhaps the biggest shock of the day, and one of the biggest upsets of the past few years, came from 24-year-old Seifert, who downed two giants of the sport: Lucy Charles Barkley (GBR) and Cat Matthews (GBR) with seven minutes remaining. She did so in large part thanks to outstanding bike riding and a 12-minute marathon PB, taking the win in 8:09:09.
Swimming in the Roth Channel was not suitable for professionals, much to the delight of strong swimmers. Jonas Schomburg (DEU), Laidlaw, and 70.3 world champion Rico Boggin (DEU), making his full-distance debut, were part of a five-man group that broke away early.
Whether it was a coordinated attack to rid themselves of their biggest rival or just a strong start, at 1,000 metres, they already had 24 seconds on Blumenfelt, and that gap ballooned from there, increasing to three minutes by the end of the swim. Former champions Patrick Lange (Germany) and Magnus Detlef (Denmark) were close behind.
On the women’s side, it was no surprise that Charles Barkley, who was a surprise late addition to the starting roster, moved away from the gun. But it wasn’t the lead she was hoping for based on past races. Germany’s Caroline Buhle was next out of the water, impressively maintaining a lead of just over a minute and a half alongside Fenella Langridge (GBR), eventual race winner Siefert, and British rookie Daisy Davies. Matthews was further back, six minutes clear of Charles Barkley in one of the biggest goal races of the year alongside Kona.
On the bike, it was a strong start for the front men as the five-strong group quickly became three, with Schomburg, Laidlaw and Boggin significantly extending their lead in the opening miles. At the back, Blumenfelt, Detlev and Lange lost nearly two extra minutes in less than 20 miles.
It was also interesting to note that the front three were all riding the new Canyon Gen 6 Speedmax, scheduled for launch on July 9, with its distinctive one-piece wing seat.
From there, the gap stabilized all the way up to the famous Solar Hill climb, where the front trio held five minutes on the first lap over Detlev and Blumenfelt. Meanwhile, Lange dropped out of the top 15 and was more than 10 minutes behind.
Behind Charles Barkley, the women’s pursuit group snatched their lead over the 25-mile bike, working well together before Siefert eventually made the pass and led the group of four. Langridge was the only one unable to stay with the group, as she was caught by Matthews, who was also riding strongly aboard the new Speedmax, although she only regained about 30 seconds at that point.
By the time the second lap of Solar Hill came around, it was just a pair at the front, with Laidlaw and rookie Bogen now nine and a half minutes ahead of Detlev and Blumenfelt, who were riding together. Schaumburg had been falling rapidly, and was now three minutes behind the leader.
Disaster nearly struck Laidlaw I tried to scroll down the age groups He crossed the crowded Solar Hill – a risky move that resulted in him crashing, but he somehow managed to stay upright.
At the same stage of the women’s race, Sievert was one minute ahead of Charles Barkley and Buhle, while Matthews’ chances of winning looked almost impossible with a 12-minute lead.
Siffert carried that momentum to fly to T2 first, even though she came in too quickly and She had her own fear, as she somewhat collided with the bike-hunting volunteer.
Speaking after the race, Seifert explained her amazing performance on the bike: “I saw my watts, and I thought, ‘It’s too high, I’m not going to be able to keep it.’ She then proceeded to shut down the bike computer to avoid seeing those numbers anymore.
That almost inexplicable power continued into her run as Seifert set a pace that was alien to her, running much faster than anyone else on the course. This included 2023 world champion Charles Barkley and recent Ironman Lanzarote winner Matthews, who could only watch their chances continually slip away.
In the end, Siefert ran more than 12 minutes faster than ever before, taking the biggest win of her career against Charles Barkley. Davies came home to third ahead of Buhle, while Matthews had to settle for fifth on what was clearly a holiday, marked by an unusually slow marathon.
“I felt very strong but I was also in a good place mentally,” said an elated Seifert. “This race is very special, and I’m a person who really loves a party. So, let’s rock the party I told myself.”
Women’s Ruth Challenge 2026 Results:
| position | athlete | Swimming | bike | Being | total |
| 1 | Alanis Seifert | 52:03 | 04:29:19 | 02:45:00 | 08:09:09 |
| 2 | Lucy Charles Barclay | 50:23 | 04:31:51 | 02:50:43 | 08:16:41 |
| 3 | Daisy Davies | 52:08 | 04:35:51 | 02:56:35 | 08:27:19 |
The battle continued in the men’s race as Bogen looked set to challenge for the win, exiting T2 first with Laidlow. The pair probably weren’t too worried about Blumenfelt at that stage, as the Norwegian was more than 12 and a half minutes behind.
At first, Bogen and Laidlaw ran side by side, But an unfortunate accident occurred during the feed delivery The relationship between Bogen and his wife seems to mark the beginning of a separation. From there, the gap continued to grow until the end with Bogen fading away.
Blumenfelt and Detlev ran together early at an impressive 2:30 marathon pace, but only the Norwegian was able to hold on. Blummenfelt ultimately ran 2:29, which was only enough for second place, still 5:20 coming back from Laidlow and his new world best time for the full distance, knocking out Blummenfelt’s 2021 Ironman Cozumel time from 2021 by just seven seconds.
“I’m on top of the world now,” Laidlaw said after the race, although he also revealed that until last week he had been very close to not racing. He gave credit to his family for helping him get to the starting line.
Bogen impressively held on to third place ahead to round off one of the best full-distance debuts we’ve ever seen. Menno Koolhaas, who clocked 2:30, finished fourth ahead of Schomburg in fifth and Detlef in sixth. Former champion Lange was forced to settle for ninth place after losing 20 minutes on the bike.
All eyes will now be on how Blummenfelt and the rest of the players react in Laidlow’s wake ahead of Kona, with Roth in many ways feeling like a preview of what could come next.
Roth Challenge 2026 Men’s Results:
| position | athlete | Swimming | bike | Being | total |
| 1 | Sam Laidlaw | 46:57 | 3:54:58 | 2:36:53 | 7:21:04 |
| 2 | Christian Blumenfelt | 49:54 | 4:04:10 | 2:29:33 | 7:26:24 |
| 3 | Rico book | 46:56 | 3:54:45 | 2:43:48 | 7:27:53 |
