Three former winners

25th Ironman: These stars are coming to Carinthia

Ironman winner 2018: Michael Weiss is the only Austrian to win in Carinthia so far.(Bild: w. pessentheiner)

The 25th Ironman Austria in Carinthia will take place with a strong starting field of men. All of the pros are chasing two World Championship slots for Hawaii - only one local hero has already secured his and can step on the gas without any pressure. In the women's race, however, there are no pros at the start - but there will be a comeback at the finish.

Six years ago, Michael Weiss (Lower Austria) celebrated his first Ironman victory in Klagenfurt - the 43-year-old wants to do it again next week on June 16. He is the only (!) athlete on the 52-strong professional entry list to have already secured his World Championship ticket for Hawaii, which he won in the USA in September. Weiss: "Compared to the competition, I have no pressure - as there are only two tickets at stake, it's going to be carnage!"

The favorites:

• Denis Chevrot (Fr): European champion in 2022 and 2023. The Frenchman won the Ironman in Hamburg last year, has also won in Klagenfurt in 2021 - candidate for the very front!

Ran to Ironman victory in Klagenfurt in 2021: Denis Chevrot.(Bild: GEPA pictures)

• Ruben Zepuntke (D): A strong swimmer and ex-professional cyclist. The most dangerous opponent for Chevrot and Weiss - as long as he doesn't overdo it before the run.
• Lukasz Wojt (Poland): The fastest in the water. Although there are some good swimmers in the field this year, no one is his equal. Not enough for overall victory on the bike and run.
• Ivan Tutukin (Kas): The Carinthia 2022 winner feels at home here - and is attacking again after missing out on defending his title.

• Niek Heldoorn (Hol): Just won an Ironman 70.3 in Switzerland, so comes in top form.
• Florian Angert (D): Could challenge Wojt in the water - a top 5 candidate.
• Georg Enzenberger (Upper Austria): The teammate of Michi Weiss showed with third place last year that he can run onto the podium in Carinthia.

Gabriele Obmann will not be competing
As only the men's pros are allowed to compete in the Ironman this year, last year's runner-up Gabriele Obmann from Klagenfurt will not be taking part. Last year, she finished second in the professional category and turned down the World Championship ticket for Hawaii for financial reasons. "Unfortunately, there is no pro ranking for the women this year - that won't pay off for me," says Gabi, annoyed.

Grandstands for the fans
A comeback in the finish area! For the first time since the pandemic, grandstands will be set up again for the fans. On the bike, the same route on the southern shore of Lake Wörthersee will be ridden twice again. The 3,000 starting places have been sold out since last year and registration for 2025 is already underway.