Hayden Wilde continues to prove he’s the man to beat in 2025, taking his third straight win of the T100 season with a composed and commanding performance on the French Riviera.
This time in the swim, Wilde emerged just 17 seconds behind swim leader Morgan Pearson, a significant improvement from London where he trailed by nearly a minute. His progress in the water, as his shoulder continues to heal, helped set up what’s become a familiar story this year: Wilde taking control on the bike or early in the run, and never letting it go.
By the time he hit T2, Wilde was in the lead with Rico Bogen just three seconds behind. Sam Dickinson and Jelle Geens followed nearly 50 seconds back, with the rest of the field more than four minutes adrift. On the run, Wilde wasted no time building a buffer. It looked like he had it sewn up – until the final kilometres.
Geens, who had exited the swim in the front pack and rode smartly to stay in contention, made a dramatic late surge. Nearly a minute back with 3km to go, he closed the gap to just 21 seconds at the finish. Cameras briefly cut to the Belgian mid-charge, his face straining, cadence surging. Wilde, who had begun to ease back, glanced over his shoulder, saw the danger, and pushed again to seal the win.
“Round one done and dusted,” Wilde posted afterward. “Epic course, epic battles…3 from 3 for me on the @t100triathlon. Round two loading…”
That “round two” arrives almost immediately. Wilde will line up again on the same coastline tomorrow, this time for the WTCS French Riviera sprint race – an all-out effort the day after finishing the 100km effort. Morgan Pearson will join him, also taking on the double.
As for the rest of today’s podium: Jelle Geens settled for second after his gutsy run, admitting “there was one guy stronger.” And Sam Dickinson, a wildcard entry, made his T100 debut count, delivering a strong all-round performance to take third.
But make no mistake: this weekend looks like it may belong to Wilde. Three wins from three T100 starts and a second race still to come. Will he go two for two?
The post Jelle Geens makes a heroic effort, but Hayden Wilde takes the win at T100 French Riviera appeared first on Triathlon Magazine Canada.