Hayden Wilde made history last year, going essentially undefeated over the T100 distance, with six victories in seven races. His only non-win came after a lap-counting error in Dubai, and he went on to secure the series crown in Qatar. This year, he opened with a victory in Singapore, but, racing through illness, took third in the most recent men’s race, the Sokin San Francisco T100.

With this year’s revamped T100 format (only four regular-season events for each gender, three of which count for points, followed by the World Championship Final in Qatar), every racing opportunity counts more than ever, and the cost of missing one is high.

Wilde commented on this with regard to his decision to race San Francisco despite illness, saying: “I wanted to come respect the race, and I know that if I didn’t turn up, it was going to be hard to defend the title. So honestly, I’m actually pretty happy with the podium. I wasn’t expecting too much today and it puts me in a good position here to get to the Qatar final, and I can’t complain about that.”

Next up is the Ekoï French Riviera T100 on September 19th, with Wilde set to toe the line for the third of four regular-season opportunities. He won on this course last year and hopes to defend his title, despite still facing some health challenges.

As Wilde shared, “The problem with my lungs has affected my training over the last few months. It is a bit of an unknown where my form will be at. Having a respiratory issue in endurance sports is never ideal, but I feel stronger than I was in San Francisco where I ended up on the podium.”

“I am excited to be back in Saint-Raphaël and Fréjus,” he continued. “The stunning Estérel Côte d’Azur course holds so many special memories for me from last year. The goal is to go back-to-back, that would be incredible.”

As for his toughest competitors, we put Jelle Geens high on the list, having finished runner-up on the French Riviera last season by a margin of only 22 seconds. There’s also powerhouse cyclist Rico Bogen, who took the win in San Francisco ahead of Wilde, and Lasse Nygaard Priester, who finished runner-up in San Francisco, among many other strong men.

We look forward to seeing the show these incredible athletes put on, and what Wilde can deliver as he returns to health. He still has one more regular-season opportunity in Saudi Arabia in November to secure points ahead of Qatar in December. The race is on!