SINGAPORE – Great Britain's Kate Waugh delivered a stunning performance to win the opening race of the T100 Triathlon season in Singapore on Saturday (April 5th). The victory was even more significant as it marked Waugh's debut in long-distance triathlon.
Waugh finished a remarkable 6 minutes and 41 seconds ahead of the second-place finisher, setting a new T100 record. In her T100 debut, Waugh topped the podium ahead of Australia's Ashleigh Gentle, who was aiming for her second consecutive Singapore title, and fellow Briton Lucy Charles-Barclay. Charles-Barclay finished third, while wildcard Lisa Perterer of Austria took the silver medal.
Race Details:
Starting in the warm waters of Marina Bay, the swim saw fellow Britons Lucy Charles-Barclay and Jessica Learmonth surge to the front early on. The pair pushed the pace, stretching out the field, but the main contenders remained within striking distance. After the 1km Australian exit lap, the lead group included Flora Duffy (Bermuda), Kate Waugh (Great Britain), Julie Derron (Switzerland), India Lee (Great Britain), Taylor Spivey (USA), Hannah Berry (New Zealand), and Ashleigh Gentle (Australia), all within 11 seconds of each other. The rest of the field trailed by 30 seconds.
On the second lap, Learmonth continued to apply pressure, narrowing the group to Charles-Barclay, Derron, Waugh, and Spivey. Duffy began to fall back slightly, while Gentle and Lee were almost a minute behind.
Into T1, athletes poured ice over their heads to combat the tropical heat. Learmonth led out onto the bike, with Waugh hot on her heels. By the 25km mark of the 80km bike course, Waugh was the only athlete within a minute of the leader, trailing by 15 seconds. Charles-Barclay was 1 minute and 40 seconds back, Derron 2 minutes and 18 seconds, and Gentle and Lee 2 minutes and 45 seconds adrift. Duffy was visibly struggling, more than 5 minutes behind.
At the 40km mark on the bike, Learmonth still held a slender 20-second lead over Waugh. Charles-Barclay had dropped to 2 minutes and 36 seconds back, while a chase group consisting of Lee, Gentle, and Lisa Perterer (Austria) were over 4 minutes behind. Berry and Derron were hovering around the 5-minute mark. By 60km, Waugh remained within 20 seconds of Learmonth, while Charles-Barclay had drifted to 3 minutes and 30 seconds back. Perterer led the chase group at 4 minutes and 20 seconds down, followed by Berry, Gentle, and Lee.
Unfortunately, Flora Duffy and India Lee would both abandon the race in the next 10km, officially recording a DNF (Did Not Finish) and scoring no points in the 2025 T100 Race To Qatar standings.
Learmonth was first into T2 after a dominant solo effort, but she was immediately hampered by severe cramping. Waugh seized the opportunity, taking the lead at the start of the 18km run and quickly opening up a gap. Perterer arrived in T2 in third place, 3 minutes and 43 seconds behind, with Charles-Barclay a further 20 seconds back. Berry and Gentle followed, 5 and 7 minutes behind respectively.
By the 5km mark of the run, Waugh had extended her lead over Learmonth to 1 minute and 33 seconds. Perterer held a comfortable third place, 4 minutes and 12 seconds back, while Charles-Barclay had fallen to 4 minutes and 36 seconds adrift. Berry and Gentle were still struggling to find their rhythm, with defending champion Gentle making no inroads on the gap.
At 8km, Learmonth's pace dropped dramatically as she was reduced to jogging and even walking, allowing Perterer and Charles-Barclay to move past her.
With the final 6km remaining, Waugh was in complete control of the race, leading Perterer by over 6 minutes, Charles-Barclay by 7 minutes, Berry by 8 minutes, and Gentle by 9 minutes. Learmonth had dropped out of the top ten and would eventually finish in 13th place.
Waugh cruised down the blue carpet, waving to the crowd and smiling, to cross the finish line in a time of 3:45:18 and claim the title of 2025 Singapore T100 Triathlon Champion. The victory earned Waugh 35 ranking points and $25,000, placing her at the top of the T100 Race To Qatar standings. Her dominant 6-minute and 41-second victory was the largest ever in a T100 race, sending a powerful message to her competitors.
Wildcard Perterer finished strongly in second place in 3:51:58, earning 28 ranking points and $17,000, signaling the arrival of a new force on the T100 scene.
Charles-Barclay, battling the heat, finished third in 3:53:35, securing 25 ranking points and $13,000, marking a successful return after an injury-disrupted 2024.
Berry rounded out the top four in 3:53:35, delivering a strong T100 debut against expectations of being a long-course specialist, earning $10,500 and 22 ranking points. Taylor Spivey finished fifth in 3:54:39, taking home $9,000 and 20 ranking points, while defending champion Ashleigh Gentle finished in sixth place.
Key Athlete Quotes:
Kate Waugh: "I'm so unbelievably happy, I've got goosebumps all over. It was just an amazing day where everything came together perfectly, and I'm just ecstatic. I feel so grateful to be here, and the support in Singapore was incredible, so I feel really lucky that I got to enjoy that last km. Being a professional athlete can be such a rollercoaster, and I went through a really tough time last year where I didn't even know if I wanted to keep doing the sport. So to come back here and get the biggest win of my career so far is just so special. I feel like it's relit the fire in my belly, so I'm just really grateful. I prioritized the aid stations and took my time with the bottles throughout the run, and I think that really paid off. It was so hot out there. I think halfway through the run I thought, 'Oh my god, this is horrific,' but I just stuck to my race plan, and it paid off. I just tried to keep (Jessica) in sight, and I was confident in my running coming into this race. It was double the distance, and double the pain… I just look forward to learning more and growing and developing as a T100 athlete."
Lisa Perterer: "I still can't believe I finished second. I came here as a wildcard, and I just wanted to enjoy it and make the most of the opportunity with no expectations. The swim was okay, but on the bike, I felt comfortable and just rode my own pace. I wasn't sure if it would be good enough, but I thought, this is my chance. The first few steps of the run didn't feel great, and I had some cramps in my legs, but I just told myself, 'Lisa, just do your best and don't worry about the others.' When I got my legs back up and running, I thought, now I can enjoy it and finish the race. I really enjoyed the last 2km, and I just couldn't believe it. A lot of people have asked me about the heat because I'm from Austria and grew up in the snow. I do a lot of indoor training, and that's my heat prep. I didn't do any special heat training, but I really like the heat, and I know exactly how far I can push myself. It's my first time in Singapore, and I've really enjoyed it. I love the city, the food, and the people, and I wish I could stay longer. It's been an amazing experience."
Lucy Charles-Barclay: "Honestly, after last season, just being on the start line was a win for me. So to come away with a podium in my first race back, I'm really happy. The girls just ran too well for me on the run, and I gave it everything I had to hang onto the podium, and that's all I wanted today. I had a pretty good block of training leading into this, but then I got really sick just before I flew out, and I wasn't even sure if I'd be able to get on the plane. But I'd put so much work in, and I just wanted to race again. I didn't want to miss another T100 race, so I got on the plane, dosed up on vitamin C, and just hoped for the best. I was confident I could do it, but it was brutal out there. It was horrible all day. As you saw in T2, I had to sit down, and every muscle in my legs cramped, and I thought, 'Oh my god, this run is going to be terrible.' I cramped the whole way around the run, and the girls were closing in on me, and I knew the gap was getting too close. I just had to keep pushing. I've put so much work into this, so I couldn't give up, and I'm really proud that I fought to the end."
The Singapore T100 continues on Sunday morning with the amateur races, followed by the men's professional race at 3:15 PM local time.
2025 T100 Triathlon World Tour Format:
35 ranking points for 1st place at each of the 9 races, down to 1 point for 20th place. Points increased for 2nd (28→29), 3rd (25→26), and 4th (22→23) to encourage competitive racing.
Increased points at the T100 Triathlon World Championship Final in Qatar (55→4 points) and increased points for 2nd (45→46) down to 13th place to make the world title race even more competitive.
The women's and men's T100 World Champion titles will be awarded to the athletes who achieve the highest cumulative score from their best four T100 race results plus the T100 Triathlon World Championship Final in Qatar.
$250,000 prize purse at each T100 race, totaling $2,250,000 across the nine races ($25,000 for 1st place, $17,000 for 2nd, $13,000 for 3rd).
An additional $2,000,000 prize pool for the series winners after the T100 Triathlon World Championship Final in Qatar, with the T100 World Champion title winners each earning $200,000.
The T100 Contender Ranking will pay from 1st to 40th ($16,000 for 1st, $15,000 for 2nd, $14,000 for 3rd down to $3,000 for 40th), totaling $560,000.
The total series prize purse, including athlete contracts, T100 race prize purses, the T100 Triathlon World Tour prize purse, and the T100 Contender Ranking, will exceed $8,000,000, distributed in a way that recognizes the importance of not just winning but competing at this level and providing a pathway to the T100 series.
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