A start list that wouldn’t look out of place at a World Championship: Challenge Xiamen takes
place this coming weekend, and with names like Kristian Blummenfelt, Gustav Iden, Mike
Phillips, Ognjen Stojanovic, Lionel Sanders, Kieran Storch, Sara Perez Sala, Justine Guerard,
and Jasmine Brown, fireworks are to be expected.
In the men’s race, all eyes are naturally on the Norwegians Kristian Blummenfelt and Gustav
Iden, but just as much on New Zealander Mike Phillips and Canadian Lionel Sanders.
Blummenfelt, by far the highest-ranked athlete as number three on the PTO World Ranking,
has had a great season with victories at IM 70.3 Geelong, Ironman 70.3 Oceanside, and IM
Texas, as well as second-place finishes at DATEV Challenge Roth and the IM 70.3 World
Championship in Nice. After his eighth-place finish in Kona just over a month ago,
Blummenfelt will be seeking redemption and to restore his reputation in Xiamen; either way,
the Norwegian wants to add another victory to his record.
Someone who did much better in Kona is his compatriot Gustav Iden: he finished second
there, after also taking second at IM Frankfurt and fourth at the IM 70.3 World Championship
in Nice. While Iden may be highly successful, he has yet to secure a victory this year – and
didn’t claim a win anywhere last year either – which could very well change now. Iden’s last
victory dates back to July 2024, when he won Challenge Turku. Challenge Xiamen seems like
an ideal race to step back onto the top step of the podium.
Canadian Lionel Sanders will do everything in his power to break the Norwegian front:
Sanders has only competed four times this year, won only IM 70.3 Dallas, and stood on the
lowest step of the podium in Cozumel, but a victory at the end of the 2026 season would be
more than welcome. Sanders has suffered from serious injuries this year, but now seems to
have found his way back up and will be eager to prove himself. There are also plenty of dark
horses, including Mike Phillips, Ognjen Stojanovic, defending champion Kieran Storch, Louis
Woodgate, Antony Costes, and Thomas Navarro.
Just as defending champion Storch returns to Xiamen in the men’s field, the same is true for
the women’s race: Spanish athlete Sara Perez Sala returns to fight for all she’s worth. Perez
Sala hasn’t had her best season so far; she competed three times in a T100 race and once at
Challenge Samarkand, reaching the podium only at the latter thanks to a third-place finish.
French athlete Justine Guerard looks to be Perez Sala’s main competitor on paper; unlike the
defending champion, Guerard has been exceptionally active this year. Guerard pinned on a
race bib no fewer than nine times this year, securing two podium finishes with a second place
at Challenge Kaiserwinkl-Walchsee and a third place at Challenge Forte Village. That third-
place finish at Challenge Forte Village was just last week, and Guerard is sure to hope to carry
that good momentum into Xiamen.
Additionally, Australian Jasmine Brown, South African Magda Niewoudt, and Australian
Paige Cranage can be counted among the dangerous dark horses in the women’s race.
Live timing and live stream will be available at www.challenge-family.live.
For more information, visit www.challenge-xiamen.com.