KAILUA-KONA — Kona’s crown jewel of events will be returning Saturday to West Hawaii.
The 2025 VinFast Ironman World Championship for women will begin at 6:25 a.m. Saturday morning at Kailua Pier, where 1,600 athletes from across the globe will embark on the world’s most famous triathlon along West Hawaii’s golden coast. There will also be an expected 5,000 volunteers scattered across the race course.
The 140.6-mile journey begins with a 2.4-mile swim through the crystal-clear waters of Kailua Bay. Once completed, triathletes will swiftly transition to the 112-mile bike ride through the rolling lava fields of Queen Ka‘ahumanu Highway all the way up Kohala to Hawi and back — with picturesque views of the Pacific waters on one side, and the breathtaking sights of Hualalai on the other. Athletes will then finish the journey running a 26.2-mile marathon on Ali‘i Drive, up Palani Road back to Queen Ka‘ahumanu Highway and back down to Ali‘i Drive, where thousands will anxiously wait at the iconic finish line in front of the King Kamehameha Resort.
“After witnessing an unforgettable race and some incredible performance from our male athletes several weeks ago in Nice, France, we are excited to welcome more than 1,600 women to Kona for the 2025 Ironman World Championship,” said Diana Bertsch, Senior Vice President of World Championship Events at The Ironman Group. “There is little that compares to race day in Kona and as we prepare for many of the best professional and age group women to have their turn at racing this iconic global sporting event, we also appreciate the amazing community who host and welcome us. We welcome them to our ‘Ohana and look forward to providing athletes and their supporters with an unforgettable experience.”
Europe leads the race’s regional representation with 40% of the athletes registered, followed by North America with 35%. Asia and Latin America follow with 8%, with Oceania having 7% representation. Rounding out the rest of the racers is Africa and the Middle East at 2%.
The United States leads all countries with the most registered athletes with 482, followed by Germany (207), Canada (114), Australia (102), the United Kingdom (99) and France (70). Triathletes also hail from Bolivia, the Czech Republic, Indonesia, Mongolia, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela.
Of the 15 registered athletes from Hawaii, eight of them come from the Big Island. The oldest participant in the race is 80, while the youngest is 19.
Sixty professionals will start the race, and the remaining age groups will follow. One of the returning professionals is Lucy Charles-Barclay of Great Britain, who won the women’s championship in Kona in 2023. See Ironman’s website for the full list of professional competitors.
Leading up to this weekend, plenty of pre-race events will be taking place around Ironman Village, including last night’s Parade of Nations — which showcases the 76 countries, regions and territories competing in the race. The Keiki Dip ‘N Dash, a keiki-focused race, also took place Tuesday.
The popular Underpants Run will also take place along Ali‘i Drive at 7:15 a.m. Thursday, showcasing athletes dressed in their goofiest trouser attire while getting a morning sweat in.
See Ironman’s website for a full slate of activities and events around Ironman Village this week. See the paper next week for coverage of race day.
Road closures
• 6 a.m. to 1 a.m. Queen Ka‘ahumanu Highway between Palani Road and Kaiminani Drive; southbound lanes closed; northbound lanes open
• 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Makala Boulevard between Queen Ka‘ahumanu Highway and Kuakini Highway; limited lanes open; no access to Kuakini Highway
• 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Kuakini Highway between Makala Boulevard and Palani road; closed
• 6 a.m. to 1 a.m. Palani Road between Queen Ka‘ahumanu Highway and Kuakini Highway; westbound lane closed
• 6:30 a.m. to 1 a.m. Palani Road between Queen Ka‘ahumanu Highway and Kuakini Highway; eastbound lane closed
• 3:30 a.m. to 2 a.m. Palani Road between Kuakini Highway and Ali‘i Drive; closed
• 12 a.m. 10/9 to 3 p.m. 10/12 Ka‘ahumanu Place and Kailua Pier; closed
• 12 a.m. 10/9 to 3 p.m. 10/12 Ali‘i Drive from Ka‘ahumanu Place to Likana Lane; closed
• 3:30 a.m. to 1:30 a.m. Ali‘i Drive between Likana Lane and Hualalai Road; closed
• 6:30 a.m. to 1 a.m. Hualalai Road between Ali‘i Drive and Kuakini Highway; closed
• 9 a.m. to 1 a.m. Hualalai Road to Walua Road; closed
• 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Walua Road to La‘aloa Avenue; closed
• 6:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Kuakini Highway between Hualalai Road and Kahakai Estates; closed with limited access
• 3:30 a.m. to 1:30 a.m. Kuakini Highway between Palani Road and Hualalai Road; southbound lane closed
• 6:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. Northbound lane closed from Hualalai Road to Henry Street; no access to Palani Road, all traffic routed up Ololi Road.
• 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Loloku Street between Luhia Street and Kuakini Highway; no through access to Kuakini Highway
8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Akoni Pule Highway between Kawaihae Road/Queen Ka‘ahumanu Highway; closed
• 7 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Queen Ka‘ahumanu Highway between Queen Ka‘ahumanu Highway/Kawaihae Road Junction and Kaiminani Intersection; closed
• 6 a.m. to 1 a.m. Queen Ka‘ahumanu Highway between Kaimani Intersection and Palani Road; northbound lanes open; southbound lanes closed.