Matt Hanson defies the clock: new marathon record in Roth!

Matt Hanson defies the clock: new marathon record in Roth!

On July 6, 2025, the Challenge Roth experienced a real spectacle when US triathlete Matt Hanson made his debut on the legendary course in Franconia. With a 9th place overall and an outstanding marathon time of 2:28:03 minutes, the 40-year-old was not only successful, but also set a new course record - the first time under 2:30 hours in Roth. This performance beat the previous record set by Patrick Lange by a respectable 2:30 minutes. With this, Hanson attracted attention and made it clear that he wasn't just taking part that day, but that he was seriously challenging the competition.

Hanson, known as an eight-time Ironman winner, came to Roth with a lot of anticipation, having already experienced the exciting atmosphere of the event as a spectator. His performance in the water wasn't exactly outstanding with 31st place, but on the bike he achieved the 43rd fastest time. This showed that he had a clear focus on the crucial sections of the race during the race. After 30 kilometers he even managed two sections under three minutes per kilometer, which shows his enormous talent in running. For Hanson it was the second race in Germany after he was able to compete at the Ironman Frankfurt in 2024.

World records and exciting competition

Another highlight of the day was the Brazilian Manoel Messias, who set a new world record in the long-distance triathlon with a time of 2:26:50. Messias is the first athlete ever to stay under the 2:30 hour mark for the marathon, which also speaks for the high quality of competition at Challenge Roth. Sam Laidlow, who won the race, also took an impressive second place with a running time of 2:37:19.
The atmosphere was sparkling and the spectators in Roth experienced triathlon at its finest.

Hanson had prepared for the strong competition. In addition to Laidlow, he was also able to compete with other outstanding athletes such as Tom Bishop, Jan Stratmann and Menno Koolhaas. Not only are these athletes feared on the track, but they also bring a lot of experience with them. In the coming days, TEAMCHALLENGE will announce further professional participants, so that the next event in triathlon should remain exciting.

A look at the leaderboard

Over the years, Roth has seen some records documenting the achievements of the best triathletes. Last year Magnus Ditlev achieved a world best time over the Ironman distance with 7:23:24 hours during the Challenge Roth, but many other athletes such as Kristian Blummenfelt and Jan Frodeno also set the bar high with their times. The record-fast times in Roth prove that the competition here is not only popular, but also extremely competitive.

The Challenge Roth remains a real highlight in triathlon, and after this fantastic event you can already look forward to the next exciting competitions. Matt Hanson and Manoel Messias have impressively proven that athletes can continue to push boundaries and it will be exciting to see how the rankings develop in the coming events.