New Zealand's Hayden Wilde used his trademark speed to win the T100 Qatar triathlon race. Photo: PHOTOSPORT
Kiwi Hayden Wilde has been crowned king of the T100 World Triathlon series, after rounding out his season in perfect style.
Wilde won the final race in the Qatar T100 Triathlon World Championship in sweltering conditions, capping his sixth victory of the season.
The victory in the grand final secured him the overall world title for the 2026 season.
American Morgan Pearson finished second, more than a minute behind the blazing Wilde, who clocked a winning time of of 3h 06m 08s.
Wilde used his trademark speed on the run to pull clear and cruise to his near-perfect victory.
In a remarkable campaign, Wilde won the first race in Singapore, but suffered a horrific bike crash, when he was hit by a truck in Japan.
"I am proud of myself to get back to the start-line and get back to the form," he said.
"It is always the most daunting thing - can you get back to where you were? I was really happy to finish off here.
"It's big kudos to my team and my partners to help push me along through the process."
Wilde returned to racing less than 100 days after the Japan crash, marking a winning comeback with victory at the T100 London race.
He won further titles at the French Riviera, Spain and Wollongong.
In the lucrative circuit, Wilde's win in the grand final is paying dividends.
He pockets the season bonus of US$350,000, with another US$40,000 winner's cheque for the Qatar race win.
Britain's Kate Waugh won the women's race.
Triathlon is becoming an increasingly crowded landscape with World Triathlon, Challenge Ironman and the Professional Triathletes Organisation all running their own race series and world championships.
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