Australia’s Matt Hauser has stormed to his second consecutive gold in Hamburg, producing a trademark late-race surge to win the fourth stop of the 2025 World Triathlon Championship Series overnight.
Racing through wet conditions and a stacked international field, the 27-year-old delivered one of his sharpest performances yet to claim his fourth-straight WTCS podium of the season, finishing seven seconds clear of Portuguese rival Vasco Vilaça in a time that included a lightning-fast 13:50 run over the final 5km.
“It’s a dream to go back-to-back on this iconic course,” Hauser said post-race
“I had an amazing time out there, executed the race exactly how I wanted… with only Vasco sticking around for the last lap, I knew I had to play it smart and attack him before the finish.”
Hauser set the tone early in the 750m swim, staying right on the heels of eventual bronze medallist Alessio Crociani (ITA), who lead out of the water. A clean transition saw the Australian move swiftly onto the slick, rain-soaked Hamburg streets for the 21km bike, where an early split separated a lead group of 11 athletes.
Despite several crashes shaking up the field – including home favourite Henry Graf coming off on a corner – Hauser stayed upright, helping to maintain the pace up front as the gap over the chase pack grew to 30 seconds heading into T2.
The Australian wasted no time asserting himself on the run, leading from the front and dictating a hard pace that quickly thinned the pack. By the end of the first lap, only Vilaça remained in close pursuit.
Hauser stayed firmly in front through the second lap, with Vilaça trying to keep pace. Then, with 800 metres to go, Hauser unleashed a devastating surge his rival couldn’t match, powering down the blue carpet to claim a thrilling back-to-back victory in Hamburg and bolster his pursuit of the world title.
“I managed to hold off Vasco, who had a really strong run. I just thought let’s play as if this was a time trial and never look back and it ended up paying off for me, so I’m happy,” Hauser said.
“When I saw that it was only Vasco, in the last turnaround I used my long legs and the afterburners and when I looked back in the blue carpet I just saw that I had a bit of a buffer and I could celebrate properly.”
The win sees Hauser maintain his place at the top of the WTCS standings, as the series builds toward its climax at the 2025 World Triathlon Championship Finals in Wollongong this October.
Luke Willian was Australia’s next-best male finisher in 20th place, followed by Brandon Copeland (35th), WTCS debutant Brayden Mercer (41st), and Callum McClusky (42nd).
On the women’s side, Sophie Linn returned to WTCS racing with 27th place in her first major event since the Paris Olympics. Emma Jeffcoat (45th), Kira Hedgeland (47th), and debutant Charlotte Derbyshire (52nd) also completed for Australia.
Australia’s attention now turns its attention to the highly anticipated World Triathlon Mixed Relay Championships, set to take place in Hamburg from 9:30pm AEST. The fast-paced, super sprint format will see teams of two men and two women battle it out over a 300m swim, 7km bike, and 1.75km run.
The nation’s only Mixed Relay world title came back in 2018, when a fresh-faced teenage Hauser teamed up with Charlotte McShane, Ashleigh Gentle, and Jake Birtwhistle to claim gold in a breakout performance for the green and gold.
For full results from WTCS Hamburg, click here.
