Sara Pérez Sala wins Challenge Xiamen 2026 again

Sara Pérez Sala retained her title at Challenge Xiamen 2026 on Saturday 7 November in Xiamen, China. The Spaniard won the middle-distance race in 4:00:04, finishing 14:55 ahead of Australia’s Jasmine Brown.

In the men’s race, Canada’s Zachary Bernier-Michaud came from behind during the half marathon to claim his first professional victory over the distance. He passed Dutchman Dorian Horsten in the final kilometre and crossed the finish line in 3:39:11.

The race took place in hot and windy conditions, over a course comprising a 1.9-kilometre swim beside Meifeng Sports Park, a flat 90-kilometre bike leg and a 21.1-kilometre run along the Xiamen waterfront.

Pérez Sala builds her lead on the bike

The Spaniard took the lead in the swim and consolidated her advantage on the bike, completing the leg in 2:02:35. Brown took 2:15:39 on the bike, while South Africa’s Magda Nieuwoudt moved up to third with a split of 2:13:53.

Pérez Sala’s bike time was 57 seconds slower than Kristian Blummenfelt’s and 2:08 faster than Gustav Iden’s in the men’s race.

In the half marathon, Pérez Sala clocked 1:27:08, compared with Brown’s 1:27:00. The Australian finished second in 4:14:59 and Nieuwoudt completed the podium in 4:16:38, after running 1:27:15.

The winner explained that she struggled in the closing stages: “With a kilometre and a half to go, it got dark, I had to stop to vomit several times and I had to walk and run to the finish.”

Among the top five, Britain’s Sam McInnes recorded the fastest run split, with 1:24:04. France’s Justine Guérard withdrew from the race after feeling unwell, according to Challenge Family’s live coverage.

Women’s professional results

1. Sara Pérez Sala — 4:00:04
2. Jasmine Brown — 4:14:59
3. Magda Nieuwoudt — 4:16:38
4. Caroline Bridges (United Arab Emirates) — 4:21:05
5. Sam McInnes (Great Britain) — 4:25:57
6. Paige Cranage — 4:28:46
7. Emily Trevail — 4:31:50
8. Simona Krivankova — 4:47:12
9. Sarah Thomas — 4:48:35
10. Amy Vantassel — 4:53:56
11. Elizabeth Nyitray — 5:22:18

Bernier-Michaud wins it on the run

Alejandro Rodríguez Rilo was first out of the water in the men’s race. Louis Woodgate and Horsten followed 12 and 14 seconds later, respectively. On the bike, Horsten and Woodgate exchanged the lead.

The Dutchman completed the bike leg in 1:54:27 and reached the second transition 23 seconds ahead of Woodgate. Bernier-Michaud, who had recorded 25:31 in the swim and 1:57:38 on the bike, made up ground on the run: his 1:11:45 half marathon compared with Horsten’s 1:16:59.

The Canadian passed him in the final kilometre and won by 25 seconds. Horsten was second in 3:39:36 and Australia’s Kieran Storch, the 2025 winner, finished third in 3:40:49. Storch ran 1:10:59, the fastest split among the top five.

Rodríguez Rilo tenth; Blummenfelt and Iden outside the top 10

Rodríguez Rilo finished in tenth place, after completing the bike leg in 2:00:04 and the run in 1:20:17. Norwegians Kristian Blummenfelt and Gustav Iden finished outside the top ten.

Blummenfelt started the run 7:25 behind the leader after recording 2:01:38 on the bike. He completed the half marathon in 1:22:33 and finished thirteenth, 13:24 behind the winner. Iden clocked 2:04:43 on the bike and 1:18:44 on the run to finish sixteenth, 14:35 behind the winner and 1:11 after his compatriot.

Both had competed at the IRONMAN World Championship in Hawaii, where Iden was second and Blummenfelt eighth. At the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Nice, Blummenfelt had finished second and Iden fourth.

Men’s professional results

1. Zachary Bernier-Michaud — 3:39:11
2. Dorian Horsten — 3:39:36
3. Kieran Storch — 3:40:49
4. Ognjen Stojanović (Serbia) — 3:41:59
5. Mike Phillips (New Zealand) — 3:44:29
6. Ben Hamilton — 3:45:04
7. Sam Musgrove — 3:45:17
8. Mateo Reddy — 3:45:43
9. Antony Costes — 3:47:15
10. Alejandro Rodríguez Rilo — 3:48:17
11. Louis Woodgate — 3:50:32
12. Jamie Philpott — 3:51:33
13. Kristian Blummenfelt — 3:52:35
14. Thomas Navarro — 3:52:36
15. Hao Miao — 3:53:10
16. Gustav Iden — 3:53:46
17. Joel Wooldridge — 3:53:50
18. Blake Randall — 3:57:54
19. Chia Hao Chang — 3:58:02
20. Xander Marsh — 4:00:22
21. Filippos Vokos — 4:01:20
22. Hotaka Yamagishi — 4:03:00
23. Brett Clifford — 4:10:27
24. Rikigoro Shinozuka — 4:14:03
25. Levi Hauwert — 4:34:34

Jonathan Guisolan, Bryce Chong and Nathan Dortmann did not finish the race. Jonathan Guisolan, Bryce Chong and Nathan Dortmann did not finish the race.

Two consecutive victories in Xiamen

In 2025, Pérez Sala had won in Xiamen in 3:53:31, more than eleven minutes ahead of Amelia Watkinson. Before returning to China, the Spaniard had finished third at Challenge Samarkand on 13 September 2026, in 4:00:08, and had not won any of her T100 races that season.

In Samarkand, the Spaniard recorded the fastest swim split, with 24:47, and the second-fastest bike split, with 2:05:12. She ran the half marathon in 1:26:32; Natalie Van Coevorden won in 3:58:41 and Daisy Davies was second in 3:59:49.