Kristian Blummenfelt hasn’t come to Taupō to make up the numbers and he’s not pretending otherwise.
The 32-year-old Norwegian has already identified his threats for the 42nd edition of Anzco Foods Ironman New Zealand on Saturday.
Swede Rasmus Svenningsson is the man he wants to measure himself against on the bike over 180 kilometres, and there’s a personal edge to it.
“I would like to show to myself that I’m riding better over the 180km distance early in the season compared to what I did last year,” Blummenfelt said.
Ironman 140.6 debutant Pierre Le Corre is the French name he flags on the run.
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“He smashed me on the run last time we raced together in Paris 2024 ,” Blummenfelt added of their summer Olympics battle with the kind of candour you rarely get from a world champion standing on a start line.
What he hasn’t done in the countdown to Saturday is mention Mike Phillips by name. The defending champion, three-time winner, and course record holder might have something to say about that.
But if Blummenfelt has overlooked the local complexities, he’s certainly not overlooking New Zealand. His buildup has included time in Auckland training alongside 2024 bronze medallist Ben Hamilton and in Taupo running the lakefront with hometown hero Kyle Smith.
“The New Zealand and Australia athletes tend to be in great shape early season as they are coming out of their summer season and combining that with racing at home makes it even harder,” he said.
He knows what he’s walking into in New Zealand. A country with Olympic medallists, the second oldest Ironman event in the world and crowds who understand exactly what they’re watching.
Which makes his presence here all the more deliberate. Taupō in March is a calculated opening move.
Bank a full-distance result early, protect his Ironman Pro Series standing as defending champion, and create breathing room for a sharper Kona campaign come October.
The IM Pro Series itself is part of the appeal.
“What I enjoyed the most about the Pro Series is that it’s bringing the best of the best together, not just the Ironman World Championship, but the whole season,” Big Blu said.
“Every race last year was a challenge in itself, and every race felt like a championship field race. Hopefully I can cross out one solid Ironman already in early March, which gives me more space for planning and combining the Pro Series with hopefully racing better in the World Championship,” he added.
The reigning Pro Series champion. Olympic gold medallist. Ironman and Ironman 70.3 World Champion. He’s done the homework, named the dangers, and set the target… 5000 IM Pro Series points for the win.
Taupō can’t say it hasn’t been warned.
You can follow the Pro women’s and men’s races live from 7:15am Saturday via the Ironman Pro Series website and/or Ironman YouTube channel.
2026 ANZCO Foods Ironman New Zealand
Men’s Professional Field
M1 – Mike Phillips (NZL)
M2 – Kristian Blummenfelt (NOR)
M3 – Rasmus Svenningsson (SWE)
M4 – Trevor Foley (USA)
M5 – Henrik Goesch (FIN)
M6 – Matt Hanson (USA)
M7 – Jack Moody (NZL)
M8 – Ben Hamilton (NZL)
M9 – Kyle Smith (NZL)
M10 – Pierre Le Corre (FRA)
M11 – Frederic Funk (DEU)
M12 – Mitchell Kibby (AUS)
M14 – Sam Osborne (NZL)
M15 – Jack Sosinski (AUS)
M16 – Yvan Jarrige (FRA)
M17 – Andy Krueger (USA)
M18 – Nathan Dortmann (AUS)
M19 – Tom Somerville (NZL)
M20 – Matt Kerr (NZL)
M21 – Calvin Amos (AUS)
M22 – Jamie Hayes (USA)
M24 – Robert Huisman (NZL)
M25 – David Martin (CZE)
