THE 35th annual Hell of the West Triathlon was held at Goondiwindi last weekend, with the race drawing more than 900 professional and amateur athletes from across Australia and overseas.

Kieran Storch won back-to-back Hell of the West triathlon men’s titles, with Sophie Malowiecki winning the women’s title.

On the fast and flat bike course, Storch accelerated through the field to set a new course record of 1:44:11.

On the run, Storch extended his lead, while Sophie Malowieki dominated the women’s field.

Storch defended his 2025 win in a time of 3:26:24, with Malowiecki claiming the women’s race with a lead of more than 14 mins in 3:54:32.

Storch, who first raced Hell of the West 12 years ago, was ecstatic.

“I’m honoured to have etched my name on the champions board for the second year in a row,” he said.

Grass-roots triathlon

Hell of the West is one of few remaining grass-roots, community-run triathlons in Australia, and drew athletes from Switzerland, Germany, and all Australian mainland states.

It also recorded a record number of local competitors in the Kenway and Clark Super Saturday events.

Sunday morning saw some early breeze and cloud improving race conditions, however the humidity was up and kept athletes and organisers on their toes.

There was exciting but anxious feeling at the swim start and master of ceremonies Joel Murray set the scene on what has been described as the best Hell of the Wes since the competition’s inception in 1991.

The professional men’s event started at 6am, with pro women one minute behind.

First out of the water was Nick Free in 26:20, with the Swiss professional Florin Parfuss hot on his heels.

Sophie Malowiecki was first pro woman out of the water in 28:10 with Chloe Hartnett leading out a pack of four women in 29:28.

After placing third in 2025, Malowiecki was proud of her win, coming off the back of some promising short course racing.

In the battle for minor placings, Nick Free placed second, with Jye Spriggs third.

The women’s race saw new pro, Jasmine Brown, in second place, holding out last year’s second place Chloe Hartnett from Inverell while Penny Slater rode the bike course more than two minutes faster than the next female competitor.

Allan Pitman Award

Age Group athletes were not only competing to claim Hell of the West honours and Queensland State Long Course Championship titles, but also the Allan Pitman Award for the fastest male and female age group athletes.

That honour went to Georgie Hicks from Canberra and Andrew Nash from Brisbane, and was presented by Allan’s son, Locky Powell.

Athletes crossed the finish line throughout the morning into the welcoming arms of the best recovery tent in triathlon.

The action wasn’t limited to Sunday’s events.

Kenway and Clark Super Saturday

The Kenway and Clark Super Saturday saw unusually humid conditions make it a challenging morning for the nearly 200 runners in the Inferno 5km and 10km charity runs.

However, the day belonged to Nudgee College runners, making their mark with a clean sweep of the

Men’s 5km podium.

Jeremy Deakin took out the overall men’s race in 17:52, while Karlee Spriggs placed first in the women’s race in 19:17.

Local legend Nikko Siddins came in second, just 13 seconds behind.

In the Men’s 10km event, Matt McNamara placed first in a time of 36:43, while in the women’s race, Alyssa Baker came in first 39:30.

Hell Kids

The fan favourite event on Super Saturday – the Hell Kids events – saw a record 202 young hell-raisers full of energy, determination and smiles zip around the course.

Special thanks to Westside Tri Club volunteers for providing the kids with plenty of highfives and words of encouragement as they helped them out of the pool and toward their bikes.

“We love seeing the Super Saturday events with all the Hell Kids getting amongst it and having a great time,” said Goondiwindi Triathlon Club president, Matt Leven.

“The smiles on their faces really makes the day something special.”

The Firestarter triathlon, a race for everyone from elite juniors to beginners, and comprising of 200m swim, 7.5km bike and 2km run, saw around 70 individuals and seven teams.

Michael Reaves and Matilda Ahern took out the male and female races respectively.

New to the Hell of the West weekend in 2026 was the gathering of Wonderful Women of (Hell of) the West + Battle Braid Booth on Saturday afternoon, with bronze sponsor, The Meeting Place Barbers, generously donating their time to transform hair into Battle Braids in return for a donation to local charity CARE Goondiwindi.

It was also an opportunity for female athletes to come together to meet new friends, catch up with old friends, chat and have an opportunity to meet some of our awesome pro-elite female athletes.

A very special Hell of the West welcome was held on Saturday afternoon with Buddy Hippi and Jemayne Hippi of Winangali Infusion welcoming visitors to the traditional lands of the Gomeroi and Bigambul people with story, culture, traditional song and dance.

Goondiwindi Region mayor Lawrence Springborg welcomed visitors, expressing how much Hell of the West means to the town and its people.

Inspirational letters

This year’s race packs were a highlight of the weekend with goodies from Clif, I am Grounded and Lucy Walker Pharmacy.

The packs also contained a handwritten letter to each athlete from local school students.

Some letters were inspirational, some instructional and some hilarious, but all were unforgettable. The outpouring of gratitude from athletes for these letters has been a post-race highlight.

Organisers thanked teachers and students from Goondiwindi State Primary School, Goondiwindi State High School, St Mary’s School, Border Rivers Christian College, North Star Primary School, and Croppa Creek Primary School for the beautiful letters.

The Neil Pagey Award for the club with the highest number of Hell of the West finishers is always hotly contested and recognises that while triathlon is an individual sport, it is best experienced with teammates.

Goondiwindi Triathlon Club were clear winners with 25 individuals and 17 teams completing the race, while Newcastle Tri Club placed second and honourable mention to Toowoomba Tri Club.

The Goondiwindi Tri Club Spirit Award which recognises the club with the best team spirit over the weekend was awarded to Westside Tri Club, who brought lots of athletes, friendly vibes, some blazing and gritty races, and they also volunteered on Super Saturday at the Hell Kids event.

After party

After presentations and clean-up, it was on to the Hot Mess Express After Party at the Queensland Hotel.

It was great to see competitors and support crew connecting and everyone vowed to be back again next year to compete in the best event on the calendar.

Event and race director, Tim Richards, said the committee couldn’t be happier with how this

year’s event came together.

“I would like to thank our wonderful volunteers, who once  again did a fantastic job to deliver our competitors safely through the course, as well as the wider Goondiwindi community for their

support of the event, and all our sponsors for their generous contributions,” he said.

“The Hell of the West has been around for 35 years and with the good people of Goondiwindi behind us, it will be around for many more.”

The Hell of the West is coordinated by local group, the Goondiwindi Triathlon Club who continue to operate the event and rely on the help of the Goondiwindi community, with more than 300 volunteers assisting over the weekend.

The event is officiated by AusTriathlon, and supported by Tourism Events Queensland, Goondiwindi

Regional Council and many local and industry sponsors.

With visitors and guests participating in events across the weekend, the festival attracts more than 2500 people to the region contributing an estimated $400,000 with direct economic and tourism impact.

Next year’s Hell of the West is already in the planning stages, with the event set to be held on February 27-28, 2027.

For further race details and results, head to The Hell of the West.