2026 WTCS Men’s Final: Matt Hauser wins by a whisker as Vasco Vilaca claims world title

Portugal’s Vasco Vilaca arrived in Pontevedra, Spain, knowing that a top-five finish in the final would secure the 2026 world title. With runner-up finishes at the WTCS races in Hamburg, Germany, London in Great Britain and Quiberon, France, plus wins in Alghero, Italy, and Samarkand, Uzbekistan, he had built a sizeable cushion and could face the final with relative peace of mind. The chances of him dropping out of the top five were slim.

But you never know. Matt Hauser, Australia’s 2025 world champion and the Portuguese athlete’s main rival, knew that all too well. Two crashes at the WTCS races in Alghero and Weihai in China had seriously hampered his bid for a second straight world title, despite wins in Yokohama, Japan, London and Hamburg. He was still lurking before the final and was determined to make Vilaca work for it.

© World Triathlon

© World Triathlon

Hungarian swimmers Marton Kropko and Mark Devay set the pace through the first 1,500 metres of the swim, ahead of promising Frenchman Jules Réthoret, who was making his first appearance at this level in impressive fashion, and Australian world champion Matt Hauser. Olympic champion Alex Yee of Great Britain was 45 seconds down, while New Zealander Hayden Wilde was almost 55 seconds back.

© World Triathlon

© World Triathlon

© World Triathlon

A group of around 15 riders opened up a 25-second gap on the third of 10 bike laps. It included Portugal’s Ricardo Batista, Matt Hauser, Dorian Coninx, Jules Rethoret and Vasco Vilaca, among the other podium contenders.

Alex Yee and Hayden Wilde remained around 45 seconds behind the front-runners. Despite the New Zealander’s repeated attacks, the gap was unchanged by the end of the 40-kilometre bike leg, leaving the leaders seemingly in control as they prepared to battle for the title and the win over the final 10 kilometres of running.

© World Triathlon

© World Triathlon

© World Triathlon

© World Triathlon

Matt Hauser was first out of transition and onto the 10-kilometre run, eight seconds ahead of Dorian Coninx. But the Portuguese duo of Vasco Vilaca and Ricardo Batista quickly caught the Australian at the front, while Coninx began to fade.

The trio stayed together almost all the way to the finish, until Alex Yee produced one of his trademark blistering runs to move into third.

The Paris Olympic champion did not have enough left to contest the sprint with Hauser and Vilaca, who delivered an unforgettable finish and lunged for the line together.

Hauser won the final, just as he did last year at home in Wollongong, Australia, ahead of Vilaca. But Vilaca took the world title from him. It was the Portuguese athlete’s first, after he had already won silver in 2020. Alex Yee finished third on the day, thanks to the fastest run split in 28:46.

© World Triathlon

For the French contingent, Dorian Coninx finished sixth in the final, moving him up to fourth in the 2026 World Championship, which he won in 2023. Yanis Seguin finished 10th, Jules Rethoret 14th, Tom Richard 39th, while Tom Lerno was forced to withdraw.