France
IRONMAN in France: which race to choose
8 IRONMAN races in France: 3 full-distance races and 5 IRONMAN 70.3. Bike climbing and the type of water set them apart more than the date.
Where the figures come from
The counts, averages, climbing and cut-offs are read from the catalogue and recalculated whenever a race is updated; the race-day readings quoted, such as the water at Nice, come from the ironman.com course pages. Distances, cut-offs and climbing come from the organiser. Water and air temperatures are averages for the race month: they describe a typical day, not a forecast.
The page covers IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 only. France has 26 races in the catalogue in total, from sprints to long-distance classics outside the IRONMAN circuit: the France page lists them all.
Every IRONMAN race in France
Add a month or a distance to narrow the list.
- IRONMAN 70.3 Versailles
Versailles, France
- Date
- 11 Oct 2026
- Distance
- Middle
- Circuit
- IRONMAN
- Water
- 21 °C
- Bike
- Rolling
- Run
- Flat
- Entries
- Closed
- IRONMAN 70.3 Aix-en-Provence
Aix en Provence, France
- Date
- 23 May 2027
- Distance
- Middle
- Circuit
- IRONMAN
- Water
- 18 °C
- Bike
- Hilly
- Run
- Rolling
- Entries
- Sold out
- IRONMAN 70.3 Tours Metropole - Loire Valley
Tours, France
- Date
- 6 Jun 2027
- Distance
- Middle
- Circuit
- IRONMAN
- Water
- 19 °C
- Bike
- Flat
- Run
- Flat
- Entries
- Sold out
- IRONMAN Les Sables d'Olonne-Vendee
Les Sables d'Olonne, France
- Date
- 27 Jun 2027
- Distance
- Full
- Circuit
- IRONMAN
- Water
- 20 °C
- Bike
- Rolling
- Run
- Flat
- Entries
- Open
- IRONMAN 70.3 Vichy
Vichy, France
- Date
- 22 Aug 2027
- Distance
- Middle
- Circuit
- IRONMAN
- Water
- 22 °C
- Bike
- Hilly
- Run
- Flat
- Entries
- Open
- IRONMAN Vichy
Vichy, France
- Date
- 22 Aug 2027
- Distance
- Full
- Circuit
- IRONMAN
- Water
- 22 °C
- Bike
- Hilly
- Run
- Flat
- Entries
- Open
- IRONMAN 70.3 Nice
Nice, France
- Date
- 12 Sept 2027
- Distance
- Middle
- Circuit
- IRONMAN
- Water
- 24 °C
- Bike
- Hilly
- Run
- Flat
- Entries
- Sold out
- IRONMAN France
Nice, France
- Date
- 12 Sept 2027
- Distance
- Full
- Circuit
- IRONMAN
- Water
- 24 °C
- Bike
- Hilly
- Run
- Flat
- Entries
- Sold out
Full distance: Nice, Vichy or Les Sables d'Olonne
The 3 full-distance races are IRONMAN Les Sables d'Olonne-Vendee, IRONMAN Vichy, IRONMAN France.
The bike sets them apart. Climbing ranges from 1130 m to 2400 m. The top of that range is IRONMAN France, whose course leaves Nice for the villages of the Préalpes d'Azur regional park before the run on the Promenade des Anglais. The least climbing is at IRONMAN Les Sables d'Olonne-Vendee, on the Atlantic coast.
The swim differs as much: the Mediterranean in Nice, the Atlantic from the Grande Plage in Les Sables d'Olonne, one loop of the Allier river in Vichy. The usual cut-off is 16 h.
IRONMAN 70.3: from May to October
The 5 IRONMAN 70.3 races are IRONMAN 70.3 Versailles, IRONMAN 70.3 Aix-en-Provence, IRONMAN 70.3 Tours Metropole - Loire Valley, IRONMAN 70.3 Vichy, IRONMAN 70.3 Nice.
Bike climbing goes from 380 m at IRONMAN 70.3 Tours Metropole - Loire Valley to 1227 m at IRONMAN 70.3 Nice. Tours swims in the Cher river and its organiser presents the course as one of the fastest in France. Versailles swims in the Grand Canal of the château. Aix-en-Provence swims in the Peyrolles lake, about 20 km from the town, with a shuttle run by the organiser.
The usual cut-off is 8 h 30 min. IRONMAN 70.3 Vichy gives less time: 8 h.
A season from May to October
May and June. 3 races: Aix-en-Provence in May, Tours and Les Sables d'Olonne in June. The water is at its coolest then, from 18 °C.
August and September. Vichy holds both distances on the same weekend in late August, and Nice does the same in September. Nice has the warmest water, 24 °C on average.
October. Versailles closes the season. The October 2026 race has taken place and the organiser has not published the 2027 date yet.
The three full distances on the same rows
Month, water, climbing, heat and cut-off, side by side.
IRONMAN France
IRONMAN Vichy
IRONMAN Les Sables d'Olonne-Vendee
- Race 1 IRONMAN France
- Race 2 IRONMAN Vichy
- Race 3 IRONMAN Les Sables d'Olonne-Vendee
- Circuit
- IRONMANIRONMANIRONMAN
- Distance
- Full distanceFull distanceFull distance
- Terrain
- RoadRoadRoad
- Swim
- 3.8 km3.8 km3.8 km
- Bike
- 180 km180 km180 km
- Run
- 42.2 km42.2 km42.2 km
- Date
- 12 Sept 202722 Aug 202727 Jun 2027
- Country
- FranceFranceFrance
- Registration
- Sold outOpenOpen
- Swim venue
- SeaRiverOcean
- Average water temperature
- 24 °C22 °C20 °C
- High air temperature
- 26 °C25 °C30 °C
- Low air temperature
- 18 °C11 °C18 °C
- Bike profile
- HillyHillyRolling
- Bike elevation gain
- 2,400 m2,000 m1,130 m
- Run profile
- FlatFlatFlat
- Run elevation gain
- n/an/a237 m
- Overall cut-off
- 16 h16 h16 h
- Altitude
- 11 m266 m7 m
- First edition
- 198220152025
- Swim start
- Rolling startRolling startRolling start
- Entry fee, from
- n/a€792€822
What the averages leave out
Whether you swim in a wetsuit depends on the reading on race morning. IRONMAN allows one for age-group athletes up to 24.5 °C. Above that, the competitive race is swum without; IRONMAN may at its discretion open a separate non-competitive wetsuit wave, with no awards or slots (2026 Competition Rules, section 4.02). In Nice, the course page on ironman.com shows 26 °C measured in 2025 and 21 °C in 2024, so the same race has been swum on both sides of that line. The wetsuit rules guide sets out every threshold.
Some races fill early: on 16 October 2026, ironman.com showed IRONMAN 70.3 Nice and IRONMAN 70.3 Tours as sold out for 2027. Registration is always done on the organiser's site.
To compare France with the rest of the continent, see the IRONMAN in Europe guide for the full distance and the half-distance races in Europe. Across the Rhine, the IRONMAN in Germany page compares Hamburg, Frankfurt and the German 70.3 races.
Questions
How many IRONMAN races are there in France?
The catalogue lists 8: 3 full-distance races and 5 IRONMAN 70.3.
Which IRONMAN in France has the flattest bike course?
Over the full distance, IRONMAN Les Sables d'Olonne-Vendee, with 1130 m of climbing. Over the 70.3, IRONMAN 70.3 Tours Metropole - Loire Valley, with 380 m.
Is IRONMAN France in Nice the hardest in the country?
On bike climbing, yes: 2400 m, against 1130 m for the flattest full distance. It also has the warmest water, which can rule out the wetsuit.
Which half ironman in France suits a first attempt?
A flat bike and a standard cut-off help. IRONMAN 70.3 Tours Metropole - Loire Valley has the least climbing; IRONMAN 70.3 Vichy has the shortest cut-off, 8 h. The easiest 70.3 races page compares the whole circuit.
Can you race an IRONMAN in France in a lake or a river?
Yes. Aix-en-Provence swims in a lake, Vichy in the Allier and Tours in the Cher. Versailles uses the Grand Canal of the château. Nice and Les Sables d'Olonne swim in the sea.
When does the IRONMAN season in France start and end?
It opens in May with the 70.3 in Aix-en-Provence and ends in October with the 70.3 in Versailles.
Pick the month, then the race
Open the finder on IRONMAN races in France, or answer a few questions to get a shortlist.
