Canadian Desirae Ridenour takes her first World Cup win

Canadian elite Desirae Ridenour proved she had the chops to be at the front of the race from the gun, but it was a sprint finish that clinched gold for her on a career-defining day.

The 2025 World Triathlon Cup Napier served as the series’ season opener in Ahuriri, New Zealand on Sunday with 27 elite women on the line at the sprint distance race start. Ridenour was in the mix from the start. She swam with the lead pack that included Australia’s Zoe Clarke and Emma Jeffcoat, and New Zealand’s Ainsley Thorpe.

“I’m really happy with my swim,” Ridenour said after the race. “I think I have been a little inconsistent over the last couple of years and I am happy to make the front pack.

Lead pack continued to apply pressure

The lead pack was able to put more distance on the rest of the field continuing their strength on the bike.

“We had a solid group of girls working together and I honestly don’t think I would have won if it wasn’t for them because we worked so hard and got a massive gap.”

Going into the second transition it was obvious the podium spots would come down to the gruelling 5km run. Ridenour, Jeffcoat and Thorpe kept together for the run. Ridenour lead out of T2 first, but didn’t stay up at the front during the entire run. Instead,she delighted the crowd with a final sprint on the blue carpet to claim the victory tape.

A conservative run at the front

“Going into the second lap, it was hard to tell what everyone else was doing so I focused on myself. I knew I had some extra energy. I usually negative split the back end, so I potentially knew I had it but you never know how others are feeling.”

After running mostly shoulder-to-shoulder, Jeffcoat sprinted to second and Thorpe to third, only seconds behind Ridenour’s finish time of 56:24.

“I really just tried to conserve my energy on the run and I know I have a sprint in me at the end. I’ve left a lot of races to a sprint so I kind of knew I potentially had it in the back end.”

Ridenour has had a solid career up to now, but the win puts her in the spotlight for the 2025 season.

Record breaking start to the season

“It feels amazing,” said Ridenour. “I have come so far in the last year and a half. I am just so happy to be here and competing and at the pointy end of the race this time.”

Ridenour’s victory breaks a decade’s long streak that hasn’t seen a Canadian take the podium spot at a World Cup. The last time a Canadian toped the podium it was in incredible fashion with Amelie Kretz leading a national clean sweep in Edmonton, Alberta in 2013. More recently, Canadian Emy Legault won silver at the 2022 World Cup in Huatulco, and Joanna Brown finished on the podium three times during the 2017 World Cup series.

Ridenour currently lives in New Zealand. She plans to do other Oceania races, possibly WTCS Yokohama in Japan, and some European races, including the French Grand Prix this season.