A man in his forties died on Sunday after colliding with a motorcyclist near Bouyon, in the hills above Nice, while riding the Ironman Nice course, hours after the event had been officially cancelled.
The Alpes-Maritimes prefecture had banned the race on Friday, June 27, citing the ongoing orange heatwave alert and warning that roads would remain open to normal traffic with no medical support, no marshals and no course signage. Despite the ban, thousands of registered participants set out on the route independently, according to France 3 Régions.
The victim, who was registered for the Ironman, was descending at speed when he veered into the path of an oncoming motorcycle, the prefecture said. He was pronounced dead at the scene. An investigation has been opened under the authority of the Grasse public prosecutor.
Ironman Nice had previously been affected by the same tragedy: in 2024, a 75-year-old woman was killed during the official race when struck by a competitor on the cycling leg.
Source: France 3 Régions, Alpes-Maritimes prefecture