Chrissie Wellington
Encyclopedia
Christine Ann Wellington MBE
(born 18 February 1977), known as Chrissie Wellington, is an English triathlete and the current Ironman Triathlon
World Champion. She holds all three world and championship records relating to ironman-distance triathlon races: firstly, the overall world record, secondly, the Ironman World Championship
course record, and thirdly, the official world record for all Ironman-branded triathlon races over the full Ironman distance. She won the World Championship in three consecutive years (2007–2009), but was unable to start the 2010 World Championship race because of illness, then regained the title in 2011. She is the first British athlete to hold the Ironman Triathlon World Championship, and remains undefeated over the Ironman distance. She is the only triathlete, male or female, to have won the World Championship less than a year after turning professional, an achievement which the British Triathlon Federation
described as "a remarkable feat, deemed to be a near impossible task for any athlete racing as a rookie at their first Ironman World Championships."
She has lowered the world record on every occasion she has raced Challenge Roth
(formerly Quelle Challenge Roth) at Roth in Bavaria
, Germany. Her current record of 8 hours 18 minutes 13 seconds is more than 32 minutes faster than the record which stood from 1994 to 2008, when Yvonne van Vlerken
broke it by just over 5 minutes. Following her 2010 world record, her former coach Brett Sutton
described Wellington as "a person of true international sporting excellence that is overshadowed by no one in any other sport."
Wellington is one of only three women to have achieved three consecutive victories at the Ironman World Championships, the other two being Natascha Badmann
and Paula Newby-Fraser
. The latter's course record at the World Championships had stood for 17 years until Wellington broke it in 2009. Wellington holds the five fastest times ever recorded by a woman over the Ironman distance, and has the greatest number of sub-9 hour times—nine, five more than Newby-Fraser's previous record.
In addition to the Ironman titles, she was also the 2006 ITU
Age Group World Champion and the 2008 ITU long-distance
World Champion.
Before becoming a professional triathlete, Wellington worked for the British government as an adviser on international development
and, for Rural Reconstruction Nepal
, on development projects in Nepal
. International development remains one of her passions. She is actively involved in supporting charities relating to international development and supporting and encouraging women and girls to take up sport. She is an ambassador for the Blazeman Foundation and, at the finish line of all her races, performs a "Blazeman roll" in memory of Jon Blais.
and grew up in Feltwell
, a small village in Norfolk
. She was a competitive swimmer as a teenager, when she swam for Thetford Dolphins, and went on to swim for her university. She describes herself as a "sporty kid, swimming, playing hockey
, running, but never excelling and always more interested in the social side of the sports scene". She was educated at her local comprehensive
school, Downham Market High School
and Sixth Form
, where she was a member of most school sports teams, but "focused more on my studies than I did on reaching my full potential on the pitch."
from Birmingham University
in 1998, Wellington travelled the world for two years, which she described as opening her eyes to the "many problems that exist in the world, but also to the opportunity for positive change." In 2000, she enrolled in an MA course in development studies
at the University of Manchester
. Graduating with a Distinction in October 2001, she joined the UK government agency DEFRA in London to work on international development policy. At DEFRA, she was part of the team that negotiated for the UK at the World Summit on Sustainable Development, and became involved in following up the UK government's commitments on water and sanitation. She also worked on post-conflict environmental reconstruction policy.
Disillusioned with "bureaucracy and paper pushing", in September 2004 Wellington took sabbatical leave from DEFRA to work in Nepal
for Rural Reconstruction Nepal
(RRN), a Nepalese development NGO. Based in the capital, Kathmandu, she managed a community-led total sanitation
scheme in Salyan
, a conflict-affected district in the west of the country. She also performed many other tasks for RRN, including preparing project proposals, editing books and writing papers.
On leaving Nepal at the end of 2005, she travelled to New Zealand, Tasmania
and Argentina
before returning to her old job at DEFRA in May 2006. She left this job in February 2007 in order to become a professional triathlete.
Super Sprints on 16 May 2004, where she finished third. In the following two months, she won this race on both occasions. She put her triathlon racing on hold for her sabbatical in Nepal, where she was based in Kathmandu, at an altitude of 1350 m (4430 ft). Every morning before work she would cycle around the neighbouring countryside on her mountain bike, with a group of foreign and Nepali cyclists known as the "Mongolian Cycling Team". She would also go running along the many hilly trails in the Kathmandu valley
. When riding around the outlying villages on her mountain bike she would often have to wait for male co-workers to catch up with her. During a religious holiday, she spent two weeks cycling with friends some 1400 km from Lhasa
, the capital of Tibet
to Kathmandu, crossing mountain passes over 5000 m, enduring sandstorms and blizzards, and reaching Base Camp
on the northern (Tibetan) side of Mount Everest
at 5208 m (17090 ft). Her coach, Brett Sutton, believes this experience at altitude to have been very useful training
for her later professional career, while Wellington herself regards it as having given her lasting mental strength.
Her friends in Nepal remarked on how she never missed a morning bike ride, whether or not she was sick: "Chrissie saying, 'Oh, I have a stomach bug' was like saying hello every day, but no matter how many bugs were inside her tummy she would always train and push herself every second", said one friend, adding, "We all wondered how fast she would be if she had no bugs – and that thought was scary."
In February 2006 she entered the Coast to Coast
, a 243 km, two-day endurance race across the Southern Alps
of New Zealand involving running, cycling and kayaking. She finished 2nd in this race, despite having no previous kayaking experience, apart from some brief training before the race.
Shortly after her return to the UK she won the 2006 Shropshire Olympic Triathlon. This qualified her to enter the ITU
World Age Group (Amateur) Championships in Lausanne
, Switzerland, a title which she won on 2 September 2006, beating her nearest rival by 4 minutes and 2 seconds. She later said she "trained really hard for this race for 10 weeks, juggling 20 hours [a week] of training with my full-time job."
During this period, like most amateur triathletes, she had also continued entering running races. She had previously run the London Marathon
for charity in 2002, finishing in 3:08:17, making her the fastest woman from her running club in that race. That result prompted her to get a running coach, Frank Horwill
—whom she regarded as "legendary and ever inspiring"—and to take her running training much more seriously. She had hoped to improve her marathon time in the April 2003 London Marathon, but in March she was hit by a car while riding her commuter bike. Unable to run the marathon, she took up swimming again, leading her to try triathlon racing in 2004. After her ITU victory, she took up cross-country
racing for the first time, as a means of building strength for her triathlon races. She enjoyed some success in B and C grade cross-country events around London, winning several races including the South of Thames Championship in December 2006.
. Within 5 days she had handed in her notice at DEFRA, and in February 2007 flew out to Thailand
to join Sutton's teamTBB at their base in Phuket
.
She turned professional with the intention of racing standard-distance events, and enjoyed early success, winning Olympic-distance events in Bangkok
and Subic Bay
, then returned to the UK where she won the sprint-distance event at Bleinheim
. Later the same month she entered her first longer-distance event, the UK half-Ironman race at Wimbleball
, but suffered mechanical problems with her bicycle (forcing her to climb the steep Exmoor
hills in too high a gear) and finished in 5th place. She returned to winning form only six days later, at the shorter Zurich
triathlon.
On 1 August 2007, Wellington took on her toughest challenge to date, the long-distance Alpe d'Huez Triathlon
, known for its difficult summer heat, its altitude, and its hard climbs on both the bike and running stages. Despite a puncture and being forced off the road by an oncoming vehicle during a fast descent, she finished the bike stage 19 mins 30 sec in front of her nearest rival, Sione Jongstra
, and extended her lead on the running stage to win the race by over 29 minutes, in 9th place overall.
Towards the end of July, her coach had suggested that she was ready for an Ironman, despite the relatively low volume of her training. She said of Sutton, "my training was more geared to standard distance, with not much high volume. I don’t seem to need high-volume work like three-hour runs. I’ve done none of these since I’ve been with Brett. Some of the other girls will. This is why he is so special: he has an ability to spot potential even if the athlete can’t. He said I was ready even on the training I was doing."
After 10 days of acclimatisation at her team's base in Thailand, Wellington won Ironman Korea, in very hot conditions, finishing over 50 minutes ahead of 2nd placed Yasuko Miyazaki, in 7th place overall. By winning this race, she earned a slot to race at the Ironman world championships in Hawaii.
Ironman triathlon
title at Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, together with US$110,000 prize money. She finished in 9:08:45, five minutes ahead of Samantha McGlone
, running the marathon leg in 2:59:58, the second-fastest time recorded to date by a woman on the Hawaii course. Her victory was described as the "biggest upset in Ironman Hawaii history", "a remarkable feat, deemed to be a near impossible task for any athlete racing as a rookie at their first Ironman World Championships" and "one of the biggest shocks in the sport's history."
race, the Tongyeong BG Triathlon in Korea, but could only finish in 22nd place. She wrote, "If I judged every day by whether I win or lose, yesterday would be considered a 'bad day' [...] But I need to have these days - because the 'defeats' expose my weaknesses, and enable me to grow, learn and develop as an athlete."
, Germany on 6 July 2008, in perfect weather conditions, Wellington recorded the second-fastest time to date by a woman over the Ironman distance, just 32 seconds outside Paula Newby-Fraser
's world record of 8:50:53 set in the 1994 Ironman Europe race, which was then held in Roth
. Spectators were aware throughout the race that Wellington was close to breaking the world record, but she did not know exactly what it was, and in any case preferred to slow down to celebrate her victory over the last few kilometres, exchanging greetings and hi-fives with the crowd. Her coach said that her plan was "to do it as easy as possible" once she had got to the front. Other factors affecting her time were that she lost some of her nutrition on the bike (having to rely on the aid stations instead) and that the bike course was 2 km too long.
Later that month, she retained her title at the long-distance Alpe d'Huez
event, finishing second overall, more than 25 minutes ahead of second-placed Aléxandra Louison and only 1 minute 23 seconds behind the winning man, Marcus Ornellas. She recorded the fastest overall time for the ascent of les 21 virages (pictured, right).
On 17 August she achieved her first win at the half-Ironman distance at the Timberman 70.3 triathlon in Gilford, New Hampshire
, placing sixth overall, 18 minutes ahead of runner-up Amanda Stevens.
on the latter's home ground at Almere
in an eagerly-awaited clash for the ITU long distance World Championship
title. Wellington won with a "dominating performance", more than 17 minutes in front of Denmark's Charlotte Kolters. Van Vlerken finished in third place, 19 minutes behind Wellington.
In October Wellington returned to Kona as defending champion and retained her title
, setting a new Hawaii marathon course record of 2:57:44. Despite losing around 10 minutes because of a flat tyre—a delay which would have been greater if fellow competitor Rebekah Keat had not given her a spare CO2 cartridge—she finished some 15 minutes ahead of second-placed Yvonne van Vlerken.
to train under new coach Cliff English. She said:
Two weeks later, Wellington announced that, instead of Cliff English (fiancé and coach of her rival Samantha McGlone
) her new coach would be Simon Lessing
.
's record set a year earlier over the same course by 13 minutes and 49 seconds. Rebekah Keat, who finished second, 7 minutes 25 seconds behind Wellington, also beat van Vlerken's time. Commentator Timothy Carlson wrote "Superwoman Chrissie Wellington didn’t just break it, she obliterated the one-year-old women's Iron-distance world record today".
In August, Wellington dropped her coach Simon Lessing to become self-coached.
with a new course record of 8:54:02, beating Paula Newby-Fraser
's record of 8:55:28 which had stood since 1992. She finished 19 mins 57 secs ahead of second-place Mirinda Carfrae
, the 2007 Ironman 70.3
World Champion who, in her first Ironman race, ran a marathon time of 2:56:51, fifty-three seconds faster than Wellington's record of the previous year. Wellington's victory was described as "stunning" and "even more dominant" than usual. Only 22 men were faster than Wellington.
Commenting on Wellington's record, Newby-Fraser said, "But the revelation I had was watching how hard she worked for it ... and it was clear she was going to the well. And I am certain she had to leave a little bit of herself out there to get it done. She didn’t take a moment to enjoy until she crossed the line. Part of me was gratified by that. I know what she had to do to get it and I hope she realizes it's not that easy. I know it wasn't that easy for her. A race like that takes a piece of herself out there." A year later her coach Dave Scott
revealed that she had an upper hamstring
injury and that, "Deep down inside, she had a bit of a struggle in 2009." Even though she had broken the long-standing course record, Scott said, "But I knew, and she knew, and I told her in my ever-candid, callous style, that she didn't have her best day."
with her boyfriend and two other friends, Wellington fell from her bicycle when it slipped on black ice
. She fractured her radius
, two metacarpals and two fingers in her right arm and hand. She required surgery under general anaesthetic
to insert wires (later removed) into her arm and wrist and had to wear a cast
on her arm for six weeks.
The injury severely limited her training, but once the cast was removed she was able to train intensively with her friend Catriona Morrison
near Águilas
in south-east Spain. She later acknowledged that the crash was a blessing in disguise, enforcing a mental and physical break and enabling her to focus on other areas of improvement such as her strength and to properly resolve her hamstring problems, which had been hampering her running.
Wellington returned to competition on 6 June, when she defended her title at Ironman 70.3 Kansas. She won in a time of 4:07:49, more than 16 minutes in front of Pip Taylor, placing 11th overall (10th among the pro men).
title in Germany in a new iron-distance world record record time of 8:19:13, placing seventh overall and bettering her own record by more than 12 minutes. In so doing, she set a new women's record for the bike split of 4:36:33, and then finished the race with a "stunning" 2:48:54 for the marathon, beating Erin Baker
's record of 2:49:53 which had stood since 1990. Only three men recorded a faster marathon run, two of whom were less than a minute faster. Her winning margin (32:57) over second-placed Rebekah Keat was greater than her time (26:37) behind the winning man.
After this race, her former coach Brett Sutton
wrote, "The triathlon world should be rejoicing. For the first time in the women’s sport and second time in this sport they have a true champion not just a champion of the sport like Erin Baker and Paula Newby Fraser, but also a champion on the level of a Kieren Perkins
, a 'Thorpedo' or a Michael Phelps
if we look at swimming. If we take a look at running, a Haile Gebrselassie
, a Paula Radcliffe
." He added, "You have in Chrissie a person of true international sporting excellence that is overshadowed by no one in any other sport."
In August Wellington set a new course record in her third consecutive victory at Timberman 70.3, but at the last minute on the day of the Ironman World Championship
, 9 October, she decided not to start the race because of illness, describing it as "the hardest decision of her life to date." Subsequent blood tests, which also included an anti-doping control, showed that she had, or had had, bacterial strep throat, bacterial pneumonia
and West Nile virus
.
, Arizona of 8:36:13. Her time was the third-fastest female iron-distance time to date, beaten only by her two records in Roth
. Despite riding the last two miles of the bike course on a flat tyre, she beat the previous course record by 35 minutes, and runner-up Linsey Corbin's time by 29 minutes. Her marathon time was only 4:44 slower than the fastest men's run, and her swim time only 32 seconds slower than the men's winner, Timo Bracht. Commentator Timothy Carlson quoted Wellington's boyfriend as saying, "It's a sign of a true champion that she can pick herself up after something as painful as her withdrawal at Hawaii. Six weeks later, all the issues from Hawaii were behind her, and today she was phenomenal", to which Carlson added, "Phenomenal might have been an understatement."
In July, Wellington bettered her own iron-distance world record at Challenge Roth
by exactly one minute, to 8:18:13. Her marathon time of 2:44:35 was also a new world record. Only four men finished in front of her, and only one man, the winner Andreas Raelert
, who also set a new world record, was able to beat her marathon time.
race with a torn pectoral muscle resulting from a bike crash in training two weeks earlier. Other injuries included extensive road rash
and bruised hip and elbow. She had to go to hospital due to pain from the torn muscle during swim training on the Tuesday before the race. The previous Sunday, Wellington had written a blog post in which she referred to Sun Tzu
's book The Art of War
and elaborated on how war strategy could be applied to triathlon, saying that she hadn't lost her fight because of her injuries and quoting Bella Bayliss
's dictum that "It's not a race, it's war." The torn muscle meant that her swim time was much slower than usual. Unlike previous races, where Wellington dominated on the bike, she remained well behind the leader, finishing the bike stage 21 minutes behind Julie Dibens
, but improving to 6th place. Then, as Wellington said, "I purposely went out very hard" on the run, winning with a 2:52:41 run split and an overall time of 8:55:08, less than three minutes in front of Mirinda Carfrae
.
near Boston, Massachusetts, where she first noticed the difference that sport can make to children's lives. She also noted, from her experience in Nepal, how sport can bring conflict-affected communities together. In an interview, her coach Brett Sutton
said:
Reflecting on her victory three weeks later, Wellington wrote:
She was appointed Member of the British Empire (MBE) for "services to Ironman Triathlons" in the 2010 Queen's birthday honours. In December 2010, having previously awarded her the University's Sporting Achievement Award in 2007, the University of Birmingham
granted her an honorary doctorate "as a tribute to her work in both her passions: sport and international development".
Note
Sources
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(born 18 February 1977), known as Chrissie Wellington, is an English triathlete and the current Ironman Triathlon
Ironman Triathlon
An Ironman Triathlon is one of a series of long-distance triathlon races organized by the World Triathlon Corporation consisting of a swim, a bike and a marathon run, raced in that order and without a break...
World Champion. She holds all three world and championship records relating to ironman-distance triathlon races: firstly, the overall world record, secondly, the Ironman World Championship
Ironman World Championship
The Ironman World Championship has been held annually in Hawaii since 1978, with an additional race in 1982. It is owned and organised by the World Triathlon Corporation and is currently sponsored by Ford...
course record, and thirdly, the official world record for all Ironman-branded triathlon races over the full Ironman distance. She won the World Championship in three consecutive years (2007–2009), but was unable to start the 2010 World Championship race because of illness, then regained the title in 2011. She is the first British athlete to hold the Ironman Triathlon World Championship, and remains undefeated over the Ironman distance. She is the only triathlete, male or female, to have won the World Championship less than a year after turning professional, an achievement which the British Triathlon Federation
British Triathlon Federation
The British Triathlon Federation , formerly known as the British Triathlon Association , is the national governing body for the sports of triathlon, duathlon and multisport in Great Britain.-Structure:...
described as "a remarkable feat, deemed to be a near impossible task for any athlete racing as a rookie at their first Ironman World Championships."
She has lowered the world record on every occasion she has raced Challenge Roth
Challenge Roth
The Challenge Roth, is a triathlon race in and around Roth, Germany. It is held annually in July.-Course:The distance is the Ironman distance, even though the race is not part of the official Ironman series....
(formerly Quelle Challenge Roth) at Roth in Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
, Germany. Her current record of 8 hours 18 minutes 13 seconds is more than 32 minutes faster than the record which stood from 1994 to 2008, when Yvonne van Vlerken
Yvonne van Vlerken
Yvonne van Vlerken is a Dutch triathlete and duathlete, twice winner of Quelle Challenge Roth, who in 2008 set a then world record for Ironman-distance triathlon races...
broke it by just over 5 minutes. Following her 2010 world record, her former coach Brett Sutton
Brett Sutton
Brett Sutton is an Australian triathlon coach and a former professional boxer, boxing coach, greyhound trainer, racehorse trainer and swimming coach, who is currently head coach of the triathlon team teamTBB. He has coached many World and Olympic champions, including current Ironman world record...
described Wellington as "a person of true international sporting excellence that is overshadowed by no one in any other sport."
Wellington is one of only three women to have achieved three consecutive victories at the Ironman World Championships, the other two being Natascha Badmann
Natascha Badmann
Natascha Badmann is a professional triathlete from Switzerland and was the first European woman to win the Ironman Triathlon World Championships. She won the Ironman Triathlon World Championships in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii in 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, and 2005....
and Paula Newby-Fraser
Paula Newby-Fraser
Paula Newby-Fraser is an Ironman triathlete and duathlete. She was born in Southern Rhodesia and raised in South Africa, where she was a nationally-ranked swimmer as a child....
. The latter's course record at the World Championships had stood for 17 years until Wellington broke it in 2009. Wellington holds the five fastest times ever recorded by a woman over the Ironman distance, and has the greatest number of sub-9 hour times—nine, five more than Newby-Fraser's previous record.
In addition to the Ironman titles, she was also the 2006 ITU
International Triathlon Union
The International Triathlon Union or ITU is the international governing body for the multi-sport disciplines of triathlon, duathlon, aquathlon and other nonstandard variations...
Age Group World Champion and the 2008 ITU long-distance
ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships
The ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships have been held annually since 1994. The championships involve a continuous swim-cycle-run, over distances varying between that of an Olympic-distance and an Iron-distance triathlon race. The championships are organised by the International...
World Champion.
Before becoming a professional triathlete, Wellington worked for the British government as an adviser on international development
International development
International development or global development is a concept that lacks a universally accepted definition, but it is most used in a holistic and multi-disciplinary context of human development — the development of greater quality of life for humans...
and, for Rural Reconstruction Nepal
Rural Reconstruction Nepal
Rural Reconstruction Nepal is a non-government, not for profit, social development organisation in Nepal. It was founded in 1989 in the form of a small organisation created by a group of creative graduates of the Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science in Chitwan district of central Nepal,...
, on development projects in Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
. International development remains one of her passions. She is actively involved in supporting charities relating to international development and supporting and encouraging women and girls to take up sport. She is an ambassador for the Blazeman Foundation and, at the finish line of all her races, performs a "Blazeman roll" in memory of Jon Blais.
Early life
Christine Wellington was born in Bury St Edmunds, SuffolkSuffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
and grew up in Feltwell
Feltwell
Feltwell is a village 10 miles west of Thetford, Norfolk, England, and is in the borough of King's Lynn and West Norfolk.Feltwell is a small village with a thriving community. The village has a small primary school which was originally built as a hospital. The pubs, The Lodge and the West End, are...
, a small village in Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
. She was a competitive swimmer as a teenager, when she swam for Thetford Dolphins, and went on to swim for her university. She describes herself as a "sporty kid, swimming, playing hockey
Field hockey
Field Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...
, running, but never excelling and always more interested in the social side of the sports scene". She was educated at her local comprehensive
Comprehensive school
A comprehensive school is a state school that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude. This is in contrast to the selective school system, where admission is restricted on the basis of a selection criteria. The term is commonly used in relation to the United...
school, Downham Market High School
Downham Market High School
Downham Market High School is a state high school situated in Downham Market, Norfolk, England. The School has been awarded specialist Technology College status by the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust. The Bexwell and Ryston sites have a combined student population of approximately 2,000 pupils...
and Sixth Form
Ryston Sixth Form College
Downham Market College is a state, coeducational college. It is located on a rural campus on Ryston Road, Downham Market, Norfolk, England.The College dates back to the 1980s and is an extension of Downham Market High School...
, where she was a member of most school sports teams, but "focused more on my studies than I did on reaching my full potential on the pitch."
Career
After graduating with first-class honours in geographyGeography
Geography is the science that studies the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. A literal translation would be "to describe or write about the Earth". The first person to use the word "geography" was Eratosthenes...
from Birmingham University
University of Birmingham
The University of Birmingham is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Birmingham Medical School and Mason Science College . Birmingham was the first Redbrick university to gain a charter and thus...
in 1998, Wellington travelled the world for two years, which she described as opening her eyes to the "many problems that exist in the world, but also to the opportunity for positive change." In 2000, she enrolled in an MA course in development studies
Development studies
Development studies is a multidisciplinary branch of social science which addresses issues of concern to developing countries. It has historically placed a particular focus on issues related to social and economic development, and its relevance may therefore extend to communities and regions...
at the University of Manchester
University of Manchester
The University of Manchester is a public research university located in Manchester, United Kingdom. It is a "red brick" university and a member of the Russell Group of research-intensive British universities and the N8 Group...
. Graduating with a Distinction in October 2001, she joined the UK government agency DEFRA in London to work on international development policy. At DEFRA, she was part of the team that negotiated for the UK at the World Summit on Sustainable Development, and became involved in following up the UK government's commitments on water and sanitation. She also worked on post-conflict environmental reconstruction policy.
Disillusioned with "bureaucracy and paper pushing", in September 2004 Wellington took sabbatical leave from DEFRA to work in Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
for Rural Reconstruction Nepal
Rural Reconstruction Nepal
Rural Reconstruction Nepal is a non-government, not for profit, social development organisation in Nepal. It was founded in 1989 in the form of a small organisation created by a group of creative graduates of the Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science in Chitwan district of central Nepal,...
(RRN), a Nepalese development NGO. Based in the capital, Kathmandu, she managed a community-led total sanitation
Community-led total sanitation
Community-led Total Sanitation is an innovative methodology for mobilising communities to completely eliminate open defecation . Communities are facilitated to conduct their own appraisal and analysis of open defecation and take their own action to become ODF .At the heart of CLTS lies the...
scheme in Salyan
Salyan District
Salyan District of 213,500. The district's administrative center is named Salyan or Salyan Khalanga.The district is known for its Hindu temples including Shiva temples in Chhayachhetra and Laxmipur, and the Devi temple at Khairabang in Hiwalcha VDC, one of nine in Nepal...
, a conflict-affected district in the west of the country. She also performed many other tasks for RRN, including preparing project proposals, editing books and writing papers.
On leaving Nepal at the end of 2005, she travelled to New Zealand, Tasmania
Tasmania
Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
and Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
before returning to her old job at DEFRA in May 2006. She left this job in February 2007 in order to become a professional triathlete.
Triathlon career (amateur)
Wellington's first triathlon race was at the EtonEton, Berkshire
Eton is a town and civil parish in Berkshire, England, lying on the opposite bank of the River Thames to Windsor and connected to it by Windsor Bridge. The parish also includes the large village of Eton Wick, 2 miles west of the town, and has a population of 4,980. Eton was in Buckinghamshire until...
Super Sprints on 16 May 2004, where she finished third. In the following two months, she won this race on both occasions. She put her triathlon racing on hold for her sabbatical in Nepal, where she was based in Kathmandu, at an altitude of 1350 m (4430 ft). Every morning before work she would cycle around the neighbouring countryside on her mountain bike, with a group of foreign and Nepali cyclists known as the "Mongolian Cycling Team". She would also go running along the many hilly trails in the Kathmandu valley
Kathmandu Valley
The Kathmandu Valley , located in Nepal, lies at the crossroads of ancient civilizations of Asia, and has at least 130 important monuments, including several places of pilgrimage for the Hindus and the Buddhists. There are seven UNESCO World Heritage Sites within this valley.-Etymology:The city of...
. When riding around the outlying villages on her mountain bike she would often have to wait for male co-workers to catch up with her. During a religious holiday, she spent two weeks cycling with friends some 1400 km from Lhasa
Lhasa
Lhasa is the administrative capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region in the People's Republic of China and the second most populous city on the Tibetan Plateau, after Xining. At an altitude of , Lhasa is one of the highest cities in the world...
, the capital of Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
to Kathmandu, crossing mountain passes over 5000 m, enduring sandstorms and blizzards, and reaching Base Camp
Everest Base Camp
There are two base camps on opposite sides of Mount Everest. South Base Camp is in Nepal at an altitude of , and North Base Camp is in Tibet at ). These camps are rudimentary campsites on Mount Everest that are used by mountain climbers during their ascent and descent...
on the northern (Tibetan) side of Mount Everest
Mount Everest
Mount Everest is the world's highest mountain, with a peak at above sea level. It is located in the Mahalangur section of the Himalayas. The international boundary runs across the precise summit point...
at 5208 m (17090 ft). Her coach, Brett Sutton, believes this experience at altitude to have been very useful training
Altitude training
Altitude training is the practice by some endurance athletes of training for several weeks at high altitude, preferably over above sea level, though more commonly at intermediate altitudes due to the shortage of suitable high-altitude locations...
for her later professional career, while Wellington herself regards it as having given her lasting mental strength.
Her friends in Nepal remarked on how she never missed a morning bike ride, whether or not she was sick: "Chrissie saying, 'Oh, I have a stomach bug' was like saying hello every day, but no matter how many bugs were inside her tummy she would always train and push herself every second", said one friend, adding, "We all wondered how fast she would be if she had no bugs – and that thought was scary."
In February 2006 she entered the Coast to Coast
Coast to Coast (race)
The Speight's Coast to Coast is a non-standard multisport competition held annually in New Zealand. It is so named as it traverses from the West coast to the East coast of South Island, and features running, cycling and kayaking elements over a total of 243 km .-History:The first Coast to Coast...
, a 243 km, two-day endurance race across the Southern Alps
Southern Alps
The Southern Alps is a mountain range extending along much of the length of New Zealand's South Island, reaching its greatest elevations near the island's western side...
of New Zealand involving running, cycling and kayaking. She finished 2nd in this race, despite having no previous kayaking experience, apart from some brief training before the race.
Shortly after her return to the UK she won the 2006 Shropshire Olympic Triathlon. This qualified her to enter the ITU
International Triathlon Union
The International Triathlon Union or ITU is the international governing body for the multi-sport disciplines of triathlon, duathlon, aquathlon and other nonstandard variations...
World Age Group (Amateur) Championships in Lausanne
Lausanne
Lausanne is a city in Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland, and is the capital of the canton of Vaud. The seat of the district of Lausanne, the city is situated on the shores of Lake Geneva . It faces the French town of Évian-les-Bains, with the Jura mountains to its north-west...
, Switzerland, a title which she won on 2 September 2006, beating her nearest rival by 4 minutes and 2 seconds. She later said she "trained really hard for this race for 10 weeks, juggling 20 hours [a week] of training with my full-time job."
During this period, like most amateur triathletes, she had also continued entering running races. She had previously run the London Marathon
London Marathon
The London Marathon is one of the biggest running events in the world, and one of the five top world marathons that make up the World Marathon Majors competition, which has a $1 million prize purse. It has been held each spring in London since 1981. The race is currently sponsored by Virgin Money,...
for charity in 2002, finishing in 3:08:17, making her the fastest woman from her running club in that race. That result prompted her to get a running coach, Frank Horwill
Frank Horwill
Frank J. Horwill MBE is a UK Athletics senior level 4 coach most famous for founding the British Milers' Club and for formulating the Five Pace Training Theory which is widely used for coaching middle-distance runners throughout the world....
—whom she regarded as "legendary and ever inspiring"—and to take her running training much more seriously. She had hoped to improve her marathon time in the April 2003 London Marathon, but in March she was hit by a car while riding her commuter bike. Unable to run the marathon, she took up swimming again, leading her to try triathlon racing in 2004. After her ITU victory, she took up cross-country
Cross country running
Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
racing for the first time, as a means of building strength for her triathlon races. She enjoyed some success in B and C grade cross-country events around London, winning several races including the South of Thames Championship in December 2006.
2007
After winning the world amateur title, Wellington began to consider becoming a professional, which would mean giving up her job. In January 2007, on the recommendation of a friend, she travelled to Switzerland to ask the opinion of the Australian triathlon coach, Brett SuttonBrett Sutton
Brett Sutton is an Australian triathlon coach and a former professional boxer, boxing coach, greyhound trainer, racehorse trainer and swimming coach, who is currently head coach of the triathlon team teamTBB. He has coached many World and Olympic champions, including current Ironman world record...
. Within 5 days she had handed in her notice at DEFRA, and in February 2007 flew out to Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
to join Sutton's teamTBB at their base in Phuket
Phuket Province
Phuket , formerly known as Thalang and, in Western sources, Junk Ceylon , is one of the southern provinces of Thailand...
.
She turned professional with the intention of racing standard-distance events, and enjoyed early success, winning Olympic-distance events in Bangkok
Bangkok
Bangkok is the capital and largest urban area city in Thailand. It is known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon or simply Krung Thep , meaning "city of angels." The full name of Bangkok is Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom...
and Subic Bay
Subic Bay
Subic Bay is a bay forming part of Luzon Sea on the west coast of the island of Luzon in Zambales, Philippines, about 100 kilometers northwest of Manila Bay. Its shores were formerly the site of a major United States Navy facility named U.S...
, then returned to the UK where she won the sprint-distance event at Bleinheim
Blenheim Palace
Blenheim Palace is a monumental country house situated in Woodstock, Oxfordshire, England, residence of the dukes of Marlborough. It is the only non-royal non-episcopal country house in England to hold the title of palace. The palace, one of England's largest houses, was built between...
. Later the same month she entered her first longer-distance event, the UK half-Ironman race at Wimbleball
Wimbleball Lake
Wimbleball Lake on Exmoor in Somerset, England, is a water supply reservoir constructed in the 1970s and completed in 1979.The high dam is of concrete buttress construction and impounds the River Haddeo to provide a water storage capacity of some 21,000 megalitres over an area of . Aggregate for...
, but suffered mechanical problems with her bicycle (forcing her to climb the steep Exmoor
Exmoor
Exmoor is an area of hilly open moorland in west Somerset and north Devon in South West England, named after the main river that flows out of the district, the River Exe. The moor has given its name to a National Park, which includes the Brendon Hills, the East Lyn Valley, the Vale of Porlock and ...
hills in too high a gear) and finished in 5th place. She returned to winning form only six days later, at the shorter Zurich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
triathlon.
On 1 August 2007, Wellington took on her toughest challenge to date, the long-distance Alpe d'Huez Triathlon
Alpe d'Huez Triathlon
The Triathlon EDF Alpe d'Huez, named after its sponsor EDF, was established in 2006 by Cyrille Neveu , Long Distance Triathlon World Champion of the year 2002, not to be confused with the multiple Rallye Dakar winner Cyril Neveu...
, known for its difficult summer heat, its altitude, and its hard climbs on both the bike and running stages. Despite a puncture and being forced off the road by an oncoming vehicle during a fast descent, she finished the bike stage 19 mins 30 sec in front of her nearest rival, Sione Jongstra
Sione Jongstra
Sione Jongstra is a Dutch triathlete.Jongstra, born in Ruinen and currently residing in Leerdam performed in artistic gymnastics, swimming, football and tennis, before making the step to focus completely on triathlon in 1996.-Honours:2002Sione Jongstra is a Dutch triathlete.Jongstra, born...
, and extended her lead on the running stage to win the race by over 29 minutes, in 9th place overall.
Towards the end of July, her coach had suggested that she was ready for an Ironman, despite the relatively low volume of her training. She said of Sutton, "my training was more geared to standard distance, with not much high volume. I don’t seem to need high-volume work like three-hour runs. I’ve done none of these since I’ve been with Brett. Some of the other girls will. This is why he is so special: he has an ability to spot potential even if the athlete can’t. He said I was ready even on the training I was doing."
After 10 days of acclimatisation at her team's base in Thailand, Wellington won Ironman Korea, in very hot conditions, finishing over 50 minutes ahead of 2nd placed Yasuko Miyazaki, in 7th place overall. By winning this race, she earned a slot to race at the Ironman world championships in Hawaii.
Ironman world champion
On 13 October 2007 (14 October UTC), Wellington won the world championship2007 Ironman World Championship
The 2007 Ford Ironman World Championship was a triathlon race held on October 13, 2007 in Kailua, Hawaii County, Hawaii. It was the 31st Ironman World Championship, which has been held annually in Hawaii since 1978. The champions were Chris McCormack and Chrissie Wellington. The championship was...
Ironman triathlon
Ironman Triathlon
An Ironman Triathlon is one of a series of long-distance triathlon races organized by the World Triathlon Corporation consisting of a swim, a bike and a marathon run, raced in that order and without a break...
title at Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, together with US$110,000 prize money. She finished in 9:08:45, five minutes ahead of Samantha McGlone
Samantha McGlone
Samantha McGlone is a Canadian triathlete.McGlone competed at the second Olympic triathlon at the 2004 Summer Olympics. She took twenty-seventh place with a total time of 2:10:14.24...
, running the marathon leg in 2:59:58, the second-fastest time recorded to date by a woman on the Hawaii course. Her victory was described as the "biggest upset in Ironman Hawaii history", "a remarkable feat, deemed to be a near impossible task for any athlete racing as a rookie at their first Ironman World Championships" and "one of the biggest shocks in the sport's history."
2008
At the Ironman Australia Triathlon in April 2008, her first Ironman since Hawaii, Wellington again won by a margin of five minutes, finishing 9th overall. Her marathon time of 3:01:53 was beaten by only two men. Only twenty days later, she attempted her first World CupITU Triathlon World Cup
The ITU Triathlon World Cup is an annual series of triathlon races staged around the world. The series is organised by the International Triathlon Union , the world governing body of the sport. BG Group was the title sponsor of the series from 2000 to 2008...
race, the Tongyeong BG Triathlon in Korea, but could only finish in 22nd place. She wrote, "If I judged every day by whether I win or lose, yesterday would be considered a 'bad day' [...] But I need to have these days - because the 'defeats' expose my weaknesses, and enable me to grow, learn and develop as an athlete."
European champion, return to Alpe d'Huez, and first half-Ironman win
At the Ironman European Championship race held in FrankfurtFrankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
, Germany on 6 July 2008, in perfect weather conditions, Wellington recorded the second-fastest time to date by a woman over the Ironman distance, just 32 seconds outside Paula Newby-Fraser
Paula Newby-Fraser
Paula Newby-Fraser is an Ironman triathlete and duathlete. She was born in Southern Rhodesia and raised in South Africa, where she was a nationally-ranked swimmer as a child....
's world record of 8:50:53 set in the 1994 Ironman Europe race, which was then held in Roth
Roth bei Nürnberg
Roth is a town in Bavaria, Germany, the capital of the district Roth. It is located about 25 km south of Nuremberg.-History:...
. Spectators were aware throughout the race that Wellington was close to breaking the world record, but she did not know exactly what it was, and in any case preferred to slow down to celebrate her victory over the last few kilometres, exchanging greetings and hi-fives with the crowd. Her coach said that her plan was "to do it as easy as possible" once she had got to the front. Other factors affecting her time were that she lost some of her nutrition on the bike (having to rely on the aid stations instead) and that the bike course was 2 km too long.
Later that month, she retained her title at the long-distance Alpe d'Huez
Alpe d'Huez Triathlon
The Triathlon EDF Alpe d'Huez, named after its sponsor EDF, was established in 2006 by Cyrille Neveu , Long Distance Triathlon World Champion of the year 2002, not to be confused with the multiple Rallye Dakar winner Cyril Neveu...
event, finishing second overall, more than 25 minutes ahead of second-placed Aléxandra Louison and only 1 minute 23 seconds behind the winning man, Marcus Ornellas. She recorded the fastest overall time for the ascent of les 21 virages (pictured, right).
On 17 August she achieved her first win at the half-Ironman distance at the Timberman 70.3 triathlon in Gilford, New Hampshire
Gilford, New Hampshire
Gilford is a town in Belknap County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 7,126 at the 2010 census. Situated on Lake Winnipesaukee, Gilford is home to Governors Island, Ellacoya State Beach, Belknap Mountain State Forest, Gunstock Mountain Ski Resort, and Meadowbrook U.S...
, placing sixth overall, 18 minutes ahead of runner-up Amanda Stevens.
ITU long distance world champion and second Ironman world championship
Two weeks after her Timberman win, Wellington met the Ironman-distance world record holder, Yvonne van VlerkenYvonne van Vlerken
Yvonne van Vlerken is a Dutch triathlete and duathlete, twice winner of Quelle Challenge Roth, who in 2008 set a then world record for Ironman-distance triathlon races...
on the latter's home ground at Almere
Almere
Almere is a planned city and municipality in the province of Flevoland, the Netherlands, bordering Lelystad and Zeewolde. The municipality of Almere comprises the districts Almere Stad, Almere Haven, Almere Buiten, Almere Hout, Almere Poort and Almere Pampus .Almere is the youngest city in the...
in an eagerly-awaited clash for the ITU long distance World Championship
ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships
The ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships have been held annually since 1994. The championships involve a continuous swim-cycle-run, over distances varying between that of an Olympic-distance and an Iron-distance triathlon race. The championships are organised by the International...
title. Wellington won with a "dominating performance", more than 17 minutes in front of Denmark's Charlotte Kolters. Van Vlerken finished in third place, 19 minutes behind Wellington.
In October Wellington returned to Kona as defending champion and retained her title
2008 Ironman World Championship
The 2008 Ford Ironman World Championship was held on October 11, 2008 in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. It was the 32nd such Ironman Triathlon World Championship, which has been held annually in Hawaii since 1978. The champions were Craig Alexander and Chrissie Wellington...
, setting a new Hawaii marathon course record of 2:57:44. Despite losing around 10 minutes because of a flat tyre—a delay which would have been greater if fellow competitor Rebekah Keat had not given her a spare CO2 cartridge—she finished some 15 minutes ahead of second-placed Yvonne van Vlerken.
Leaving TeamTBB
On 27 October, Wellington announced that, together with Hilary Biscay and Belinda Granger, she would be leaving TeamTBB and their coach Brett SuttonBrett Sutton
Brett Sutton is an Australian triathlon coach and a former professional boxer, boxing coach, greyhound trainer, racehorse trainer and swimming coach, who is currently head coach of the triathlon team teamTBB. He has coached many World and Olympic champions, including current Ironman world record...
to train under new coach Cliff English. She said:
I owe so much to Brett, and TeamTBB. It was Brett that advised me to turn pro, he told me to do an Ironman and he trained me to win two World Ironman Championships. Not only that, the Team framework enabled me to train with some of the best athletes in the world; to grow and develop as a person and to learn some incredibly important lessons. With the Team I reached heights that I never thought possible, and for that I am truly grateful. TeamTBB is focused on helping 'development athletes' who might otherwise not have the opportunity to succeed in professional triathlon. I no longer fit into their framework, and hence the time has come for me to move on.
Two weeks later, Wellington announced that, instead of Cliff English (fiancé and coach of her rival Samantha McGlone
Samantha McGlone
Samantha McGlone is a Canadian triathlete.McGlone competed at the second Olympic triathlon at the 2004 Summer Olympics. She took twenty-seventh place with a total time of 2:10:14.24...
) her new coach would be Simon Lessing
Simon Lessing
Simon Christopher Lessing, MBE, is a British triathlete who won five Olympic-distance world titles . He also won races at 70.3, ITU long distance and Ironman-distance events. He set an Olympic-distance world record in 1996, and is noted for his 2004 Ironman Lake Placid win, where he set a course...
.
New world record
Despite suffering from shingles, Wellington set a new record for ironman-distance triathlon races of 8:31:59 on 12 July 2009 at the Quelle Challenge Roth, beating Yvonne van VlerkenYvonne van Vlerken
Yvonne van Vlerken is a Dutch triathlete and duathlete, twice winner of Quelle Challenge Roth, who in 2008 set a then world record for Ironman-distance triathlon races...
's record set a year earlier over the same course by 13 minutes and 49 seconds. Rebekah Keat, who finished second, 7 minutes 25 seconds behind Wellington, also beat van Vlerken's time. Commentator Timothy Carlson wrote "Superwoman Chrissie Wellington didn’t just break it, she obliterated the one-year-old women's Iron-distance world record today".
In August, Wellington dropped her coach Simon Lessing to become self-coached.
Third Ironman world championship and new Hawaii course record
In October, Wellington won the world championship for the third time2009 Ironman World Championship
The 2009 Ford Ironman World Championship was held on October 10, 2009 in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. It was the 33rd such Ironman Triathlon World Championship, which has been held annually in Hawaii since 1978. The champions were Craig Alexander and Chrissie Wellington...
with a new course record of 8:54:02, beating Paula Newby-Fraser
Paula Newby-Fraser
Paula Newby-Fraser is an Ironman triathlete and duathlete. She was born in Southern Rhodesia and raised in South Africa, where she was a nationally-ranked swimmer as a child....
's record of 8:55:28 which had stood since 1992. She finished 19 mins 57 secs ahead of second-place Mirinda Carfrae
Mirinda Carfrae
Mirinda Carfrae is an Australian professional triathlete who won the Ironman 70.3 World Championship in 2007. In 2009, she achieved a silver medal at the Ironman World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, her first attempt at the full Ironman distance...
, the 2007 Ironman 70.3
Ironman 70.3
An Ironman 70.3, also known as a Half Ironman, is one of a series of middle-distance triathlon races organized by the World Triathlon Corporation . The "70.3" refers to the total distance in miles covered in the race, consisting of a swim, a bike ride, and a run...
World Champion who, in her first Ironman race, ran a marathon time of 2:56:51, fifty-three seconds faster than Wellington's record of the previous year. Wellington's victory was described as "stunning" and "even more dominant" than usual. Only 22 men were faster than Wellington.
Commenting on Wellington's record, Newby-Fraser said, "But the revelation I had was watching how hard she worked for it ... and it was clear she was going to the well. And I am certain she had to leave a little bit of herself out there to get it done. She didn’t take a moment to enjoy until she crossed the line. Part of me was gratified by that. I know what she had to do to get it and I hope she realizes it's not that easy. I know it wasn't that easy for her. A race like that takes a piece of herself out there." A year later her coach Dave Scott
Dave Scott (triathlete)
Dave Scott is a U.S. triathlete and the first six-time Ironman Triathon World Champion. He won the Ironman Triathlon in Hawaii six times in 1980, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1986, and 1987. Only his rival, Mark Allen, managed to match these six titles eight years later...
revealed that she had an upper hamstring
Hamstring
In human anatomy, the hamstring refers to any one of the three posterior thigh muscles, or to the tendons that make up the borders of the space behind the knee. In modern anatomical contexts, however, they usually refer to the posterior thigh muscles, or the tendons of the semitendinosus, the...
injury and that, "Deep down inside, she had a bit of a struggle in 2009." Even though she had broken the long-standing course record, Scott said, "But I knew, and she knew, and I told her in my ever-candid, callous style, that she didn't have her best day."
Bike crash, surgery and recovery; Ironman 70.3 Kansas
On Saturday 2 January, during an intended 5-hour training ride in the Surrey HillsSurrey Hills AONB
The Surrey Hills is a Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty , located in Surrey, England. The AONB was designated in 1958 and covers one quarter of the county of Surrey...
with her boyfriend and two other friends, Wellington fell from her bicycle when it slipped on black ice
Black ice
Black ice, sometimes called glare ice or clear ice, refers to a thin coating of glazed ice on a surface.While not truly black, it is virtually transparent, allowing black asphalt/macadam roadways to be seen through it, hence the term "black ice"...
. She fractured her radius
Radius (bone)
The radius is one of the two large bones of the forearm, the other being the ulna. It extends from the lateral side of the elbow to the thumb side of the wrist and runs parallel to the ulna, which exceeds it in length and size. It is a long bone, prism-shaped and slightly curved longitudinally...
, two metacarpals and two fingers in her right arm and hand. She required surgery under general anaesthetic
General anaesthetic
A general anaesthetic is a drug that brings about a reversible loss of consciousness. These drugs are generally administered by an anaesthesia provider to induce or maintain general anaesthesia to facilitate surgery...
to insert wires (later removed) into her arm and wrist and had to wear a cast
Orthopedic cast
An orthopedic cast, body cast or surgical cast, is a shell, frequently made from plaster, encasing a limb to hold a broken bone in place until healing is confirmed...
on her arm for six weeks.
The injury severely limited her training, but once the cast was removed she was able to train intensively with her friend Catriona Morrison
Catriona Morrison
Catriona Morrison is a British triathlete and duathlete of Scottish origin.In 2005 she won the silver medal at the ITU Duathlon World Championships. In 2006 she followed this up with gold and took another silver medal at the Long Distance Duathlon World Championships...
near Águilas
Águilas
Águilas is a municipality and seaport of southeastern Spain, in the province of Murcia. It is situated at the southern end of Murcia's Mediterranean coastline, otherwise known as the Costa Cálida, near the border with the Province of Almería....
in south-east Spain. She later acknowledged that the crash was a blessing in disguise, enforcing a mental and physical break and enabling her to focus on other areas of improvement such as her strength and to properly resolve her hamstring problems, which had been hampering her running.
Wellington returned to competition on 6 June, when she defended her title at Ironman 70.3 Kansas. She won in a time of 4:07:49, more than 16 minutes in front of Pip Taylor, placing 11th overall (10th among the pro men).
World records at Challenge Roth, but disappointment at Kona
On 18 July Wellington defended her Challenge RothChallenge Roth
The Challenge Roth, is a triathlon race in and around Roth, Germany. It is held annually in July.-Course:The distance is the Ironman distance, even though the race is not part of the official Ironman series....
title in Germany in a new iron-distance world record record time of 8:19:13, placing seventh overall and bettering her own record by more than 12 minutes. In so doing, she set a new women's record for the bike split of 4:36:33, and then finished the race with a "stunning" 2:48:54 for the marathon, beating Erin Baker
Erin Baker
Erin Baker MBE is a New Zealand triathlete.Baker is a well known, female athlete who for years dominated the Olympic distance and Ironman triathlon circuit...
's record of 2:49:53 which had stood since 1990. Only three men recorded a faster marathon run, two of whom were less than a minute faster. Her winning margin (32:57) over second-placed Rebekah Keat was greater than her time (26:37) behind the winning man.
After this race, her former coach Brett Sutton
Brett Sutton
Brett Sutton is an Australian triathlon coach and a former professional boxer, boxing coach, greyhound trainer, racehorse trainer and swimming coach, who is currently head coach of the triathlon team teamTBB. He has coached many World and Olympic champions, including current Ironman world record...
wrote, "The triathlon world should be rejoicing. For the first time in the women’s sport and second time in this sport they have a true champion not just a champion of the sport like Erin Baker and Paula Newby Fraser, but also a champion on the level of a Kieren Perkins
Kieren Perkins
Kieren John Perkins OAM , is a former Australian professional swimmer. One of the world's best-ever long-distance swimmers, he won two Olympic gold medals in 1992 and 1996 in the 1500-metre freestyle, and a silver medal in 2000....
, a 'Thorpedo' or a Michael Phelps
Michael Phelps
Michael Fred Phelps is an American swimmer who has, overall, won 16 Olympic medals—six gold and two bronze at Athens in 2004, and eight gold at Beijing in 2008, becoming the most successful athlete at both of these Olympic Games editions...
if we look at swimming. If we take a look at running, a Haile Gebrselassie
Haile Gebrselassie
Haile Gebrselassie is an Ethiopian long-distance track and road running athlete. He won two Olympic gold medals over 10,000 metres and four World Championship titles in the event. He won the Berlin Marathon four times consecutively and also had three straight wins at the Dubai Marathon...
, a Paula Radcliffe
Paula Radcliffe
Paula Jane Radcliffe, MBE is an English long-distance runner. She is the current women's world record holder in the marathon with her time of 2:15:25 hours...
." He added, "You have in Chrissie a person of true international sporting excellence that is overshadowed by no one in any other sport."
In August Wellington set a new course record in her third consecutive victory at Timberman 70.3, but at the last minute on the day of the Ironman World Championship
2010 Ironman World Championship
The 2010 Ford Ironman World Championship was held on October 9, 2010 in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. It was the 34th such Ironman Triathlon World Championships, which has been held annually in Hawaii since 1978. The 2010 Championship was won by Chris McCormack and Mirinda Carfrae...
, 9 October, she decided not to start the race because of illness, describing it as "the hardest decision of her life to date." Subsequent blood tests, which also included an anti-doping control, showed that she had, or had had, bacterial strep throat, bacterial pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
and West Nile virus
West Nile virus
West Nile virus is a virus of the family Flaviviridae. Part of the Japanese encephalitis antigenic complex of viruses, it is found in both tropical and temperate regions. It mainly infects birds, but is known to infect humans, horses, dogs, cats, bats, chipmunks, skunks, squirrels, domestic...
.
Official Ironman world record
On 21 November, having allowed herself six weeks to recover from her illness, Welllington set a new world record for an Ironman-branded full distance event in TempeTempe, Arizona
Tempe is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, USA, with the Census Bureau reporting a 2010 population of 161,719. The city is named after the Vale of Tempe in Greece. Tempe is located in the East Valley section of metropolitan Phoenix; it is bordered by Phoenix and Guadalupe on the west, Scottsdale...
, Arizona of 8:36:13. Her time was the third-fastest female iron-distance time to date, beaten only by her two records in Roth
Roth bei Nürnberg
Roth is a town in Bavaria, Germany, the capital of the district Roth. It is located about 25 km south of Nuremberg.-History:...
. Despite riding the last two miles of the bike course on a flat tyre, she beat the previous course record by 35 minutes, and runner-up Linsey Corbin's time by 29 minutes. Her marathon time was only 4:44 slower than the fastest men's run, and her swim time only 32 seconds slower than the men's winner, Timo Bracht. Commentator Timothy Carlson quoted Wellington's boyfriend as saying, "It's a sign of a true champion that she can pick herself up after something as painful as her withdrawal at Hawaii. Six weeks later, all the issues from Hawaii were behind her, and today she was phenomenal", to which Carlson added, "Phenomenal might have been an understatement."
Two more world records
Having trained in Stellenbosch since mid-February, Wellington won Ironman South Africa on 10 April in a new "M-dot" world record time of 8:33:56, lowering her own record by a little over 2 minutes. She finished in 8th place overall, nearly 35 minutes ahead of runner-up Rachel Joyce, who in turn broke the previous course record by 8 minutes. Not only did Wellington set new female bike, run and course records, but her marathon time of 2:52:54 was also faster than all of the men.In July, Wellington bettered her own iron-distance world record at Challenge Roth
Challenge Roth
The Challenge Roth, is a triathlon race in and around Roth, Germany. It is held annually in July.-Course:The distance is the Ironman distance, even though the race is not part of the official Ironman series....
by exactly one minute, to 8:18:13. Her marathon time of 2:44:35 was also a new world record. Only four men finished in front of her, and only one man, the winner Andreas Raelert
Andreas Raelert
Andreas Raelert is a German triathlete .On 10th July 2011, Raelert broke the world record time for an Ironman Triathlon distance race at the at Challenge Roth event in Roth, Germany...
, who also set a new world record, was able to beat her marathon time.
Regaining the world title
Wellington started the 2011 Ironman World Championship2011 Ironman World Championship
The 2011 Ford Ironman World Championship was held on October 8, 2011 in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. It was the 35th such Ironman Triathlon World Championships, which has been held annually in Hawaii since 1978, with an additional race in 1982...
race with a torn pectoral muscle resulting from a bike crash in training two weeks earlier. Other injuries included extensive road rash
Road rash
Road rash is a colloquial term for skin and bone injury caused by abrasion with road surfaces, usually as a consequence of cycling and motorcycling accidents. The term may be applied to both a fresh injury and the scar tissue left by an old one...
and bruised hip and elbow. She had to go to hospital due to pain from the torn muscle during swim training on the Tuesday before the race. The previous Sunday, Wellington had written a blog post in which she referred to Sun Tzu
Sun Tzu
Sun Wu , style name Changqing , better known as Sun Tzu or Sunzi , was an ancient Chinese military general, strategist and philosopher who is traditionally believed, and who is most likely, to have authored The Art of War, an influential ancient Chinese book on military strategy...
's book The Art of War
The Art of War
The Art of War is an ancient Chinese military treatise that is attributed to Sun Tzu , a high ranking military general and strategist during the late Spring and Autumn period...
and elaborated on how war strategy could be applied to triathlon, saying that she hadn't lost her fight because of her injuries and quoting Bella Bayliss
Bella Bayliss
Bella Bayliss, née Bella Comerford is a professional triathlete from the United Kingdom. She competes in World Triathlon Corporation Ironman and Ironman 70.3 triathlons. An Ironman triathlon consists of a 2.4 mi swim, 112 mi bike and a 26.2 mi run...
's dictum that "It's not a race, it's war." The torn muscle meant that her swim time was much slower than usual. Unlike previous races, where Wellington dominated on the bike, she remained well behind the leader, finishing the bike stage 21 minutes behind Julie Dibens
Julie Dibens
Julie Claire Dibens is a professional triathlete. She represented Great Britain in the 2004 Summer Olympics and has won the 2009 Ironman 70.3 World Championship as well as the XTERRA Triathlon World Champion in 2007, 2008, and 2009...
, but improving to 6th place. Then, as Wellington said, "I purposely went out very hard" on the run, winning with a 2:52:41 run split and an overall time of 8:55:08, less than three minutes in front of Mirinda Carfrae
Mirinda Carfrae
Mirinda Carfrae is an Australian professional triathlete who won the Ironman 70.3 World Championship in 2007. In 2009, she achieved a silver medal at the Ironman World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, her first attempt at the full Ironman distance...
.
International development
Chrissie Wellington has said she has two passions in life: sport and development. In her victory speech at the 2007 Hawaii Ironman, she referred to her experience teaching children at a schoolBeaver Country Day School
Beaver Country Day School is an independent, college preparatory day school for students in grades 6 through 12 founded in 1920. The school is located on a campus in the village of Chestnut Hill, in Brookline, Massachusetts, USA, near Boston. Beaver is a member of the Cum Laude Society, the...
near Boston, Massachusetts, where she first noticed the difference that sport can make to children's lives. She also noted, from her experience in Nepal, how sport can bring conflict-affected communities together. In an interview, her coach Brett Sutton
Brett Sutton
Brett Sutton is an Australian triathlon coach and a former professional boxer, boxing coach, greyhound trainer, racehorse trainer and swimming coach, who is currently head coach of the triathlon team teamTBB. He has coached many World and Olympic champions, including current Ironman world record...
said:
She has kicked around for years through South East Asia, working for underprivileged people. That's why she was in Nepal. Already this year she has done clinics in Thailand and the Philippines and now sponsors a young Filipino athlete to attend our group for the coach to work some magic. I think her win could be the catalyst for the sport in South East Asia.
To give you an insight into Chrissie Wellington's mind, her first talk to me about the media and the frenzy around her, was "Boss, I don't want us to lose sight of what we discussed about my goal. I want to be able to use my triathlon result to help develop social programs for underprivileged kids in South East Asia. Any sponsor who does not believe this is a priority, we can do without. If it costs me a little money, I am at ease with that." [...] This is the real Chrissie, the one people don't see behind the flashy smile.
Reflecting on her victory three weeks later, Wellington wrote:
Anyone that knows me has probably been on the receiving end of one of my rants. Like a stuck record I ramble on about development to anyone that will (pretend to) listen. It is my passion, and has been for a long time. Poverty, conflict, violence, crime, exclusion and so forth are not givens. They happen for a reason. We have the power to change things. And sport is one vehicle for doing so. It has the power to build bridges, to empower, to teach, to heal – this is what triathlon and every other sport should be about. I hope that I [...] can, in a small way, help to inspire people to take up sport, realise their own dreams and their full potential.
Awards and honours
At an awards ceremony on 23 November 2009, following a four-week online public vote, Chrissie Wellington was announced winner of the 2009 Sunday Times Sportswoman of the Year.She was appointed Member of the British Empire (MBE) for "services to Ironman Triathlons" in the 2010 Queen's birthday honours. In December 2010, having previously awarded her the University's Sporting Achievement Award in 2007, the University of Birmingham
University of Birmingham
The University of Birmingham is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Birmingham Medical School and Mason Science College . Birmingham was the first Redbrick university to gain a charter and thus...
granted her an honorary doctorate "as a tribute to her work in both her passions: sport and international development".
Results
The following table includes a complete list of all Chrissie Wellington's races as a professional triathlete.| Date | Position | Event | length km |
Swim time |
Bike time |
Run time |
transition time |
Total time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Ironman World Championship Ironman World Championship The Ironman World Championship has been held annually in Hawaii since 1978, with an additional race in 1982. It is owned and organised by the World Triathlon Corporation and is currently sponsored by Ford... , Hawaii |
226.3 | 1:01:03 | 4:56:53 | 2:52:41 | 0:04:31 | 8:55:08 | |
| 1st | Timberman Ironman 70.3, Lake Winnipesaukee Lake Winnipesaukee Lake Winnipesaukee is the largest lake in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. It is approximately long and from wide , covering — when Paugus Bay is included—with a maximum depth of .... , NH New Hampshire New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian... (half-Ironman distance) |
113.2 | 0:27:08 | 2:27:51 | 1:18:44 | 0:02:50 | 4:16:33 | |
| 1st | Challenge Roth Challenge Roth The Challenge Roth, is a triathlon race in and around Roth, Germany. It is held annually in July.-Course:The distance is the Ironman distance, even though the race is not part of the official Ironman series.... , Roth Roth bei Nürnberg Roth is a town in Bavaria, Germany, the capital of the district Roth. It is located about 25 km south of Nuremberg.-History:... , Germany (Ironman distance) |
226.3 | 0:49:49 | 4:40:39 | 2:44:35 | 0:03:13 | 8:18:13 | |
| 1st | Ironman 70.3 Kansas (half-Ironman distance) | 113.2 | 0:27:41 | 2:24:09 | 1:16:41 | 0:02:37 | 4:11:08 | |
| 1st | Ironman South Africa, Port Elizabeth (Ironman distance) | 226.3 | 0:51:40 | 4:45:23 | 2:52:54 | 0:03:59 | 8:33:56 | |
| 1st | Ironman Arizona, Tempe Tempe, Arizona Tempe is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, USA, with the Census Bureau reporting a 2010 population of 161,719. The city is named after the Vale of Tempe in Greece. Tempe is located in the East Valley section of metropolitan Phoenix; it is bordered by Phoenix and Guadalupe on the west, Scottsdale... , AZ Arizona Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix... (Ironman distance) |
226.3 | 0:51:56 | 4:47:06 | 2:52:55 | 0:04:16 | 8:36:13 | |
| 1st | Timberman Ironman 70.3, Lake Winnipesaukee Lake Winnipesaukee Lake Winnipesaukee is the largest lake in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. It is approximately long and from wide , covering — when Paugus Bay is included—with a maximum depth of .... , NH New Hampshire New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian... (half-Ironman distance) |
113.2 | 0:25:40 | 2:22:14 | 1:19:06 | 0:03:11 | 4:10:11 | |
| 1st | Challenge Roth Challenge Roth The Challenge Roth, is a triathlon race in and around Roth, Germany. It is held annually in July.-Course:The distance is the Ironman distance, even though the race is not part of the official Ironman series.... , Roth Roth bei Nürnberg Roth is a town in Bavaria, Germany, the capital of the district Roth. It is located about 25 km south of Nuremberg.-History:... , Germany (Ironman distance) |
226.3 | 0:50:28 | 4:36:33 | 2:48:54 | 0:03:21 | 8:19:13 | |
| 1st | Ironman 70.3 Kansas (half-Ironman distance) | 113.2 | 0:28:43 | 2:21:16 | 1:15:12 | 0:02:38 | 4:07:49 | |
| 1st | Ironman World Championship Ironman World Championship The Ironman World Championship has been held annually in Hawaii since 1978, with an additional race in 1982. It is owned and organised by the World Triathlon Corporation and is currently sponsored by Ford... , Hawaii |
226.3 | 0:54:31 | 4:52:06 | 3:03:05 | 0:04:20 | 8:54:02 | |
| 1st | Timberman Ironman 70.3, Lake Winnipesaukee Lake Winnipesaukee Lake Winnipesaukee is the largest lake in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. It is approximately long and from wide , covering — when Paugus Bay is included—with a maximum depth of .... , NH New Hampshire New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian... (half-Ironman distance) |
113.2 | 0:27:22 | 2:19:59 | 1:24:36 | 0:03:14 | 4:15:11 | |
| 2nd | 5430 Long Course Triathlon, Boulder, Colorado Boulder, Colorado Boulder is the county seat and most populous city of Boulder County and the 11th most populous city in the U.S. state of Colorado. Boulder is located at the base of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains at an elevation of... , USA (half-Ironman distance) |
113.2 | 0:28:58 | 2:16:38 | 1:24:54 | 0:01:49 | 4:12:18 | |
| 1st | Quelle Challenge Roth, Roth Roth bei Nürnberg Roth is a town in Bavaria, Germany, the capital of the district Roth. It is located about 25 km south of Nuremberg.-History:... , Germany (Ironman distance) |
226.3 | 0:50:28 | 4:40:28 | 2:57:32 | 0:03:33 | 8:31:59 | |
| 1st | Ironman 70.3 Kansas (half-Ironman distance) | 113.2 | 0:25:11 | 2:26:51 | 1:20:16 | 0:02:34 | 4:14:52 | |
| 6th | Columbia Triathlon, Columbia, Maryland Columbia, Maryland Columbia is a planned community that consists of ten self-contained villages, located in Howard County, Maryland, United States. It began with the idea that a city could enhance its residents' quality of life. Creator and developer James W. Rouse saw the new community in terms of human values, not... (1.5 km / 41 km / 10 km) |
52.5 | 0:21:43 | 1:16:23 | 0:40:35 | 2:18:40 | ||
| 1st | Ironman Australia Triathlon, Port Macquarie | 226.3 | 0:50:48 | 5:03:01 | 2:59:15 | 0:04:06 | 8:57:10 | |
| 1st | Ironman World Championship Ironman World Championship The Ironman World Championship has been held annually in Hawaii since 1978, with an additional race in 1982. It is owned and organised by the World Triathlon Corporation and is currently sponsored by Ford... , Hawaii |
226.3 | 0:56:20 | 5:08:16 | 2:57:44 | 0:04:05 | 9:06:23 | |
| 1st | ITU Long Distance World Championship (O3), Almere Almere Almere is a planned city and municipality in the province of Flevoland, the Netherlands, bordering Lelystad and Zeewolde. The municipality of Almere comprises the districts Almere Stad, Almere Haven, Almere Buiten, Almere Hout, Almere Poort and Almere Pampus .Almere is the youngest city in the... (4 km / 120 km / 30 km) |
154.0 | 1:10:05 | 3:03:19 | 1:54:18 | 0:05:04 | 6:12:44 | |
| 1st | Timberman Ironman 70.3 (half-Ironman distance) | 113.2 | 0:26:20 | 2:21:02 | 1:21:42 | 0:02:44 | 4:11:46 | |
| 1st | Alpe d'Huez Alpe d'Huez L'Alpe d'Huez is a ski resort at . It is a mountain pasture in the Central French Alps, in the commune of Huez, in the Isère département in the Rhône-Alpes region.-Tour de France:L'Alpe d'Huez is one of the main mountains in the Tour de France... Long distance triathlon (2.2 km / 115 km / 22 km) |
139.2 | 0:29:57 | 4:09:05 | 1:36:34 | 0:02:49 | 6:18:25 | |
| 1st | Ironman European Championship, Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010... |
226.3 | 0:48:34 | 4:57:17 | 3:01:44 | 0:03:50 | 8:51:24.7 | |
| 22nd | Tongyeong BG Triathlon World Cup, Tongyeong Tongyeong Tongyeong is a coastal city in South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. In 2010, it had an area of 238.81 ㎢ and a population of 139,869 people. It is divided into 1 eup , 6 myeon and 11 dong . Chungmu city and Tongyeong county were reunited in 1995, creating Tongyeong City as we know it today... (1.5 km / 40 km / 10 km) |
51.5 | 0:21:09 | 0:59:29 | 0:37:44 | 1:58:21 | ||
| 1st | Ironman Australia Triathlon, Port Macquarie | 226.3 | 0:53:27 | 5:08:34 | 3:01:53 | 9:03:55 | ||
| 4th | Laguna Phuket Triathlon Laguna Phuket Triathlon The Laguna Phuket Triathlon is a triathlon competition. The race was created in 1994 by IMG, Laguna Phuket Resorts and PCH Sports. LPT's race distances of 1800 m swim, 55K bike and 12K run are designed to provide participants with a unique challenge and to showcase the venue... (1.8 km / 55 km / 12 km) |
68.8 | 0:26:07 | 1:36:27 | 0:45:23 | 0:02:38 | 2:47:57 | |
| 1st | Ironman World Championship Ironman World Championship The Ironman World Championship has been held annually in Hawaii since 1978, with an additional race in 1982. It is owned and organised by the World Triathlon Corporation and is currently sponsored by Ford... , Hawaii |
226.3 | 0:58:09 | 5:06:15 | 2:59:58 | 0:04:25 | 9:08:45 | |
| 3rd | Singapore Ironman 70.3 (half-Ironman distance) | 113.2 | 0:28:00 | 2:18:13 | 1:33:05 | 4:19:18 | ||
| 1st | Ironman Korea, Seogwipo City Seogwipo Seogwipo is a city in Jeju Province, South Korea with a pre-2008 estimated population of 155,000 inhabitants. In July, 2006, Seogwipo city was expanded to include the entire southern half of Jeju island. In 2002, it was one of the host cities for the FIFA World Cup.-Climate:-External links:*... |
226.3 | 0:57:34 | 5:17:03 | 3:28:13 | 0:11:48 | 9:54:37 | |
| 1st | Alpe d'Huez Alpe d'Huez L'Alpe d'Huez is a ski resort at . It is a mountain pasture in the Central French Alps, in the commune of Huez, in the Isère département in the Rhône-Alpes region.-Tour de France:L'Alpe d'Huez is one of the main mountains in the Tour de France... Long distance triathlon (2.2 km / 115 km / 22 km) |
139.2 | 0:31:08 | 4:27:11 | 1:41:07 | 0:03:49 | 6:43:15 | |
| 5th | Lorient Lorient Lorient, or L'Orient, is a commune and a seaport in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France.-History:At the beginning of the 17th century, merchants who were trading with India had established warehouses in Port-Louis... ITU Long course world championship (3 km / 80 km / 20 km) |
103.0 | 0:41:35 | 2:10:13 | 1:12:14 | 4:07:08 | ||
| 5th | ITU Premium European Cup, Holten Holten Holten is a small village in the municipality of Rijssen-Holten in the Dutch province of Overijssel, with approximately 10,000 inhabitants. Holten is located in an ample-forested area, just south of the Holterberg. This hill, which is about 65m high, is part of the "Sallandse Heuvelrug" National... (1.5 km / 40 km / 10 km) |
51.5 | 0:19:29 | 1:11:09 | 0:35:37 | 2:06:15 | ||
| 1st | Zurich Zürich Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich... Olympic distance triathlon (1.5 km / 40 km / 10 km) |
51.5 | 0:21:08 | 1:03:57 | 0:34:27 | 1:59:33.5 | ||
| 5th | UK Ironman 70.3, Wimbleball Wimbleball Lake Wimbleball Lake on Exmoor in Somerset, England, is a water supply reservoir constructed in the 1970s and completed in 1979.The high dam is of concrete buttress construction and impounds the River Haddeo to provide a water storage capacity of some 21,000 megalitres over an area of . Aggregate for... , Exmoor Exmoor Exmoor is an area of hilly open moorland in west Somerset and north Devon in South West England, named after the main river that flows out of the district, the River Exe. The moor has given its name to a National Park, which includes the Brendon Hills, the East Lyn Valley, the Vale of Porlock and ... (half-Ironman distance) |
113.2 | 0:26:24 | 3:07:43 | 1:25:44 | 0:04:58 | 5:04:45 | |
| 1st | Blenheim Blenheim Palace Blenheim Palace is a monumental country house situated in Woodstock, Oxfordshire, England, residence of the dukes of Marlborough. It is the only non-royal non-episcopal country house in England to hold the title of palace. The palace, one of England's largest houses, was built between... Triathlon Sprint distance (750m / 19.3 km / 5.2 km) |
25.25 | 0:10:59 | 0:31:57 | 0:20:30 | 0:04:24 | 1:07:50 | |
| 1st | Subic Bay Subic Bay Subic Bay is a bay forming part of Luzon Sea on the west coast of the island of Luzon in Zambales, Philippines, about 100 kilometers northwest of Manila Bay. Its shores were formerly the site of a major United States Navy facility named U.S... ITU Triathlon Asian Cup (1.5 km / 40 km / 10 km) |
51.5 | 0:18:03 | 1:07:48 | 0:37:48 | 2:03:41 | ||
| 1st | Bangkok Bangkok Bangkok is the capital and largest urban area city in Thailand. It is known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon or simply Krung Thep , meaning "city of angels." The full name of Bangkok is Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom... Triathlon (1.5 km / 40 km / 10 km) |
51.5 | 0:14:39 | 1:00:51 | 0:43:59 | 1:59:28 | ||
| 2nd | Mekong River ITU Triathlon Asian Cup (1.5 km / 40 km / 10 km) | 51.5 | 1:55:47 | |||||
| 1st | ITU Age Group World Championship, Lausanne Lausanne Lausanne is a city in Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland, and is the capital of the canton of Vaud. The seat of the district of Lausanne, the city is situated on the shores of Lake Geneva . It faces the French town of Évian-les-Bains, with the Jura mountains to its north-west... (1.5 km / 40 km / 10 km) |
51.5 | 0:21:57 | 1:08:00 | 0:37:26 | 0:10:11 | 2:17:32 |
Note
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