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Race director Valerie Silk moves the Ironman to Kona on Hawaiis Big Island, allowing for growth, improved athlete safety and the allure of the lava fields. Important changes are also instituted: Personal support crews are replaced by aid stations and roads are no longer open to traffic.
1981
1978
John Collins creates the Ironman on Oahu to settle a debate about whos fittest: swimmers, cyclists or runners. Gordon Haller, a naval communications specialist, beats out 14 other competitors to earn the inaugural Ironman title in 11:46:58. The following year Lyn Lemaire becomes the first woman to compete and win, finishing fifth overall in 12:55:38.
1978
Carol Hogan
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1987 Dan
Empfield invents the Quintana Roo wetsuit, the first wetsuit specifically designed for swimming. Empfields revelation is that swimming in a neoprene suit is not just warmer, but also faster than without one. Newbies and open-waterphobic triathletes rejoice.
The Danskin Womens Only Triathlon Series launches in three cities (Long Beach, San Jose and New York), spurring a groundswell of womens participation in the sport. Greg Rorke, then-president of Danskin, says he sought to target what women were doing in the late 80smore active pursuits like running, climbing and triathlon. NBC takes over the telecast of Ironman from ABC. Director/producer Lisa Lax works to create Emmy Award-winning coverage, showcasing not only the pros but also the age-grouper stories of human courage and perseverance that define the sport. The show becomes an annual mustwatch for triathletes and non-triathletes alike. Ive covered Olympics, Super Bowls, etc., and nothing compares, says Lax.
Lois SchwartZ; Nils Nilsen; Rich Cruse
1990
1990
The XTERRA series (then known as Aquaterra) debuts, taking triathlon off-road. The fun and funky first-year eventfull of big-name triathlon and mountain bike pros, and even more memorable for post-race naked touch football and late-night bar-top dancinggrows into a lifestyle sport with more than 300 events in 18 countries. Mike Reilly first utters the phrase, You are an Ironman! Its merely an inspired shout-out to an acquaintance who doubted he would finish, yet the crowd reaction and subsequent finishers emotional faces demand that Reilly continues the Ironman callan honor hes since bestowed on an estimated 250,000 athletes worldwide.
1996
1991
Belgian Luc Van Lierde, competing in his first Ironman and running his first ever marathon, breaks the Kona course record in 8:04:08 (including a three-minute penalty pit stop). The next year he also breaks the iron-distance world record, going 7:50:27 at Challenge Roth.
1996
2000 Triathlons
Olympic comingout party at the 2000 Sydney Summer Games gets rave reviews. Simon Whitfield scores the mens gold for Canada, while Switzerlands Brigitte McMahon pips Australias sweetheart Michellie Jones at the line and the pair of women finish first and second.
2001 The
Challenge Family event series is born when Herbert Walchshfer takes the helm of Ironman Europe. Walchshfer terminates his contract with the World Triathlon Corporation, instead re-creating the race as Challenge Roth, where irondistance world records are made.
Van Lierde's time has only been bettered twice since (Andreas Raelerts 7:41:33 at Roth 2011 and Marino Vanhoenackers 7:45:59 at Ironman Austria 2011).
1997 John
MacLean becomes the first wheelchair athlete to finish Kona within all the able-bodied cutoff times. MacLean goes on to swim the English Channel, complete the Molokai Ocean Challenge, compete in the Olympics (2000) and Paralympics (2000 and 2008, winning silver in adaptive rowing) and create the John MacLean Foundation, helping Australias wheelchair-bound youth.
Sarah Reinertsen becomes the first female above-the-knee amputee to complete Kona in 15:05:12, after a failed attempt in 2004 when she missed the bike cutoff by merely 15 minutes. Her determination to complete her unfinished business and her bright and bubbly spirit make her an icon of sporting inspiration. Stricken by Lou Gehrigs disease, Jon Blais fulfills a lifelong dream and finishes Kona in 16:28:56. His accomplishment leads to the creation of the Blazeman Foundation for ALS and the immortalization of his finish-line log roll, practiced by countless age-group athletes as well as pros like Ironman world champions Chrissie Wellington and Leanda Cave. Robert McKeague becomes the first octogenarian to finish Kona, going 16:21:55 and sprinting the final stretch to the finish, proving that triathlon truly is a sport for all ages. Lew Hollander later beats 80-year-old McKeagues record as the oldest male finisher, crossing the line in Kona in 16:45:52 in 2012 at age 82.
2005
2005
2005
The Newton Distancia shoe debuts at Ironman 70.3 California, providing a seminal moment in the shift from the block-heeled running shoes of the 90s to the trend in natural running footwear. Newtons front-lug design aims to keep forefoot strikers on their toes.
2007
2012
2009 Chrissie Wellington slashes Paula Newby-Frasers
17-year-old Kona course record, winning her third Ironman world title in 8:54:02. Sister Madonna Buder, a Roman Catholic nun from Seattle, becomes the oldest woman to finish an Ironman at age 82, crossing the line at Ironman Canada in 16:32:00. Buders triathlon career, which began at age 52 and blossomed to Ironman when she turned 55, includes more than 35 Ironman finishes, many in Hawaii.
2012
Wellington goes on to log a collection of record-shattering moments, including back-to-back world records at the iron distance at Challenge Roth (8:19:32 in 2010 and 8:18:13 in 2011, finishing seventh and fifth overall, respectively).