Dylan McNeice (NZL) led the men's field out of the water. He maintained his lead until the half-way point of the difficult bike course, when he was overtaken by a chase pack containing Joe Skipper, Philip Graves, and Arnaud Gilloux. With Skipper suffering a flat and a littering penalty, it was Stefan Schumacher, boasting a new bike course record, Graves, and Arnaud Guilloux who barreled into T2 first. Gilloux made quick work of the run, taking the lead at 4km and not letting go until he broke the tape--the first IRONMAN victory of his career and a course record to boot. Austria's Maximilian Hammerle ran into second place and Germany's Fabian Rahn was one of the biggest movers on the day, running into third.
In the women's race, Rebecca Clarke (NZL) led the women's field out of the water. Britain's Simone Mitchell took the lead early on the bike, with only Manon Genet (FRA) able to keep the Brit in her sights. Genet was able to move into the lead early on the run, but began to suffer in the later stages of the run, surrendering to the consistent Mitchell. The Brit's all-day strength propelled her to the first IRONMAN win of her career, breaking the course record in the process.
Men's Podium
1 Guilloux , Arnaud FRA 8:48:06
2 Hammerle, Maximilian AUT 8:57:58
3 Rahan, Fabian DEU 9:00:09
Women's Podium
1 Mitchell, Simone GBR 9:41:52
2 Genet, Manon FRA 9:52:28
3 Siddall, Luara GBR 9:59:36