Rob Gray and Steffi Steinberg took the overall titles at the 33rd edition of the 3-day, 321-mile Ultraman World Championship held on the Big Island of Hawaii.
Rob Gray of Boulder, Colorado began the final day of the Ultraman World Championship with a 40:39 advantage on Jeremy Howard of Fredericksburg, Virginia and with a double marathon to go to complete the 33rd triathletic circumnavigation of the Big Island.
After all the tumult and shouting and running was over, the issue was decided by a margin that qualifies as a photo finish in Ultraman terms. Howard, a 37 year old coach, gave it his best - a 6:24:17 double marathon - which chewed up 35 minutes and 16 seconds of Gray's lead. Sadly for Howard, that fell 5:28 short of victory as Gray, a 41-year-old endurance coach, unleashed the beast within. Howard's run was 25:06 faster than his 2015 Ultraman World Championship double marathon that brought him 3rd place. Gray's 6:59:33 run was 41 minutes and 33 seconds better than his Ultraman World Championship run that brought him second place last year.
Arnaud Selukov of France, who is 11 and 7 years older than his two rivals, started the day 24:30 behind Gray and 16:09 ahead of Howard. He too gave it his best. But his 7:33:06 double marathon left him 3rd overall, 58:03 behind Gray and 52:35 behind Howard.
Gray's 22:19:49 overall finish time was good but fell 38 minutes and 26 seconds short of the race record set in 1998 by Holger Spiegel of Germany.
Steffi Steinberg, a 36-year-old triathlon coach from Bad Honnef, Germany, led this year's Ultraman World Championship women's division wire to wire. After the 10 kilometer swim and 90-mile bike leg on Day One, she led her nearest pursuer, 41-year-old surgeon Jessica Deree of San Diego, by 1 hour 10 minutes and 30 seconds. After she finished the 171-mile bike leg on Day 2, which included 8,600 feet of climbing, in 8:56:41, she led her nearest pursuer, 43-year-old sports nutritionist Meredith Terranova of Austin, Texas, by 2:54:11.
After a 7:47:04 double marathon, the sixth fastest women's run in Ultraman Hawaii history, Steinberg finished the 3-day challenge in 26:02:27 with a 4 hour 34 minutes and 42 seconds margin of victory over 41-year-old runner-up Amy Craft, a lawyer from Houston, Texas. Craft advanced from 5th on the first day to 2nd on the final day thanks to an 8:15:15 double marathon.
Ultraman World Championship
Day Three
November 26, 2017
Run 52.4 miles
Hawi to Kailua Old Airport
Men
1. Rob Gray, 41 (USA) Day 1 - 7:29:54 Day 2 - 7:50:21 Day 3 - 6:59:33 TOTAL 22:19:48
2. Jeremy Howard, 37 (USA) Day 1 - 7:46:37 Day 2 - 8:14:22 Day 3 - 6:24:17 TOTAL 22:25:16
3. Arnaud Selukov, 48 (FRA) Day 1 - 8:08:39 Day 2 - 7:36:06 Day 3 - 7:33:06 TOTAL 23:17:51
4. Tony O?Keefe, 56 (CAN) Day 1 - 8:21:05 Day 2 - 8:08:50 Day 3 - 7:13:04 TOTAL 23:42:59
5. Marc Puig Amiel, 30 (ESP) Day 1 - 8:35:46 Day 2 - 8:31:17 Day 3 - 7:09:15 TOTAL 24:16:18
6. Adrian Whittaker, 38 (AUS) Day 1 - 8:57:15 Day 2 - 8:40:11 Day 3 - 7:27:06 TOTAL 25:04:32
7. Sam Cooke, 48 (AUS) Day 1 - 9:09:58 Day 2 - 8:21:54 Day 3 - 7:51:33 TOTAL 25:23:25
8. Mauro Ciarrocchi, 54 (ITA) Day 1 - 8:26:44 Day 2 - 9:17:44 Day 3 - 7:46:08 TOTAL 25:30:36
9. Bruno Maggio (CHL) Day 1 - 9:28:25 Day 2 - 9:34:32 Day 3 - 7:39:27 TOTAL 26:42:34
10. Tim Robert, 52 (USA) Day 1 - 9:12:37 Day 2 - 9:22:20 Day 3 - 9:14:42 TOTAL 27:49:39
Women
1. Steffi Steinberg, 36 (GER) Day 1 - 9:12:37 Day 2 - 8:56:41 Day 3 - 7:47:04 TOTAL 26:02:27
2. Amy Craft, 41 (Houston, Texas) Day 1 - 11:22:14 Day 2 - 10:59:40 Day 3 - 8:15:15 TOTAL 30:37:09
3. Fiona Siemelink, 51 (Houston, TX) Day 1 - 10:47:55 Day 2 - 10:22:48 Day 3 - 9:34:32 TOTAL 30:45:15
4. Meredith Terranova, 43 (Austin, TX) Day 1 - 10:56:08 Day 2 - 10:13:28 Day 3 - 9:44:04 TOTAL 30:53:38
Jessica Deree, 41 (San Diego, CA) Day 1 - 10:23:07 Day 2 DNF
