Andy Potts led virtually wire to wire, and Linsey Corbin took over the lead on Mile 17 while setting a run record (3:04:36) on her way to a race record (9:17:54) as each won their first Ironman victories Sunday at Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.

Potts was second out of the water in 46:28, then took over the lead with a third-best 4:42:04 bike, and closed the deal with a race-best 2:52:47 run that gave him a near-race-record 8:24:40 finish and a 13:37 margin of victory over Australian Courtney Ogden.

Michael Lovato, the 2003 Ironman Coeur d'Alene winner, took third with an 8:41:17 finish, which was 1:59 ahead of 4th-place Luke Bell of Australia.

Second year pro Meredith Kessler of San Francisco, coming off a 4th at Ironman 70.3 New Orleans and a 2nd at Ironman Saint George, came out of the water 19 seconds back of Kelly Williamson. Most important, Kessler was 7:33 ahead of Montana's Linsey Corbin, who was in form coming off a 2nd place finish at Ironman 70.3 New Orleans.

Corbin then put up a race-record 5:07:44 bike which did not quite erase Kessler's lead as the San Francisco pro answered with a 5:11:15 bike. Corbin then seized the race by the throat with another race record - her 3:04:36 marathon - which outpaced Kessler by 9:47 and gave her a 5:58 margin of victory with her race-record 9:17:54 finish.

Kelly Williamson placed third in 9:39:23, Haley Scott-Cooper was 4th in 9:42:02 and Janelle Morrison was 5th in 9:50:25.

Early contenders Gina Crawford of New Zealand dropped out and Desiree Ficker faded from contention at Mile 13 of the run.

Ironman Coeur d'Alene
Coeur d'Alene, Idaho
June 27, 2010
S 2.4 mi. / B 112 mi. / R 26.2 mi.

Results

Men

1. Andy Potts (Colorado Springs CO) 8:24:40
2. Courtney Ogden (AUS) 8:38:17
3. Michael Lovato (Boulder CO) 8:41:17
4. Luke Bell (AUS) 8:43:16
5. Chris McDonald (AUS) 8:48:30
6. Matty White (AUS) 8:49:04
7. Patrick Evoe (Austin TX) 8:52:05
8. Raul Pereira (BRA) 9:04:21
9. Adam Jensen (Missoula MT) 9:06:32
10. Rob Johnson (GBR) 9:10:54
11. Billy Edwards (Boulder CO) 9:14:42

Women

1. Linsey Corbin (Missoula MT) 9:17:54 * Course record *record run
2. Meredith Kessler (San Francisco CA) 9:23:52
3. Kelly Williamson (Austin TX) 9:39:23
4. Haley Scott-Cooper (Spokane WA) 9:42:02
5. Janelle Morrison (CAN) 9:50:25
6. Nicole Ward (AUS) 9:56:48
7. Lauren Harrison (Los Altos CA) 10:00:16
8. Rachel Kiers (CAN) 10:03:48
9. Malaika Homo (Salt Lake City UT) 10:07:15