There were two new course records as athletes took advantage of the perfect conditions on another epic Ironman Wales day in Tenby.

The ninth edition of the event was a picture perfect day as calm and mild conditions made for great times and tight racing in the professional field.

Following the Welsh national anthem. the professional men’s race got underway at 6.55am on North Beach in Tenby and was eventually won by Arnaud Guilloux, of France, in a remarkable 8:48:06.

Following the 2.4 mile swim and 112 mile cycle ride, he entered the marathon course in third place but overtook England’s Phillip Graves and Stefan Schumacher (Germany) within the first five miles to take a lead he never relinquished.

Maximillian Hammerle (Austria) also finished strongly for second place (8:57:58) and Fabian Rahn (Germany) was third in 9:00:09.

In the women’s race, Britain’s Simone Mitchell put in a stellar run performance to claim her first ever Ironman title in a time of 09:41:52.

Manon Genet of France was second in 9:52:28 and another British athlete in Laura Siddall was third in 9:59:36.

The ‘darling’ of Ironman Wales, defending champion Lucy Gossage who came out of retirement to race for one last time, showed grit and resilience to claim fourth in 10:06:20 and bid an emotional farewell to the crowds.

In 2020, Ironman Wales celebrates its 10th anniversary with a record field expected. 

General entries for the event opens on September 23, 2019. Full entry details are on the event website, www.ironman.com/wales.