Norway’s Iden sets record in Ironman

Norway’s Gustav Iden emerged victorious in the 2022 Vinfast Ironman World Championship in Kona on Saturday, winning the event with a time of 7:40:24, two minutes ahead of the next closest finisher.

Iden’s time shattered the course record set last year by Norway’s Kristian Blummenfelt. Iden took nearly nine minutes off the previous record of 7:49:16.

After the 2.4-mile swim, Iden was in eighth place with a time of 48:23 but just seven seconds behind the leader. He made up ground quickly in the bicycle portion, completing the 112 miles in 4:11:06 and rising to third place, six seconds behind France’s Sam Laidlow and right on the heels of Blummenfelt. Iden then steadily reeled in Laidlow, finally passing him in the 20th mile.

All three of the top finishers bested the previous course record. Laidlow finished in second place with a time of 7:42:24, and Blummenfelt finished in third with a time of 7:43:23.

Tim O’Donnell was the top American finisher, placing 13th with a time of 8:02:58. O’Donnell finished second in 2019, the last time the race was held in Hawaii. Kona is actually the second championship to be held in 2022. The 2021 edition of the race, which was postponed by the pandemic, was held in May in St. George, Utah — the first time the championship was staged outside Hawaii. The 2020 race was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

For the first time, the Ironman was a two-day competition. Chelsea Sodaro won the women’s event in an upset on Thursday, finishing with a course record of 8:33:46.

Sodaro of Mill Valley, Calif., and a former All-American runner at Cal, was the first American to win the race since 2002, when Tim DeBoom won.

The Ironman totals 140.6 miles —- 2.4 miles of swimming, 112 miles of bicycling and 26.2 miles of running — and must be completed in 17 hours.

More than 5,000 people registered for Kona, with nearly half coming from Europe.

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The New York Times contributed to this report.