KEY POINTS:
Kiwi favourites Cameron Brown and Joanna Lawn lived up to expectations in the 23rd Bonita Ironman New Zealand in Taupo today, knocking off personal milestones along the way.
After missing out last year Brown produced a storming comeback in the run to capture his sixth New Zealand title – the most be any ironman at an international qualifying race – while Joanna Lawn became the most successful woman in the event's history by claiming her fifth straight victory, one more than New Zealand ironman legend Erin Baker.
Brown trailed Denmark's Torbjorn Sindballe going into the run by more than eight minutes but left everything on the course to finish with a total time of eight hours 26 minutes 33 seconds, a minute ahead of Australian Luke Bell and more than seven minutes ahead of the Dane.
In the final leg of the gruelling race Brown made quick work of reeling in Bell. The two then ran together for much of the final leg, hauling in Sindballe at the 35km mark.
With just over two kilometres to go, Brown stepped up the pace and Bell was unable to match him, allowing the 33-year-old to cross the finish line comfortably, soaking in the atmosphere of the jubilant Taupo crowd.
"I tried a few surges on the hills earlier and he [Bell] led for a bit," said Brown on the final stages of the race.
"But as soon as I got a little gap I pushed and I think mentally that might have really blown him."
Struggling with a stomach virus for most of the week, Brown himself questioned whether he would compete. But he said overcoming the illness made the win one of his best.
"On Thursday I was very scared I might not be on the start line but each I day I got better and better and felt stronger and stronger.
"I ended up in the medical tent [at the completion of the race] because I hadn't exactly fully rcovered, but it was just fantastic to get through it."
America's William Daniell, competing in the 35-39 age group, led the men out of the water with an impressive swim time of 46 minutes 10 seconds before Bell took control during the first half of the bike.
Renowned cyclist Sindballe made his move on the second lap of the course but did generate a large enough lead to hold off Brown and Bell in the run.
While Brown's victory was not assured until the final stages of the race the same cannot be said for women's champion Joanna Lawn.
The Auckland-based athlete blitzed the field, finishing with a total time of nine hours 20 minutes two seconds, more than eight minutes ahead of her closest rival.
Second and third went to Americans Heather Gollnick and Kim Loeffler but the two were always destined to fight it out for the minor places as Lawn kept building on her lead from start to finish.
Lawn was on course to break her own course record but faded during the run. However, she was more than happy with the feat she did achieve.
"All week I've been saying 'there's no pressure at all', but it's always there," Lawn said in reference to eclipsing Baker's record of most Ironman New Zealand victories.
"There was a lot of pressure just because Erin is a Legend.
"I was definitely thinking about it during the last four to five kilometres."
Lawn said she was particularly pleased with her swim in which she posted a personal best time of 50 minutes 30 seconds, beating the next person out of the water by one minute 18 seconds.
Earlier in the day, defending men's champion Ain-Alar Juhanson was forced to withdraw from the race.
The Estonian was the big mover during the bike leg, moving from 60th to fourth place. However, Juhanson suffered two punctures within 10km of each other, prematurely ending his day.
