Francisco Pontano and Tyler Stewart took the titles Sunday, June 21, at the 2009 Ford Ironman Coeur d’Alene. Pontano dominated the men’s race to take his second Ironman title, his first win taking place at the 2008 Ford Ironman Lake Placid. Stewart won her first Ironman title setting new bike and overall course records.
In addition to the professional field of athletes, there were more than 2,100 athletes from around the world who took part in the 2009 event including eight competitors who participated in the inaugural Ironman XC Executive Challenge. Of the eight athletes, six earned personal best overall course times. The athletes who participated in the challenge include:
John Marshall, 39, from Miami, FL, 10:20:16 – Marshall won the 39 and Under race after passing McCurley at approximately mile 56 of the bike, leading the XC group for the remainder of the course.
Waylin McCurley, 35, from Lakewood, WA, 10:26:36 – McCurley lead the XC group out of the water and for the first half of the bike. He earned a personal record on the course after battling Marshall throughout the race, often times only with a 20-second gap between them.
Bill Beyer, 48, from Reston, VA, 10:52:57 – Beyer won the 40 and Over Division, setting a personal record. In addition to Beyer’s impressive race, he also supported his fellow athletes, staying at the finish line until after midnight.
David Daggett, 49, from Winston-Salem, NC, 11:35:43 – Daggett, the Ford Everyday Hero, earned the fastest swim in the 40 and Over Division with a time of 1 hour and 9 minutes.
Janelle Kay, 38, from Gig Harbor, WA, 12:20:48 – Kay broke her previous personal record, set at the 2006 Ford Ironman Coeur d’Alene, by 1 hour and 34 minutes.
Anthony Giuffre, 36, from Calgary, CAN, 12:40:32 – Giuffre recovered from a challenging swim to dominate on the bike, posting a new personal record and improving his overall course time by 51 minutes.
David Genecov, 46, from Dallas, Texas, 13:21:34 – After earning a personal best at the 2006 Ford Ironman Coeur d’Alene, Genecov returned this year and improved his time by 1 hour and 50 minutes. Genecov also earned the second fastest swim out of the 40 and Over Division.
Reginald Holden, 44, San Diego, CA, 13:56:53 – Holden won the Ironman XC PR Challenge, improving his Coeur d’Alene adjusted personal record by 2 hours and 13 minutes. Holden impressed his peers by running his strongest pace of the marathon in the last 5 miles of the race.
For more information on Ironman XC Executive Challenge, contact Troy Ford at Troy@ironman.com. For complete results from this year’s Ford Ironman Coeur d’Alene, visit www.ironman.com. Athletes interested in purchasing race photos should contact www.asiphoto.com.