# 2011 Ironman World Championship

The 2011 Ironman World Championship was held on October 8, 2011, in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii and won by Craig Alexander of Australia and Chrissie Wellington of England. It was the 35th such Ironman Triathlon World Championships, which has been held annually in Hawaii since 1978, with an additional race in 1982. The championship is organised by the World Triathlon Corporation (WTC).

## Championship results
### Men

| Pos. | Time (h:mm:ss) | Name | Country | Split times (h:mm:ss / m:ss) | Split times (h:mm:ss / m:ss) | Split times (h:mm:ss / m:ss) | Split times (h:mm:ss / m:ss) | Split times (h:mm:ss / m:ss) |
| Pos. | Time (h:mm:ss) | Name | Country | Swim | T1 | Bike | T2 | Run |
| | 8:03:56 | Craig Alexander | Australia | 0:51:56 | 1:56 | 4:24:05 | 1:58 | 2:44:03 |
| | 8:09:11 | Pete Jacobs | Australia | 0:51:38 | 1:57 | 4:31:01 | 2:07 | 2:42:29 |
| | 8:11:07 | Andreas Raelert | Germany | 0:51:58 | 2:04 | 4:26:52 | 2:27 | 2:47:48 |
| 4 | 8:12:58 | Dirk Bockel | Luxembourg | 0:51:44 | 2:00 | 4:24:17 | 1:54 | 2:53:03 |
| 5 | 8:20:12 | Timo Bracht | Germany | 0:53:37 | 1:42 | 4:35:07 | 2:21 | 2:47:25 |
| 6 | 8:21:07 | Mike Aigroz | Switzerland | 0:52:31 | 1:42 | 4:30:42 | 2:05 | 2:54:07 |
| 7 | 8:22:15 | Raynard Tissink | South Africa | 0:52:08 | 1:51 | 4:28:38 | 3:02 | 2:56:36 |
| 8 | 8:23:19 | Andreas Böcherer | Germany | 0:51:49 | 1:53 | 4:25:45 | 2:09 | 3:01:43 |
| 9 | 8:25:42 | Luke McKenzie | Australia | 0:51:47 | 1:45 | 4:24:15 | 2:01 | 3:05:54 |
| 10 | 8:27:18 | Faris Al-Sultan | Germany | 0:51:55 | 1:54 | 4:29:30 | 2:19 | 3:01:40 |
| Source: |||||||||
Alexander's overall time broke the previous course record by 12 seconds, which was set by Luc Van Lierde in 1996.

### Women

| Pos. | Time (h:mm:ss) | Name | Country | Split times (h:mm:ss / m:ss) | Split times (h:mm:ss / m:ss) | Split times (h:mm:ss / m:ss) | Split times (h:mm:ss / m:ss) | Split times (h:mm:ss / m:ss) |
| Pos. | Time (h:mm:ss) | Name | Country | Swim | T1 | Bike | T2 | Run |
| | 8:55:08 | Chrissie Wellington | Great Britain | 1:01:03 | 2:05 | 4:56:53 | 2:26 | 2:52:41 |
| | 8:57:57 | Mirinda Carfrae | Australia | 0:57:17 | 1:54 | 5:04:16 | 2:21 | 2:52:09 |
| | 9:03:29 | Leanda Cave | Great Britain | 0:53:54 | 2:03 | 4:58:41 | 2:15 | 3:06:36 |
| 4 | 9:06:57 | Rachel Joyce | Great Britain | 0:53:56 | 2:00 | 4:58:56 | 2:11 | 3:09:54 |
| 5 | 9:07:32 | Caroline Steffen | Switzerland | 0:57:15 | 1:54 | 4:50:26 | 2:40 | 3:15:17 |
| 6 | 9:15:00 | Karin Thürig | Switzerland | 1:12:19 | 2:13 | 4:44:19 | 2:38 | 3:13:31 |
| 7 | 9:15:17 | Sonja Tajsich | Germany | 1:06:57 | 1:57 | 4:58:55 | 2:42 | 3:04:46 |
| 8 | 9:17:56 | Heather Wurtele | Canada | 0:58:43 | 2:13 | 4:59:10 | 2:21 | 3:15:29 |
| 9 | 9:18:11 | Caitlin Snow | United States | 0:58:47 | 2:13 | 5:20:57 | 2:24 | 2:53:50 |
| 10 | 9:19:52 | Virginia Berasategui | Spain | 0:58:44 | 2:25 | 5:03:30 | 2:23 | 3:12:50 |
| Source: |||||||||
Both Carfrae and Wellington broke the championship course record for the marathon, set last year by Carfrae.

## Qualification

To enter for the 2011 World Championship race, age-group athletes are required to qualify through a performance at an Ironman or selected Ironman 70.3 race. Entry into the race can also be obtained through a random allocation lottery or through the Ironman's charitable eBay auction.
For professional triathletes, the 2011 Championship season marks the first year of a point system that determines which professional triathletes will qualify for the championship race. To qualify, points are earned by competing in WTC sanctioned Ironman and selected Ironman 70.3 events throughout the qualifying year. For the 2011 race that period was September 12, 2010 to August 31, 2011. The top 50 male and top 30 female pros in points at the end of each qualifying year qualify to race in Kona. Prior champions receive an automatic entry for the Championship race for a period of five years after their last championship performance provided that they compete in at least one full-distance Ironman race during the qualifying year.
The Ironman 2011 Series consisted of 22 Ironman races plus the Ironman World Championship 2010 which was itself a qualifier for the 2011 Ironman World Championship. The series started with Ironman Wisconsin 2010 held on September 12, 2010.

### Qualifying Ironmans

| Date | Event | Location |
| Sep 12, 2010 | Ironman Wisconsin | Madison, Wisconsin |
| Oct 9, 2010 | Ironman World Championship | Kailua-Kona, Hawaii |
| Nov 6, 2010 | Ironman Florida | Panama City Beach, Florida |
| Nov 21, 2010 | Ironman Arizona | Tempe, Arizona |
| Nov 28, 2010 | Ironman Cozumel | Cozumel, Quintana Roo, Mexico |
| Dec 5, 2010 | Ironman Western Australia | Busselton, Western Australia |
| Mar 5, 2011 | Ironman New Zealand | Taupō, New Zealand |
| Apr 10, 2011 | Ironman South Africa | Port Elizabeth, South Africa |
| May 1, 2011 | Ironman Australia | Port Macquarie, New South Wales, Australia |
| May 7, 2011 | Ironman St.George | St. George, Utah |
| May 21, 2011 | Ironman Lanzarote | Puerto del Carmen, Lanzarote, Spain |
| May 21, 2011 | Ironman Texas | The Woodlands Township, Texas |
| May 29, 2011 | Ironman Brazil | Florianópolis Island, Brazil |
| Jun 26, 2011 | Ironman France | Nice, France |
| Jun 26, 2011 | Ironman Coeur d'Alene | Coeur d'Alene, Idaho |
| Jul 4, 2011 | Ironman Austria | Klagenfurt, Austria |
| Jul 10, 2011 | Ironman Switzerland | Zürich, Switzerland |
| Jul 24, 2011 | Ironman Germany | Frankfurt, Germany |
| Jul 25, 2011 | Ironman Lake Placid | Lake Placid, New York |
| July 31, 2011 | Ironman UK | Bolton, Greater Manchester, United Kingdom |
| Aug 7, 2011 | Ironman Regensburg | Regensburg, Bavaria, Germany |
| Aug 28, 2011 | Ironman Louisville | Louisville, Kentucky |
| Aug 28, 2011 | Ironman Canada | Penticton, British Columbia, Canada |

#### China cancellation

On May 12, 2011, the WTC announced that the 2011 Ironman China and Ironman 70.3 China races, scheduled for May 29 in Jixian, Tianjin Province, China, were canceled. The Tianjin Sports Bureau (TSB) was unable to obtain the required sanctions from the China Triathlon Sports Association (CTSA) to conduct the event. Murphy Reinschreiber, managing director of the Asia Pacific region for WTC stated that "TSB simply failed to provide all of the documentation necessary for CTSA to process the sanction." WTC is offering a full refund of entry fees to all athletes who were scheduled to compete at Ironman China and Ironman 70.3 China. Additionally, all athletes were offered a complimentary race entry into any of the 2011 Ironman and Ironman 70.3 races. WTC is allocating the age group qualifying slots from Ironman China and Ironman 70.3 China to other races in the region to ensure that athletes from the Asia-Pacific region are represented at the 2011 World Championship events.

### 2011 Ironman Series results
#### Men

| Event | Gold | Time | Silver | Time | Bronze | Time |
| Wisconsin | Joe Gambles (AUS) | 8:38:32 | Romain Guillaume (FRA) | 8:49:42 | Eric Bean (USA) | 8:51:36 |
| World Champs 2010 | Chris McCormack (AUS) | 8:10:37 | Andreas Raelert (GER) | 8:12:17 | Marino Vanhoenacker (BEL) | 8:13:14 |
| Florida | James Cunnama (RSA) | 8:15:59 | Pedro Gomes (POR) | 8:19:26 | Dirk Bockel (LUX) | 8:21:23 |
| Arizona | Timo Bracht (GER) | 8:07:16 | Rasmus Henning (DEN) | 8:10:58 | Tom Lowe (GBR) | 8:11:44 |
| Cozumel | Andy Potts (USA) | 8:16:14 | Michael Lovato (USA) | 8:22:17 | Eduardo Sturla (ARG) | 8:24:14 |
| Western Australia | Courtney Ogden (AUS) | 8:14:01 | Matty White (AUS) | 8:18:06 | Pete Jacobs (AUS) | 8:21:16 |
| New Zealand | Cameron Brown (NZL) | 8:31:07 | Terenzo Bozzone (NZL) | 8:41:51 | Mathias Hecht (SUI) | 8:45:36 |
| South Africa | Raynard Tissink (RSA) | 8:05:36 | Andreas Boecherer (GER) | 8:08:36 | James Cunnama (RSA) | 8:13:18 |
| Australia | Pete Jacobs (AUS) | 8:29:28 | Patrick Vernay (GER) | 8:35:50 | Jason Shortis (AUS) | 8:46:07 |
| St. George | Mathias Hecht (SUI) | 8:32:03 | Maik Twelsiek (GER) | 8:33:46 | T. J. Tollakson (USA) | 8:40:20 |
| Lanzarote | Timo Bracht (GER) | 8:30:34 | Konstantin Bachor (GER) | 8:44:30 | Esben Hovgaard (DEN) | 8:54:37 |
| Texas | Eneko Llanos (ESP) | 8:08:20 | Timothy O'Donnell (USA) | 8:09:50 | Luke Bell (AUS) | 8:12:22 |
| Brazil | Eduardo Sturla (ARG) | 8:15:03 | Guilherme Manocchio (BRA) | 8:17:20 | Ezequiel Morales (ARG) | 8:21:40 |
| France | Frederik Van Lierde (BEL) | 8:28:30 | Francois Chabaud (FRA) | 8:37:18 | Marcel Zamora Perez (ESP) | 8:40:55 |
| Coeur d'Alene | Craig Alexander (AUS) | 8:19:48 | Maik Twelsiek (GER) | 8:24:59 | Tom Evans (CAN) | 8:49:54 |
| Austria | Marino Vanhoenacker (BEL) | 7:45:59 | Michael Weiss (AUT) | 7:57:39 | Marko Albert (EST) | 8:08:17 |
| Switzerland | Ronnie Schildknecht (SUI) | 8:19:51 | Clemente Alonso (ESP) | 8:27:56 | Mathias Hecht (SUI) | 8:30:26 |
| Germany | Faris Al-Sultan (GER) | 8:13:50 | Jan Raphael (GER) | 8:19:31 | Michael Göhner (GER) | 8:20:26 |
| Lake Placid | T. J. Tollakson (USA) | 8:25:15 | Ben Hoffman (USA) | 8:33:29 | Jason Shortis (AUS) | 8:47:18 |
| UK | Aaron Farlow (AUS) | 8:24:33 | Romain Guillaume (FRA) | 8:41:25 | Nick Saunders (GBR) | 8:51:31 |
| Regensburg | Markus Fachbach (GER) | 8:29:16 | Stefan Riesen (SUI) | 8:36:54 | Frank Vytrisa (GER) | 8:37:11 |
| Louisville | Chris McDonald (AUS) | 8:27:36 | Patrick Evoe (USA) | 8:30:35 | Justin Daerr (USA) | 8:34:35 |
| Canada | Jordan Rapp (USA) | 8:28:09 | Torsten Abel (GER) | 8:41:09 | Bert Jammaer (BEL) | 8:42:34 |

#### Women

| Event | Gold | Time | Silver | Time | Bronze | Time |
| Wisconsin | Gina Crawford (NZL) | 9:27:26 | Kristin Moeller (GER) | 9:39:43 | Mirjam Weerd (NED) | 9:52:25 |
| World Champs 2010 | Mirinda Carfrae (AUS) | 8:58:36 | Caroline Steffen (SUI) | 9:06:00 | Julie Dibens (GBR) | 9:10:04 |
| Florida | Jessica Jacobs (USA) | 9:07:49 | Erika Csomor (HUN) | 9:14:40 | Kim Loeffler (USA) | 9:21:26 |
| Arizona | Chrissie Wellington (GBR) | 8:36:13 | Linsey Corbin (USA) | 9:05:33 | Leanda Cave (GBR) | 9:13:50 |
| Cozumel | Yvonne van Vlerken (NED) | 9:07:25 | Tyler Stewart (USA) | 9:23:44 | Amanda Stevens (USA) | 9:26:35 |
| Western Australia | Kate Bevilaqua (AUS) | 9:19:44 | Rebekah Keat (AUS) | 9:22:37 | Amelia Pearson (AUS) | 9:36:52 |
| New Zealand | Samantha Warriner (NZL) | 9:28:24 | Mirinda Carfrae (AUS) | 9:31:33 | Joanna Lawn (NZL) | 9:31:53 |
| South Africa | Chrissie Wellington (GBR) | 8:33:56 | Rachel Joyce (GBR) | 9:08:23 | Diana Riesler (GER) | 9:20:37 |
| Australia | Caroline Steffen (SUI) | 9:29:54 | Amelia Pearson (AUS) | 9:38:23 | Kirsten Molloy (AUS) | 9:43:55 |
| St. George | Heather Wurtele (CAN) | 9:30:33 | Jackie Arendt (USA) | 10:06:36 | Uli Bromme (GER) | 10:10:48 |
| Lanzarote | Rachel Joyce (GBR) | 9:28:12 | Natascha Badmann (SUI) | 9:43:40 | Karina Ottosen (DEN) | 10:10:15 |
| Texas | Catriona Morrison (GBR) | 8:57:51 | Kelly Williamson (USA) | 9:07:54 | Sofie Goos (BEL) | 9:12:53 |
| Brazil | Amy Marsh (USA) | 9:09:39 | Lucie Zelenková (CZE) | 9:16:14 | Ariane Monticeli (BRA) | 9:19:15 |
| France | Silvia Felt (GER) | 9:34:31 | Martina Dogana (ITA) | 9:45:56 | Kim Loeffler (USA) | 9:53:08 |
| Coeur d'Alene | Julie Dibens (GBR) | 9:16:40 | Caitlin Snow (USA) | 9:29:18 | Haley Cooper-Scott (USA) | 9:56:21 |
| Austria | Mary Beth Ellis (USA) | 8:43:34 | Erika Csomor (HUN) | 8:51:10 | Diana Riesler (GER) | 8:53:34 |
| Switzerland | Karin Thürig (SUI) | 9:03:26 | Amy Marsh (USA) | 9:11:36 | Erika Csomor (HUN) | 9:36:59 |
| Germany | Caroline Steffen (SUI) | 9:12:13 | Lucie Zelenková (CZE) | 9:13:46 | Sonja Tajsich (GER) | 9:14:14 |
| Lake Placid | Heather Wurtele (CAN) | 9:19:03 | Tine Deckers (BEL) | 9:34:41 | Tyler Stewart (USA) | 9:38:09 |
| UK | Kristin Möller (GER) | 9:19:04 | Diana Riesler (GER) | 9:25:41 | Yvette Grice (GBR) | 9:37:32 |
| Regensburg | Mary Beth Ellis (USA) | 9:18:55 | Annett Kamenz (CAN) | 9:28:33 | Nicole Leder (GER) | 9:30:27 |
| Louisville | Nina Kraft (GER) | 9:38:14 | Jackie Arendt (USA) | 9:40:28 | Stephanie Jones (USA) | 9:52:40 |
| Canada | Mary Beth Ellis (USA) | 9:03:13 | Kim Loeffler (USA) | 9:34:54 | Meredith Kessler (USA) | 9:37:22 |