Matt Hanson and Lauren Brandon Victorious at IRONMAN Boulder

Matt Hanson and Lauren Brandon Victorious at IRONMAN Boulder

Boulder’s Flatirons provided a picturesque backdrop for athletes from around the world on Sunday at the 2019 IRONMAN Boulder. Matt Hanson (Storm Lake, Iowa) and Lauren Brandon (Fort Worth, Texas) took the top honors with finishing times of 7:57:03 and 9:09:09, respectively. Both of their finish times marked new course-bests, and Brandon’s victory was her first full-distance IRONMAN win.

Top five professional men’s results:

    SWIM BIKE RUN FINISH
1. Matt Hanson USA 00:54:01 04:09:18 02:48:35 07:57:03  
2. Kennett Peterson USA 00:54:11 04:07:59 02:54:52 08:01:35  
3. Timothy O’Donnell USA 00:49:46 04:09:23 03:05:33 08:09:37  
4. Tripp Hipple USA 00:54:17 04:15:43 03:02:05 08:17:42  
5. Sam Long                USA 00:54:09 04:08:45 03:12:54 08:19:54  

Top five professional women’s results:

    SWIM BIKE RUN FINISH
1. Lauren Brandon USA 00:48:43 04:38:06 03:36:34 09:09:09
2. Lesley Smith USA 00:55:49 05:08:37 03:11:56 09:26:12
3. Danielle Mack USA 01:04:50 04:55:12 03:26:07 09:32:08
4. Uli Bromme USA 01:06:32 04:59:36 03:29:54 09:43:17
5. Erin Green USA 01:04:49 05:02:56 03:36:37 09:52:02

The 2019 IRONMAN Boulder triathlon saw nearly 1,200 athletes representing 45 states and 33 countries, regions, and territories start the race. One of more than 40 events in the global IRONMAN Series, athletes took on a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike and 26.2-mile run beginning at the Boulder Reservoir.

Athletes traveled throughout Boulder County into the heart of downtown Boulder winding through the Boulder Creek Trail culminating with a spectacular finish downtown on 13th Street at Central Park.  

The swim took place in the calm waters of the Boulder Reservoir, while the multi-loop bike course contained within Boulder County featured several pronounced climbs that made for a challenging ride. Athletes then set out on a winding run course through residential neighborhoods and the Boulder Creek Trail that provided opportunities for cheering from spectators and family members.

The day ended with an electric finish along 13th Street in downtown Boulder. The event offered a professional prize purse of $40,000 USD as well as 40 coveted age-group qualifying slots to the 2019 IRONMAN World Championship, taking place on Oct. 12, 2019 in Kailua-Kona, Hawai`i.