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Kelowna woman crowned champion at Ironman World Championship

65-year-old Laurelee Nelson captured the triathlon title in Hawai on Oct. 12
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A Kelowna woman was crowned the champion of the female age 65-69 age-group at the 2019 Vega Ironman World Championship triathlon in Kailua-Kona Hawaii on Saturday, Oct. 12.

65-year-old Laurelee Nelson completed the triathlon in 12:47:53 (swim: 1:33:34; bike: 6:33:59; run: 4:26:44), beating out the top athletes in her group.

The 2019 field of triathletes tackled the 2.4-mile ocean swim course in Kailua Bay, followed by the Ventum 112-mile bike ride along the Queen Ka’ahumanu Highway from Kailua-Kona to the turnaround in Hawi, capped with a 26.2 mile HOKA ONE ONE run.

The Ironman Championship is the ultimate one-day test of body, mind, and spirit, with around 95,000 athletes competing to qualify at more than 40 global Ironman events each year. This year, nearly 2,500 athletes qualified to compete, hosting athletes from 74 different countries, regions and territories around the world.

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daniel.taylor@kelownacapnews.com

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